E-book pioneer and advocate David Rothman’s commentary shines a critical light on the reading habits of Microsoft founder Bill Gates who reads his average 50 books each year, in print format. The potential impact of Microsoft in the e-book market as well as in funding support of e-books for public libraries has been muted. Rothman’s insights include hope to win over much needed support for free public sector digital libraries.
3D printing is a growth market – for vendors, consumers, and for public libraries (providing them in combination with maker spaces – “a shared work area where people build things collaboratively.”) Within the sphere of this innovative technology there is growing recognition that 3D printing can produce objects covered by specific particular patents. This new area of copyright infringement is the focus of Alan Rothman’s article.
Learning new skills to support more effective engagement in a competitive job market has attracted many job seekers and employees to online education, most often through Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs). Alan Rothman is proficient in the arena of e-learning and expands the discussion of what courses are available to how they are accredited and subsequently whether they are recognized by potential employers.
Marcus Zillman’s comprehensive, actionable guide provides links to hundreds of resources that assist students of all ages to leverage free and low cost resources to facilitate more efficient, effective learning – either as an individual, as part of a team, in a classroom, or as a member of a project oriented group. Whether you are seeking best practices for individual or team study – including guides, apps, wikis, tutorials, links to free courses and academic topical and subject guides, or how to locate e-text books and how to correctly create bibliographies and citations, this guide has all this information and so much more. If you are a student, an educator, a librarian or a researcher, these resources, many of which are from colleges, universities, libraries and schools, will expand your horizons and support your effort to be a creative, innovative, successful learner.