Press Releases

A time of transition: RIN annual review 2009

The RIN's second annual review has just been published and covers our project work and other activities during 2009, and gives you a preview of our work for 2010.

The RIN supports the development of effective information strategies and practices for the UK's research community. Through conducting research, providing guidance and promoting innovation, we aim to meet the needs of researchers, institutions, funders, information professionals and everyone who plays a role in the research information landscape.

The theme of transition ran through much of the work that we undertook during 2009.This is a time when everyone involved in research information is having to adapt and respond to changes in policy, practice and culture. Our major projects covered the use, value and impact of e-journals, gaps in access to information resources, case studies of information use in the life sciences and a study on how bibliographic records are generated distributed and used. We also undertook and produced a range of other projects, events and publications.

These are exciting times for those with a stake in the research information landscape. We need to be ready to embrace these opportunities and prepared to address challenges and issues that arise. Providing advice and guidance to the research community continues to be a major part of our work.

Referencing made easy

17 May 2010 – A new piece of software to help students and universities manage academic references more easily has been developed by the Open University and its partners.

Funded by JISC, and made in collaboration with RefWorks, the web-based research management, writing and collaboration tool, the OU has developed MyReferences to simplify referencing.

Lawrie Phipps, programme manager at JISC, said: “Writing up references can be a really time-consuming activity for the student and researcher – but it’s essential to avoid plagiarism, develop robust scholarship and lead the reader to other relevant work. This resource is one aspect of a huge investment from JISC which aims to spark innovative solutions to issues like referencing that affect people working up and down the country, in order to inspire and help other UK colleges and universities.”

MyReferences integrates tools from the widely-used RefWorks reference management software into the Moodle virtual learning environment which is used in academic institutions across the UK to support online learning.

Nicky Whitsed, director of library services at the OU, said: “For students, this means helping them to adopt good practice in organising and managing references and using citations appropriately in their work. And for universities this new and easy reference management system will help to tackle plagiarism by making referencing easier; encourage information literacy; and help libraries to improve reference management for courses”.

The MyReferences software is open source, making it free for any institution to download, tailor to their own needs and integrate into their own learning environments. The software is part of the 'technology enhanced learning supporting students to achieve academic rigour' (TELSTAR) project.

There are already a number of general referencing tools available to students, but MyReferences takes the usability of these tools a step further by integrating them into online courses so the materials students commonly need to reference are already available in the format they need. Students simply select the sources they need to reference, the referencing style their institution requires and then copy and paste the result into their assignment.

See a visual demonstration of MyReferences at <http://www.open.ac.uk/blogs/telstar/telstar-quick-demonstration/>

Find out more about events planned to share information about TELSTAR and developments in the field of reference management at <http://www.open.ac.uk/telstar/event>

Digital Libraries a la Carte

From 26 to 30 July 2010, Ticer’s international summer course "Digital Libraries à la Carte" will be held at Tilburg University, the Netherlands. The course is officially recommended by JISC.

The programme of this annual event for librarians and publishers is completely renewed. The course modules cover:

• strategic developments and library management
• the library in the scholar's workflow and research data
• libraries - partners in teaching and learning
• mobile technologies in education and library
• Web 2.0 and linked data in libraries

The course website can be found at www.tilburguniversity.nl/ticer/2010. The course brochure can be found at http://www.tilburguniversity.nl/ticer/2010/Ticerbrochure2010.pdf Those registering before 1 May 2010 will get a 150 euro discount.

Oxford Bibliographies Online

www.oxfordbibliographiesonline.com

In recent years, the explosion of original research and its increasing accessibility through new technologies is a blessing for scholars—but also a tremendous challenge. For faculty, students and librarians querying new areas of research, the most pressing challenge for researchers at all levels is sifting through and managing the immense amount of material available online. “With the growing ease of digital access and dissemination, scholars and students are increasingly overwhelmed by the enormous volume of academic material available to them,” noted Nigel Portwood, OUP’s Chief Executive. “The need for responsible and sophisticated filters has become critical. Oxford Bibliographies Online represents a significant step forward in providing meaningful navigation through the vast body of research material accessible on the web.”

Oxford Bibliographies Online—a series of intuitive and easy-to-use “ultimate reading lists” is designed to help users navigate vast seas of information. OUP’s first online-only product goes beyond search algorithms to present bibliographies in several disciplines selected by leading subject experts and vetted by the highest professional standards.

The result of extensive interviews with librarians, numerous focus groups and market research, Oxford Bibliographies Online extend a centuries-long mission of supporting excellence in research, scholarship and education. Oxford Bibliographies Online will help scholars increase productivity, save time and elevate the quality of their work, while enabling them to more efficiently engage with platforms like Google Books.

• Classics, Islamic Studies, Social Work, and Criminology will launch Oxford Bibliographies Online (OBO), with an additional 10-12 subject areas (modules) scheduled to launch within the next year

• 50-100 entries per subject at launch (equivalent of a 4-volume print encyclopedia)

• Modules forthcoming in May 2010: Atlantic History, Renaissance & Reformation, and Philosophy

• Every subject area has an Editor-in-Chief and Editorial Board

• Each entry receives multiple peer reviews and board vetting

• Each Individual entry provides expert recommendations through key literature on a specialized sub-topic. It features an annotated bibliography broken into subjections, each preceded by context-setting text introducing the entries that follow

• All entries are selective, rather than exhaustive

• Entries provide cataloging of non-print material, especially online resources, critical to the entry

• Updated and revised quarterly, with 50-75 entries added per year to each subject area.

• Linking on multiple levels facilitates movement to other resources, whether online or available through a library’s catalogue.