Sparky Award Winners Announced, press release, February 3, 2009.

Joseph Storch, Needed: A Single Electronic Source for Textbooks, Chronicle of Higher Education , February 6, 2009 (accessible only to subscribers).  Excerpt: Most of the article focuses on textbooks, which students now buy directly from publishers.  But in a few places Storch implies that he'd like to see the same solution for journals, which students do not buy directly from publishers: PS:

Charles Lowry, Let's Spur Recovery by Investing in Information, Chronicle of Higher Education , February 6, 2009 (accessible only to subscribers).  Lowry is executive director of the Association of Research Libraries.  Excerpt: PS:  This article is adapted from a piece Lowry co-wrote last month with Prue Adler, Establish a Universal, Open Library or Digital Data Commons.

The US National Association of Government Archives and Records Administrators (NAGARA) has launched NAGARA Resources, an OA repository for documents about archives.  (Thanks to Klaus Graf.)

Reason Papers is converting to OA, starting retroactively with the Fall 2007 issue.  More details from Stephan Kinsella (thanks to Kimmo Kuusela): PS:  Just 10 days ago libertarians launched a new OA journal, Libertarian Papers.

The Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana is converting the Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani to gratis OA.

Yesterday Rep. John Conyers (D-MI) re-introduced the Fair Copyright in Research Works Act.  This year it's H.R. 801 (last year it was H.R. 6845), and co-sponsored by Steve Cohen (D-TN), Trent Franks (R-AZ), Darrell Issa (R-CA), and Robert Wexler (D-FL).  The language has not changed.  The Fair Copyright Act is to fair copyright what the Patriot Act was to patriotism.

The University of Bath has launched Opus, its institutional repository.  (Thanks to Kara Jones.)

Paula J. Hane, Open Solutions for Libraries Gain Momentum, Information Today, February 2, 2009.

Jack M. Balkin, The Future of Free Expression in a Digital Age, Pepperdine Law Review , Vol. 36, 2008.

Jonathan Miller, Blogging from Midwinter -- 2, The Director's Blog, January 24, 2009. Notes from the American Library Association Midwinter Meeting (Denver, January 23-28, 2009) on SCOAP3 and OERs.