With something in the neighborhood of 40 million pages of legal decisions dating back to the Colonial period, the Harvard Law Library is rivaled only by the Library of Congress in its scope. While most of the cases contained therein are also public domain, they are also either accessible only in hard-copy or by paying for a digital copy. Harvard’s Free the Law project aims to make all 40 million pages of its library available for free on the internet.

The possibility of such access is in keeping with the spirit of the law. The law is defined as a set of rules and regulations established in a community and applicable to its people. It is meant to help bring order to the community without doing it harm. When access to the letter of the law is no longer free, this contravenes the law itself. Yet, the access this project creates may cost more than those working on it intend. In partnership with legal startup Ravel Law, Harvard wishes to have the project done in just two years, at the cost of its physical library. There will also be other hiccups this unfettered access will create.

Sacrifices to Scanners

For eight years, I worked as an electronic content manager and records analyst for the planning and development arm of a mid-sized municipality. My main duties were to digitize records and conduct research. My colleagues and I digitized everything from permits for homes to large-scale commercial planning projects.

There were days, however, where we worked on historical projects like Free the Law, scanning historical documents for research for other departments in the organization. This is why I shed imaginary tears for Harvard Law’s physical library. No matter the precautions you take when disassembling a book, the older it is, the more likely it will not survive the scanning process. The article in The N.Y. Times admits that all but the rarest books are being digitized, and spines are being reattached by Harvard’s book surgeons, their archivists.

Yet not all the tomes will make it. High-speed scanners are notorious for what I like to call “eating pages.”  Every day I scanned, even the hardiest of documents would shred through the wheels of my equipment.

Too Much Information

Because of my experiences with high-speed document scanners, I may be thinking a tad overdramatically regarding the losses of Harvard Law’s case library. As a content manager, the potential access certainly outweighs the possibility of a few hundred shredded book pages.

Having access to records like Harvard’s law library can assist in crime mapping on more than one level. Once digitized and indexed, scholars, lawyers, and researchers will be able to search the databases for an endless amount of terms, including locations. This will allow for crime analysis on a much grander scale than Ravel Law already allows with its own search visualization tool.

The case law database will also give the public and those with non-legal backgrounds the ability to search United States case law. Without a legal background, Free the Law might turn into a case of too much information.

Users who do not have training in either legal or database research may be overwhelmed by the technical aspects of using the resource. According to Harvard Law and Ravel, research on the database will involve search strings, and knowing Boolean modifiers and advanced search operators may come in handy.

The database will also be so comprehensive that it will include case law that has likely outlived their relevance. Cases are typically only helpful in setting precedent for around twenty years. After they are settled, their value depreciates about 85 percent during those twenty years.

Providing access to case law as old as 200 or 300 years old may end up muddying the legal waters rather than clearing them.

A Little Education

In order for Free the Law to be truly free, Harvard Law and Ravel will need to begin educating potential users on a variety of topics. The public, who may be curious about case law in a particular state, will need to learn legal terms such as abeyance and privileged will.

Since Free the Law is meant for the layperson as well as the legal professional, terms such as these, which pertain to everyday things like businesses and wills, must be understandable at the start. To do the research, users will also have to learn advanced electronic research techniques. Because the books will no longer be accessible, flipping pages for a glossary or an index will no longer be so simple.

Without this kind of preparation, I fear that the work going into Free the Law will go to waste. Otherwise, the law will continue to be accessed only by the privileged few.

Sources:

“Harvard Law School launches ‘Free the Law’ project with Ravel Law to digitize US case law, provide free access.” Harvard Law Today, October 29, 2015.

Echholm, Erik. “Harvard Law Library Readies Trove of Decisions for Digital Age.” The New York Times, October 28, 2015.

Sheppard, Brian. “Why Digitizing Harvard’s Law Library May Not Improve Access to Justice.” Bloomberg BNA, November 12, 2015.

Resources:

Ravel Law

Searching with a Search Engine

Crime Mapping, Demographics of Illegal Activity

Legal Terms and Meanings

The post More Access to the Law, But at What Cost? first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

Outernet is a satellite-based alternative to the Internet, a service common in the first world but virtually nonexistent in many places. According to Thane Richard, publisher and COO at Outernet, up to 80% of the world’s population is without access to unfettered internet. This includes people in China whose Internet is highly censored, people who live in areas with access to mobile Internet but who cannot afford the data plan to receive it, and people who live in remote areas that the Internet has not yet reached.

On the other hand, the Outernet broadcast can be accessed by anyone with a satellite dish and an Outernet receiver. The signal is sent to seven satellites, providing global coverage. Outernet can broadcast up to 1 GB of data per day globally, and up to 100 GB per day over Africa and Europe.

What users receive from Outernet is more like a radio broadcast than like the Internet you’re reading this post on right now. Instead of being able to access everything ever written at any time, Outernet sends out bins of data on a regular basis, like a song on the radio. These bins are full of files including documents, songs, podcasts, photos, and videos. The files can be accessed as they are received via a user’s device, queued up to access later, or permanently stored to the receiver. An example of the feed you would see on your device is available here.

Outernet receivers can be built at home with a Raspberry Pi or purchased from Outernet. Outernet is currently selling a basic receiver called Lighthouse as well as a do-it-yourself kit. To access the information broadcast and stored on the devices, which act as Wi-Fi hotspots, a user must also have a Wi-Fi-enabled device with a browser to view the feed.

A recent Indiegogo campaign raised funds for a receiver called Lantern, which will have a built-in antenna for limited mobile data access in addition to satellite access. It will then charge the mobile devices needed to access the data.

Outernet has its roots in the library world. It was founded in early 2014 by CEO Syed Karim, who holds an MS in Information Science, and the operating system the receivers run on is called Librarian. Outernet even bills itself as “Humanity’s Public Library”, offering information to users exactly at their point of need.

With that billing, Outernet takes its collection development seriously. Outernet employees work to develop a core collection of files, including news in multiple languages, textbooks, high-quality Wikipedia articles, and videos from creators like Khan Academy. The majority of the rest of the broadcast content is decided on by the public, who can request certain types of information and also vote on the best files that fit that request. A recent edit-a-thon held live in Uganda and Guatemala and remotely online added thirty bins of content in four different languages.

Some of the content is sponsored by various companies or by individuals to provide funding for Outernet’s work. This sponsored content is currently less than and will not exceed 25% of the broadcast, according to Richard.

Anyone who wants to sponsor content can upload files, including Twitter feeds, at uplink.outernet.is. To add content for free, check out the submission rules at https://wiki.outernet.is/wiki/Edit_Outernet. To donate to the Outernet project, visit donate.outernet.is.

Sources

Outernet Blog. Accessed August 14, 2015.

Outernet Wiki. Accessed August 14, 2015.

Richard, Thane. E-mail interview by author. August 6, 2015.

The post Outernet: “Humanity’s Public Library” first appeared on Public Libraries Online.

My original plan this month was to write about “Outreach to People with Disabilities.” Yet that subject was soon replaced by a topic that preempts and precedes the concept of disability outreach: attitudinal barriers to library accessibility. While none of us sets out to block library accessibility with our attitude, attitude does in fact inform decisions about all library products and services. This mindset may unconsciously affect planning for library remodels and new facilities; how we present our physical and virtual collections; how we plan and market public programs; how we determine assistive technology needs, and whether to conduct outreach to people with disabilities. Attitude has a direct bearing on how we deliver all of our library products and services, but disability awareness should inform and support our ability to provide the best library service and materials possible.

Taking steps to include people of all abilities in public library programs and activities changes the outlook of both staff and visitors. We know in our personal lives that attitude shapes our thoughts and motives, so why would it not also affect decisions we make for our libraries? The goal of this discussion is to bring attitude into our awareness radar. Library accessibility first requires the level of awareness that places us as leaders in access, rather than reactors to accessibility issues. The difference between leading in access and reacting to accessibility begins with disability awareness. Considering the needs for all types of learners when planning library programs, activities, materials, and online services promotes the idea that increased access for people with disabilities means increased access for all. Planning for library accessibility opens doors to diverse and broad community connections. Moreover, it ensures people get connected with libraries, our goal!

Libraries that address access concerns during planning phases will face fewer challenges that result from accessibility blunders. Some of the most common reasons we review accessibility in our libraries include: Strategic priorities, legal requirements; demand from an individual or groups; or the topic is trending and brings renewed awareness. Most hasty accessibility quick fixes could be avoided if attitudes were honed for inclusion from the beginning. This not only applies to facility access, but when planning story times and other popular programs. Since we know that nearly 20% of the US population has one or more disabilities, we can assume people in our communities appreciate efforts toward access and inclusion. It’s not that libraries intentionally set out to ignore access issues, but inclusivity may not be considered early enough in the process of planning, training, and implementation of programs and activities. When accessibility demands originate from an individual or group, we often react as a result of that demand and consider it fixed until further notice. With library accessibility planted in the forefront of our minds, we will be ready to provide programs and services for people with disabilities before they are requested.

We can make huge strides in library accessibility beginning with our own attitude. Customer service delivered with the right attitude, one of inclusion and acceptance, can be easily accomplished. What will be remembered by library visitors is the attitude library staff conveyed, not the information shared. Consider the following attitudinal helps for providing a welcoming library experience:

• Share a friendly face
• Converse with a nonjudgmental look
• Provide encouragement and acceptance during the reference interview
• Make eye contact
• Acknowledge the importance of the person and their information request
• Abandon assumptions about physical or intellectual disabilities in favor of making a personal connection
• Relax and throw away fears that stem from lack of expertise

Source:

Nearly 1 in 5 People Have a Disability in the U.S., Census Bureau Reports, https://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/miscellaneous/cb12-134.html

The post Making an Attitudinal Change to Disabilities first appeared on Public Libraries Online.