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For the third year in a row, early November found me enjoying several days in Charleston, SC, while attending the Charleston Conference. This year, however, my conference travel was extended, as I also attended the inaugural meeting of the Cambridge University Press North American Advisory Board prior to the Charleston Conference, so I had six days to enjoy the gorgeous fall weather at the coast…and by fall, I mean mid-80s temps that felt more like July than November!

The CUP board meeting was a day-long event on Tuesday, November 1, and while I cannot share specifics of all we discussed, I can share that I was encouraged by the day’s discourse. I felt free to share my perspectives on the challenges and changes in scholarly publishing, particularly as I see them from an intellectual property standpoint, and I felt that our discussions were open and the librarians’ contributions were well-received by the CUP staff. I look forward to serving on this advisory board.

The Charleston Conference proper kicked off on Wednesday with the Vendor Showcase, during which I touched base with a couple of vendors/publishers I knew, collected some information from others, and had pleasant conversations with several reps. The heart of the conference, though, happens Thursday through Saturday, and while I didn’t learn anything earth-shattering, I was encouraged to hear that some of the issues I’ve been discussing in my scholcomm circles for awhile now are also making their way into broader conversations across librarianship:

• Instead of collecting what our users need, perhaps we need to shift to collect what our scholars produce, building a network of local repositories whereby all the world’s knowledge would be captured; copyright reform is critical to achieve this vision. (Plenary: You Can’t Preserve What You Don’t Have–Or Can You? Libraries as Infrastructure for Perpetual Access to Intellectual Output; Anja Smit, University Librarian, Utrecht University)
• Build community around your content: cultivate the connections between your content and the larger information ecosystem (Concurrent: The Right Stuff a the Right Cost and for the Right Reasons)
• “Invest in yourself first” retirement investment strategy should also apply to library collections (Concurrent: The Right Stuff a the Right Cost and for the Right Reasons)
• Libraries claim to be open access supporters, but we do a poor job promoting open access resources to our patrons [YEP!] (Neapolitan: Access to Freely Available Journal Articles: Gold, Green and Rogue Open Access across the Disciplines)
• If we shift focus to USERS of OA content and make it easier for them, might in turn make them more willing to be PRODUCERS of OA content (Neapolitan: Access to Freely Available Journal Articles: Gold, Green and Rogue Open Access across the Disciplines)
• Even institutions engaged in Digital Humanities work for years now don’t have good sustainability plans (Lively Lunch: How to Play a More Active Role in Digital Humanities Research)
• Concept of “book” versus “journal” not as clear as some might think; all containers are somewhat artificial (Concurrent: Content as a Community Asset: What Happens When It Loses Its Traditional Container?)
• Publisher’s brand is a container, too [YES!!!] (Concurrent: Content as a Community Asset: What Happens When It Loses Its Traditional Container?)
  • [This is why we need publishers to shift from products to services as the “containers” of scholarship change – MK observation]
• Text & data mining (TDM)=gift with purchase; TDM language starting to be included in licensing agreements (Concurrent: Walled Gardens and Digital Playgrounds: Who’s Playing in the World of Text and Data Mining?)

If anyone wants to chat about any of the above, let me know. Oh, and I do have restaurant recommendations to share, if needed, ‘cause Charleston=GOOD EATS!