Confessions of a Mad Librarian

Defective by Design is a campaign by the Free Software Foundation to highlight user-unfriendly features caused by digital rights management (DRM) and certain other IP-protective but anti-consumer practices.

DbD is calling on libraries to remove DRM tech from collections:

Recently, we took action against the Boston Public Library (BPL) demanding that they embargo the use of DRM technology on their collection and create a policy that respects the motto that hangs above their door: "free-to-all." To send a message to all libraries that they too should respect their patrons' freedom, we urge you to sign our open letter. To take action against your local library, we urge you to customize a letter from our template.

Please, let us know if you have contacted or written your local library, and please let your friends and fellow patrons know about the open letter.

In solidarity,

Josh, John, Matt, Peter, and the DRM Elimination Crew.

Color me supportive but skeptical. Making people more aware of DRM and how it can inhibit reasonable and fair use of material is a good thing. And hasn't DRM died already? But unless I'm much mistaken, DRM isn't added by the libraries directly or even at their sole discretion - the publishers/vendors want it, they add it in and they may even control what gets shut off or turned on and under which parameters. Libraries seem to be a bit downstream of the process.

But if libraries are willing to add their voices to the DRM mix, so much the better ...

Posted by Eli at 12:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Thank you, Brewster!

FBI Withdraws Unconstitutional National Security Letter After ACLU and EFF Challenge Gag Order Lifted on Internet Archive, Allowing Founder to Speak Out for First Time

San Francisco - The FBI has withdrawn an unconstitutional national security letter (NSL) issued to the Internet Archive after a legal challenge from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF). As the result of a settlement agreement, the FBI withdrew the NSL and agreed to the unsealing of the case, finally allowing the Archive's founder to speak out for the first time about his battle against the record demand.

"The free flow of information is at the heart of every library's work. That's why Congress passed a law limiting the FBI's power to issue NSLs to America's libraries," said Brewster Kahle, founder and Digital Librarian of the Internet Archive. "While it's never easy standing up to the government -- particularly when I was barred from discussing it with anyone -- I knew I had to challenge something that was clearly wrong. I'm grateful that I am able now to talk about what happened to me, so that other libraries can learn how they can fight back from these overreaching demands."

The NSL was served on the Archive -- a digital library recognized by the state of California -- and its attorneys in November of 2007. The letter asked for personal information about one of the Archive's users, including the individual's name, address, and any electronic communication transactional records pertaining to the user. Kahle, who is also a member of EFF's Board of Directors, decided to fight the NSL because it exceeded the FBI's limited authority to issue such demands to libraries.

Posted by Eli at 01:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

A message from SLA:

SLA Needs Your Immediate Help: Support Orphan Works Legislation (but oppose “dark archive”)

If you have a representative serving on the U.S House of Representatives “Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property,” please contact them in support of the proposed Orphan Works Legislation, but in opposition to the "dark archive" that is proposed in the House version of H.R. 5889.

Go to http://capwiz.com/sla/home/ for full details, listing of Subcommittee members, and draft letter for electronic submission.

Posted by Eli at 01:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)