Google to shut down Spaces; first glimpse of new video conferencing app
Google has announced that it will be shutting down Spaces, the app for small group sharing, on 17 April. From 3 March, users will be unable to create new spaces, posts or comments, send new invitations, or invite new members. Until 17 April users will be able to see, save, print and delete content; after that date all Spaces and their content will be deleted.
Google said "Our goal with Spaces was to create a better small-group sharing experience, and we’ll use what we’ve learned to improve other Google products and services". https://support.google.com/spaces/answer/7326586?hl=en
Also this week details emerged of Google's new video conferencing app aimed at businesses, called Meet. No formal announcement has been made but TechCrunch speculates that the web and mobile app will be the latest addition to the search giant’s G Suite products aimed at business users.
Consortium of Swiss Academic Libraries joins Portico
Portico and the Consortium of Swiss Academic Libraries (CSAL) have announced an agreement that brings all CSAL primary member libraries in as participants in Portico, the digital preservation archive. The ten year agreement covers the state universities in Switzerland, the Federal Institutes of Technology Domain, as well as the Universities of Applied Sciences and the Swiss National Library.
Dr. Rafael Ball, Library Director at ETH Zurich and project manager of CSAL said that securing continued and complete access to e-resources was fundamental for successful research and education in Switzerland, and that the agreement emphasised the importance that the Swiss institutions place on adopting a nationwide strategy for the long-term preservation of e-resources.
More than 900 libraries from 21 countries participate in Portico, together with more than 400 publishers representing over 2,000 societies and associations.
http://www.portico.org/digital-preservation/news-events/news/consortium-of-swiss-academic-libraries-joins-portico
Future Science Group launches online knowledge hub for infectious diseases
Future Science Group (FSG) has announced the launch of their new medical microbiology resource, Infectious Diseases Hub (ID Hub).
ID Hub, powered by FSG Connect, is an online knowledge hub providing research and information on key aspects of virology and microbiology. It will provide free access to breaking news, peer-reviewed content from FSG’s journals Future Microbiology and Future Virology, interviews and exclusive comment. It will also feature multimedia content, infoographics and a disease tracker, which allows users to follow ongoing research in key emerging areas such as Zika, MERS-CoV and chikungunya.
https://www.id-hub.com/register/
SAGE Video adds Sociology, and Criminology and Criminal Justice collections.
SAGE Publishing has announced the addition of two new collections to its SAGE Video social sciences library of streaming videos.
The two new collections focus on Sociology, and Criminolgy and Criminal Justice and will be hosted on the SAGE Knowledge platform. Each collection features more than 115 hours of streaming video content, with more than 65% being exclusive to SAGE.
Both collections feature videos from leaders in the field, as well as licensed film content from sources including BBC Worldwide, the Oral History Criminology Project, ITN and the Center for New American Media. https://uk.sagepub.com/en-gb/eur/press/sage-video-grows-with-new-collections-in-sociology-and-criminology-criminal-justice
Jisc appoints new trustees
Three new trustees have been added to the board of Jisc, the UK's expert body for digital technology and digital resources in higher education.
The new trustees are Professor Liz Barnes, vice-chancellor and chief executive at Staffordshire University; Susan Bowen , vice-president and general manager at cloud computing provider Cogeco Peer 1; and Rob McWilliam who was previously vice-president of consumables at Amazon UK and also finance director of ASDA.
https://www.jisc.ac.uk/news/jisc-appoints-new-trustees-to-join-the-digital-revolution-28-feb-2017