It seems a foregone conclusion that repositories for reusable learning objects (RLOs), based on common standards and supported by suitable search facilities, will foster a global economic market in the production of RLOs. Actual reuse will support producers of high-quality RLOs, and other producers will be unable to compete, i.e. competition…

Given the current forms of economic production and corporate markets, the liberating and democratic potential of digital information is counteracted by the concentration of media ownership, as well as by policy, legislation, and the development of proprietary forms of technology. The notion of "intellectual property" produces artificial scarcity…

Discusses intelligent software agents, or knowledge robots (knowbots), and the impact they have on the Internet. Topics addressed include ethical dilemmas; problems created by rapid growth on the Internet; new technologies that are amplifying growth; and a shift to a market economy and resulting costs. (LRW)

Copyright law, together with the market logic it carries, penetrates deeply into our daily life. The copyright regime is so restrictive that it turns a normal learning process into a series of potential copyright violations. The Free Software Movement (FSM) represents a substantial community effort to counter this trend. It seeks to supersede the…

To protect their copyrights, electronic publishers and document delivery providers track usage and personal information which threatens library users' privacy and rights to intellectual freedom and access to information. Suggests using data encryption software as a solution. Recommends librarians advocate a competitive marketplace by working for…

This article addresses concerns about the role of education policy in the context of knowledge-related public policy. Specifically, it raises concerns about how the technocratic and anti-social tendencies already observed in knowledge-related policy discourse may adversely influence the intellectual and cultural life of communities. A key goal of…

Describes a computer software program that allows students, working independently and interactively with the computer, to select alternative market conditions and/or policies and view the results numerically as well as graphically. Discusses options and models provided by the software as well as classroom applications. (MJP)

Maintains that computer-assisted instruction built around a spreadsheet-based model can illustrate and simplify some of the more difficult concepts concerning economics and fisheries. Describes a software program that illustrates overcapitalization, asset fixity, resource rent capture, economic optimum, and sustainable yield. (MJP)

Describes a computer software program where students define alternative policy sets and compare their effects on the welfare of consumers, producers, and the public sector. Policy sets may be a single tax or quota or a mix of taxes, subsidies, and/or price supports implemented in the marketing chain. (MJP)