Caroline Ball
@heroicendeavour.bsky.social
Academic Librarian, SFHEA, #ebookSOS campaigner, WikimediaUK trustee, NLISN committee member. UK Wikimedian of the Year 2020, JISC Community Champion 2025.
Pinned
Since Bluesky appears to be my new academic home (and Threads, I don't know what that is!), I'm just posting my publications in a pinned thread for easy reference...
Reposted by Caroline Ball
I spy with my little eye 🔍 @heroicendeavour.bsky.social from @openbookcollective.bsky.social on the front row
Nominated last year for campaigning to push for change with eBook access for academic libraries, advocating for legislative change 💪
#ebookSOS #CommunityChampion
Nominated last year for campaigning to push for change with eBook access for academic libraries, advocating for legislative change 💪
#ebookSOS #CommunityChampion
Nominations are now open to celebrate our new community champions of 2026! Is there someone who shares invaluable knowledge that sparks new ideas or inspires thought provoking action? Get those names in ⤵️
Community champions - Jisc
Celebrating extraordinary people supporting communities.
bit.ly
November 10, 2025 at 6:30 PM
I spy with my little eye 🔍 @heroicendeavour.bsky.social from @openbookcollective.bsky.social on the front row
Nominated last year for campaigning to push for change with eBook access for academic libraries, advocating for legislative change 💪
#ebookSOS #CommunityChampion
Nominated last year for campaigning to push for change with eBook access for academic libraries, advocating for legislative change 💪
#ebookSOS #CommunityChampion
Before people get steamy, this is a ‘page issues’ warning template. As in, ‘someone included AI content in this article, and we recognise that is a Bad Thing, so proceed with caution’. It’s not @wikipedia.org condoning AI-generated content, it’s the *opposite*.
First time seeing this large language model text notice on Wikipedia.
From en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerryma...
From en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerryma...
November 10, 2025 at 5:19 PM
Before people get steamy, this is a ‘page issues’ warning template. As in, ‘someone included AI content in this article, and we recognise that is a Bad Thing, so proceed with caution’. It’s not @wikipedia.org condoning AI-generated content, it’s the *opposite*.
Reposted by Caroline Ball
Check out our stories on 8 libraries that have unbundled from a journal package or cancelled a Big Deal altogether. The profiles describe the context of the decision, preparation, how continuing access to materials was secured, campus response, next steps & advice. sparcopen.org/our-work/big...
Unbundling Profiles - SPARC
sparcopen.org
November 10, 2025 at 5:01 PM
Check out our stories on 8 libraries that have unbundled from a journal package or cancelled a Big Deal altogether. The profiles describe the context of the decision, preparation, how continuing access to materials was secured, campus response, next steps & advice. sparcopen.org/our-work/big...
Reposted by Caroline Ball
📣 Join authors, publishers, librarians, and infrastructure developers to explore the future of community-led open access books
Get your ticket now! 🎟️
🗓️ 26–27 February 2026
📍 Loughborough University | London and online
🔗 buff.ly/sv3I13M
#CopimConference
Get your ticket now! 🎟️
🗓️ 26–27 February 2026
📍 Loughborough University | London and online
🔗 buff.ly/sv3I13M
#CopimConference
November 10, 2025 at 12:01 PM
📣 Join authors, publishers, librarians, and infrastructure developers to explore the future of community-led open access books
Get your ticket now! 🎟️
🗓️ 26–27 February 2026
📍 Loughborough University | London and online
🔗 buff.ly/sv3I13M
#CopimConference
Get your ticket now! 🎟️
🗓️ 26–27 February 2026
📍 Loughborough University | London and online
🔗 buff.ly/sv3I13M
#CopimConference
The Cat Distribution Network is trying its best, but is a little off-target…
November 10, 2025 at 11:21 AM
The Cat Distribution Network is trying its best, but is a little off-target…
Also (spoiler alert) - 'input from more than 175 librarians and 60 publishers', i.e. 'we sent them a survey' (probably), is not community-driven. Who is asking whom? There's your answer.
I fail to see how this differs from anything we've seen over the years - it's still bundling, you still can't curate your own collection or buy individual titles, you're still paying for a bunch of books you don't want in order to get access to the ones you do...
event.on24.com/wcc/r/511626...
event.on24.com/wcc/r/511626...
Publisher Collections: Exploring a Sustainable, Community-Driven Model for Scholarly Ebooks
Thursday, November 13, 2025 at 1:00 PM Eastern Standard Time.
event.on24.com
November 10, 2025 at 8:48 AM
Also (spoiler alert) - 'input from more than 175 librarians and 60 publishers', i.e. 'we sent them a survey' (probably), is not community-driven. Who is asking whom? There's your answer.
I fail to see how this differs from anything we've seen over the years - it's still bundling, you still can't curate your own collection or buy individual titles, you're still paying for a bunch of books you don't want in order to get access to the ones you do...
event.on24.com/wcc/r/511626...
event.on24.com/wcc/r/511626...
Publisher Collections: Exploring a Sustainable, Community-Driven Model for Scholarly Ebooks
Thursday, November 13, 2025 at 1:00 PM Eastern Standard Time.
event.on24.com
November 10, 2025 at 8:46 AM
I fail to see how this differs from anything we've seen over the years - it's still bundling, you still can't curate your own collection or buy individual titles, you're still paying for a bunch of books you don't want in order to get access to the ones you do...
event.on24.com/wcc/r/511626...
event.on24.com/wcc/r/511626...
Reposted by Caroline Ball
no amount of state propaganda will ever convince me this man is my enemy
November 9, 2025 at 3:05 PM
no amount of state propaganda will ever convince me this man is my enemy
Reposted by Caroline Ball
lol she got his ass and he knows it
November 9, 2025 at 3:36 PM
lol she got his ass and he knows it
So ridiculously late to the party, but I just finished watching Ted Lasso and am currently crying my eyes out.
November 8, 2025 at 7:49 PM
So ridiculously late to the party, but I just finished watching Ted Lasso and am currently crying my eyes out.
Reposted by Caroline Ball
Just need everyone to Google the name "Rosalind Franklin" at this moment.
Hey folks, as news of Watson's demise spreads, please don't set aside his weighty legacy of misogyny and racism. He was truly among the worst of us. www.vox.com/2019/1/15/18...
DNA scientist James Watson has a remarkably long history of sexist, racist public comments
“People say it would be terrible if we made all girls pretty,” he said in 2003. “I think it would be great.”
www.vox.com
November 7, 2025 at 8:19 PM
Just need everyone to Google the name "Rosalind Franklin" at this moment.
The man knows whereof he speaks… #ebookSOS
A bit of light Friday reading
5 inconvenient facts that all librarians (or folks with an interest in Library related skullduggery) should know about e-books
5 inconvenient facts that all librarians (or folks with an interest in Library related skullduggery) should know about e-books
5 Inconvenient Facts All Librarians Should Know About E-Books
During the Covid-19 pandemic, the promise of the digital library became clearer than ever. As physical doors closed, e-books offered a vital lifeline, foregrounding the incredible potential of on-demand access to information and culture. Yet this moment of digital promise also cast a harsh light on the dysfunctional infrastructure, predatory business models, and outdated legal frameworks that govern the lending of digital content.
librarianth.home.blog
November 7, 2025 at 4:20 PM
The man knows whereof he speaks… #ebookSOS
Reposted by Caroline Ball
A thing about AI in higher ed right now is that half of us are scrambling to deal with the implosion of our information environment that broke reading/writing/source verification, while the other half is trying to achieve a massive institutional buy-in of the very thing that's causing the implosion
November 7, 2025 at 1:30 AM
A thing about AI in higher ed right now is that half of us are scrambling to deal with the implosion of our information environment that broke reading/writing/source verification, while the other half is trying to achieve a massive institutional buy-in of the very thing that's causing the implosion
Reposted by Caroline Ball
Librarians told 404 Media they're being inundated with new pitches for AI library tech and catalogs are being flooded with AI slop books.
But more broadly, AI maximalism across society is supercharging the ideological war on libraries, schools, government workers, and academics.
But more broadly, AI maximalism across society is supercharging the ideological war on libraries, schools, government workers, and academics.
AI Is Supercharging the War on Libraries, Education, and Human Knowledge
"Fascism and AI, whether or not they have the same goals, they sure are working to accelerate one another."
www.404media.co
November 6, 2025 at 5:19 PM
Librarians told 404 Media they're being inundated with new pitches for AI library tech and catalogs are being flooded with AI slop books.
But more broadly, AI maximalism across society is supercharging the ideological war on libraries, schools, government workers, and academics.
But more broadly, AI maximalism across society is supercharging the ideological war on libraries, schools, government workers, and academics.
Reposted by Caroline Ball
It's the last day of the 2025 Charleston Conference!
You can still catch @openbookcollective.bsky.social to discuss a fairer and more sustainable future for scholarly books 📚
Full programme 👉https://buff.ly/rFZnor3
#chsconf2025
You can still catch @openbookcollective.bsky.social to discuss a fairer and more sustainable future for scholarly books 📚
Full programme 👉https://buff.ly/rFZnor3
#chsconf2025
November 7, 2025 at 9:01 AM
It's the last day of the 2025 Charleston Conference!
You can still catch @openbookcollective.bsky.social to discuss a fairer and more sustainable future for scholarly books 📚
Full programme 👉https://buff.ly/rFZnor3
#chsconf2025
You can still catch @openbookcollective.bsky.social to discuss a fairer and more sustainable future for scholarly books 📚
Full programme 👉https://buff.ly/rFZnor3
#chsconf2025
My ADHD diagnosis and treatment has been genuinely life-changing, so this is so sad and concerning to see. There are so many people out there struggling, and we're failing to catch-up on years of under-diagnosis, particularly for adult women.
ADHD services shutting door to new NHS patients as demand soars, BBC finds
A BBC investigation finds that a host of areas in England are closing waiting lists and others are rationing care.
www.bbc.co.uk
November 6, 2025 at 4:53 PM
My ADHD diagnosis and treatment has been genuinely life-changing, so this is so sad and concerning to see. There are so many people out there struggling, and we're failing to catch-up on years of under-diagnosis, particularly for adult women.
Sobering reading looking the @dpc-chat.digipres.club.ap.brid.gy's 2025 Global 'Bit List' of Digital Materials - people talk so casually about how 'the internet is forever' and it's not even *close* to being true! Digital content is exponentially more ephemeral and vulnerable than printed content.
DPC Global 'Bit List' of Digital Materials - Digital Preservation Coalition
www.dpconline.org
November 6, 2025 at 4:25 PM
Sobering reading looking the @dpc-chat.digipres.club.ap.brid.gy's 2025 Global 'Bit List' of Digital Materials - people talk so casually about how 'the internet is forever' and it's not even *close* to being true! Digital content is exponentially more ephemeral and vulnerable than printed content.
Reposted by Caroline Ball
🥳 The Open Book Collective is delighted to announce the first recipient of our Collective Development Fund for 2025–2026! 🥳
The project is titled:
‘Empowering Ethiopian Research Universities: A Multifaceted Approach to Overcome Open Access Barriers in Scholarly Publishing’.
The project is titled:
‘Empowering Ethiopian Research Universities: A Multifaceted Approach to Overcome Open Access Barriers in Scholarly Publishing’.
November 6, 2025 at 12:50 PM
🥳 The Open Book Collective is delighted to announce the first recipient of our Collective Development Fund for 2025–2026! 🥳
The project is titled:
‘Empowering Ethiopian Research Universities: A Multifaceted Approach to Overcome Open Access Barriers in Scholarly Publishing’.
The project is titled:
‘Empowering Ethiopian Research Universities: A Multifaceted Approach to Overcome Open Access Barriers in Scholarly Publishing’.
Reposted by Caroline Ball
Lovely to see our own @heroicendeavour.bsky.social's work discussed in this piece from @glynmoody.bsky.social - OA isn’t just about free PDFs, it's about reclaiming the systems of knowledge from commercial lock-in & strengthening the community-led infrastructures that make genuine openness possible.
Breaking digital chains: @glynmoody.bsky.social explores how #S2O & #ArchiveOfOurOwn promote #OpenAccess. But ultimately, we must reinvent scholarly publishing to achieve universal & unconstrained access to knowledge, as @heroicendeavour.bsky.social advocates. walledculture.org/fans-of-open...
November 5, 2025 at 2:35 PM
Lovely to see our own @heroicendeavour.bsky.social's work discussed in this piece from @glynmoody.bsky.social - OA isn’t just about free PDFs, it's about reclaiming the systems of knowledge from commercial lock-in & strengthening the community-led infrastructures that make genuine openness possible.
Reposted by Caroline Ball
Breaking digital chains: @glynmoody.bsky.social explores how #S2O & #ArchiveOfOurOwn promote #OpenAccess. But ultimately, we must reinvent scholarly publishing to achieve universal & unconstrained access to knowledge, as @heroicendeavour.bsky.social advocates. walledculture.org/fans-of-open...
November 5, 2025 at 1:16 PM
Breaking digital chains: @glynmoody.bsky.social explores how #S2O & #ArchiveOfOurOwn promote #OpenAccess. But ultimately, we must reinvent scholarly publishing to achieve universal & unconstrained access to knowledge, as @heroicendeavour.bsky.social advocates. walledculture.org/fans-of-open...
Interesting session this morning on international experiences & strategies for supporting diamond OA - talks from Ireland, Nigeria & Australia on communities of practice & collaborative projects as ways to tackle funding issues, discoverability, institutional support, and advocacy. #OpenAccess
Join us on 5 November 2025 at 9–10am UTC for Wayfinders #6.
"Diamond OA communities-of-practice in action" will dispel myths and explore the facets and features of diamond open access: bit.ly/47CAwla
With Femi Arogundade, @jbuggle.bsky.social, @creaght.bsky.social & Malavika Legge.
#OA #OpenAccess
"Diamond OA communities-of-practice in action" will dispel myths and explore the facets and features of diamond open access: bit.ly/47CAwla
With Femi Arogundade, @jbuggle.bsky.social, @creaght.bsky.social & Malavika Legge.
#OA #OpenAccess
November 5, 2025 at 10:06 AM
Interesting session this morning on international experiences & strategies for supporting diamond OA - talks from Ireland, Nigeria & Australia on communities of practice & collaborative projects as ways to tackle funding issues, discoverability, institutional support, and advocacy. #OpenAccess
Reposted by Caroline Ball
America's Mayor is an American Muslim Immigrant.
That's it. That's the post. Carry on.
That's it. That's the post. Carry on.
November 5, 2025 at 2:44 AM
America's Mayor is an American Muslim Immigrant.
That's it. That's the post. Carry on.
That's it. That's the post. Carry on.
Reposted by Caroline Ball
Don’t mind me, just screaming at a pitch only dogs can hear…
Brendan Fraser, Rachel Weisz Reuniting for Fourth ‘Mummy’ Movie
Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz are reuniting for a fourth "Mummy" movie.
variety.com
November 4, 2025 at 10:32 PM
Don’t mind me, just screaming at a pitch only dogs can hear…
Reposted by Caroline Ball
OpenAI pirated large numbers of books and used them to train models.
OpenAI then deleted the dataset with the pirated books, and employees sent each other messages about doing so.
A lawsuit could now force the company to pay $150,000 per book, adding up to billions in damages.
OpenAI then deleted the dataset with the pirated books, and employees sent each other messages about doing so.
A lawsuit could now force the company to pay $150,000 per book, adding up to billions in damages.
November 4, 2025 at 3:30 PM
OpenAI pirated large numbers of books and used them to train models.
OpenAI then deleted the dataset with the pirated books, and employees sent each other messages about doing so.
A lawsuit could now force the company to pay $150,000 per book, adding up to billions in damages.
OpenAI then deleted the dataset with the pirated books, and employees sent each other messages about doing so.
A lawsuit could now force the company to pay $150,000 per book, adding up to billions in damages.