<div dir="ltr"><div>Colleagues,<br><br></div>I have hesitated to throw cold water on the 3D printing hype, and I've waited for some expressions of skepticism. I've not seen it yet, so:<br><br>1.<a href="http://gizmodo.com/why-3d-printing-is-overhyped-i-should-know-i-do-it-fo-508176750">http://gizmodo.com/why-3d-printing-is-overhyped-i-should-know-i-do-it-fo-508176750</a><br><a href="http://mondediplo.com/2013/03/10makers">http://mondediplo.com/2013/03/10makers</a><br><br></div><div class="gmail_extra"><br><div class="gmail_quote">On Wed, Jan 7, 2015 at 2:44 PM, Diedre Conkling <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:diedre08@gmail.com" target="_blank">diedre08@gmail.com</a>></span> wrote:<br><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex"><div dir="ltr"><div><a href="http://www.districtdispatch.org/2015/01/oitp-releases-report-exploring-policy-implications-3d-printing/" target="_blank">http://www.districtdispatch.org/2015/01/oitp-releases-report-exploring-policy-implications-3d-printing/</a></div><div><br></div><div><h1><span>OITP releases report exploring policy implications of 3D printing</span></h1><p><span>Posted by: <a title="" href="http://www.districtdispatch.org/author/cwapner/" target="_blank"><font color="#4d84b3">Charles Wapner </font></a></span> <span>January 6, 2015</span> <span>in <a href="http://www.districtdispatch.org/category/intellectual-freedom/" rel="category tag" target="_blank"><font color="#4d84b3">Intellectual Freedom</font></a>, <a href="http://www.districtdispatch.org/category/oitp/" rel="category tag" target="_blank"><font color="#4d84b3">OITP</font></a></span> </p><div></div><div><p>3D printers can do incredible things – from creating food, to rendering human organs, to building spare parts for the International Space Station. A small but growing number of libraries make 3D printers available as a library service. Library 3D printers may not be able to make you a pizza (yes, that’s possible) or operate in zero gravity, but they are being used to do some pretty amazing things in their own right. Library users are building functioning prosthetic limbs, creating product prototypes and making educational models for use in classwork.</p><p>While 3D printing technology is advancing at a meteoric pace, policymakers are just beginning to develop frameworks for its use. This presents the library community with an exciting opportunity—as providers of 3D printing services to the public, we can begin to shape the policy that coalesces around this technology in the years to come.</p><p>To advance this work, ALA’s Office for Information Technology Policy (OITP) today released “<a href="http://www.ala.org/offices/sites/ala.org.offices/files/content/3D%20Library%20Policy-ALA%20OITP%20Perspectives-2015Jan06.pdf" target="_blank"><font color="#4d84b3">Progress in the Making: 3D Printing Policy Considerations through the Library Lens</font></a>,” a report that examines numerous policy implications of 3D printing, including those related to intellectual property, intellectual freedom and product liability. The report seeks to provide library professionals with the knowledge they need to craft 3D printer user policies that minimize liability risks while encouraging users to innovate, learn and have fun.</p><p>The report states:</p><blockquote><p>“As this technology continues to take off, library staff should continue to encourage patrons to harness it to provide innovative health care solutions, launch business ventures and engage in creative learning. In order to do so, library staff must have a clear understanding of basic 3D printer mechanics; the current and potential future uses of 3D printers inside and outside of library walls; and the economic and public policy considerations regarding 3D printing.”</p></blockquote><p>ALA’s Office for <a href="http://www.ala.org/offices/oif" target="_blank"><font color="#4d84b3">Intellectual Freedom</font></a> contributed a piece to the report entitled, “Intellectual Freedom and Library Values,” which offers guidance to library professionals seeking to craft a 3D printer acceptable use policy that accords with the fundamental library value of free expression. Additionally, Tomas A. Lipinski, dean and professor at University of Wisconsin—Milwaukee’s School of Information, provides a sample warning notice that libraries may use with patrons to demonstrate awareness of the legal issues involved in the use of 3D printing technologies in libraries.</p><p>The report was released as part of the OITP <a href="http://www.ala.org/offices/oitp/publications/oitpperspectives" target="_blank"><font color="#4d84b3">Perspectives series</font></a> of short publications that discuss and analyze specialized policy topics. It is the second publication in ALA’s “Progress in the Making” series, an effort to elucidate the policy implications of 3D printing in the library context. The first document was a <a href="http://www.ala.org/offices/sites/ala.org.offices/files/content/3d_printing_tipsheet_version_9_Final.pdf" target="_blank"><font color="#4d84b3">tip sheet</font></a> jointly released by OITP, the Public Library Association and United for Libraries.</p></div></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><a href="http://www.districtdispatch.org/2015/01/oitp-releases-report-exploring-policy-implications-3d-printing/" target="_blank">http://www.districtdispatch.org/2015/01/oitp-releases-report-exploring-policy-implications-3d-printing/</a><span class="HOEnZb"><font color="#888888"><br clear="all"><br>-- <br></font></span></div><span class="HOEnZb"><font color="#888888"><div><div><em><span style="font-family:"Comic Sans MS";font-size:10pt">Diedre Conkling</span></em><i><span style="font-family:"Comic Sans MS";font-size:10pt"><br><em><span style="font-family:"Comic Sans MS"">Lincoln County Library District</span></em><br><em><span style="font-family:"Comic Sans MS"">P.O. Box 2027</span></em><br><em><span style="font-family:"Comic Sans MS"">Newport, OR 97365</span></em><br><em><span style="font-family:"Comic Sans MS"">Phone & Fax: <a href="tel:541-265-3066" value="+15412653066" target="_blank">541-265-3066</a></span></em><br><em><span style="font-family:"Comic Sans MS"">Work email</span></em></span></i><em><span style="font-family:"Comic Sans MS";font-size:10pt;font-style:normal">: </span></em><a href="mailto:diedre@lincolncolibrarydist.org" target="_blank"><i><span style="font-family:"Comic Sans MS";font-size:10pt"><font color="#0000ff">diedre@lincolncolibrarydist.org</font></span></i></a><i><span style="font-family:"Comic Sans MS";font-size:10pt"><br><em><span style="font-family:"Comic Sans MS"">Home email: </span></em></span></i><a href="mailto:diedre08@gmail.com" target="_blank"><em><span style="color:blue;font-family:"Comic Sans MS";font-size:10pt">diedre08@gmail.com</span></em></a></div>
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<span>“If you don't like something, change it. If you can't change it, change your attitude.”―Maya Angelou</span><span></span></h6><span style="font-family:"Comic Sans MS";font-size:10pt"></span></div></div>
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</blockquote></div><br><br clear="all"><br>-- <br><div class="gmail_signature">John Buschman<br>Dean of University Libraries<br>Seton Hall University<br><br></div>
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