The attached message will be of interest to those thinking about the
question of rights in ownership of material created by academic staff.
- - - - - - - Forwarded Message Follows
- - - - - - - Date: Fri, 20 Sep 1996 15:47:23 -0700 (PDT)
From: Phil Agre <[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: faculty rights in electronic publication
Reply-to: [log in to unmask]
[Larry Press, a well-known Internet innovator over many years, recently had
his Web pages appropriated by his university, and he wants to know if others
have had similar experiences.]
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Date: Fri, 20 Sep 1996 11:57:02 -0800 (PST)
From: [log in to unmask]
[...]
=====
The Right to Academic Network Access
I am a professor, and when I returned to campus for the first day of
the semester, I switched on my PC and launched Netscape. The browser
tried to link to the Web site my students and I had designed and built
for my School, but it was not found. Figuring the server had crashed,
I looked for our support person.
But, there had been no crash. An associate dean had decided to turn
my site off, and create a new Web presence for the School. The
appearance and organization would be changed, but my content would be
used. The old server would be turned off and my material deleted once
the copying was complete. They estimated this would take only a few
days, and the old domain name would become an alias for new site.
My first reaction was astonishment at the professional disrespect, but
on reflection, this incident raises a much more important concern. I
have put intellectual property on university-owned computers which can
only be accessed over university-owned and controlled communication
links. This leaves me feeling very vulnerable.
This action cost me in several ways:
1. I lost time. The server had information on faculty, students,
staff, departments, and academic programs, and was built during a
sustained, part-time effort over a year. The design and
organization also required considerable planning and revision. I
undertook the project to provide a realistic project for students
and as a service to the school, and was not compensated.
2. I lost teaching material, and my teaching plans were disrupted. I
used the site as an major example in discussing design tradeoffs,
and had planned to extend it this term with database access,
streaming audio, communication with international applicants, etc.
3. I lost visibility, because the change invalidates my URL. I have
given my URL in many articles and talks, on business cards, the
Internet, etc., and it is indexed in network directories.
Invalidating my URL makes it difficult for others to find my work.
I have lost intellectual capital, as if lecture notes had been destroyed
and articles expunged from library shelves. There was no financial gain
from this action -- I suppose the currency is bureaucratic credit. The
faculty/administration power balance has shifted a bit.
The university might argue that they have a right to do what they wish
with their equipment; however, I have been damaged. I had been open
in my server design, and they knew what I had on it. I have lost
time, must develop new teaching material, and my professional standing
is diminished each time someone unsuccessfully seeks my home page.
This incident could have been avoided had there been an agreement
covering faculty rights in electronic access (analogous to an
acceptable use policy restricting faculty). For example, I would like
the right to publish scholarly writing and teaching material on the
Internet as long as I do not violate specified legal or ethical
standards. This requires the availability of storage and physical
connection and accessibility. Using today's standards, the material
would have to be on a host connected to the Internet with IP protocols
and accessible via the DNS. There should also be guarantees of
continued accessibility in the event that, say, information is moved
to a new computer, a file structure is altered, or one changes jobs.
Academic freedom and credit for intellectual accomplishment are at the
heart of the university. However, those of us who have seen
universities from the inside have seen our share of petty political
games and power struggles. Faculty vulnerability will increase if, in
the future, scholarly work migrates from print journals and
proceedings to electronic media controlled by university
administrators and teaching material moves from textbooks and
notebooks to the Net. We need cultural norms and explicit agreements
and guarantees for university-based electronic publication.
Let me close with two questions:
1. Have others had similar experiences on their campuses?
2. Have any schools addressed these issues, and written guidelines
stating faculty rights in electronic access?
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