So long, and thanks for all the fish!

In light of some of the talks at #uksg26 on open infrastructure, OA and similar - the following may be of interest ;) (And if you're talking new products are UKSG, maybe keep this in the back of your mind!)

one of my longstanding star wars opinions is that george lucas should be allowed to name all new characters forever we must not shackle the mind that brought us darth icky and elan sleazebaggano

1/ This feels like a watershed moment to me. @rluk.ac.uk's Collections Strategy Network has posted new guidance on the criteria Research Libraries should use when making their investment decisions on #OpenAccess monographs, inc. recommending @openbookcollective.bsky.social as one model to consider

We have a splendid list of candidates standing for election as a Trustee this year - thank you to all of them! If you are a voter, please look out for the email! Candidate details here: dub.sh/sjRhVcz

This is your LAST CHANCE to book #UKSG2026. I ♥️ this description from @bethanylogan.bsky.social -- "proper learning, proper connections, proper value", "the whole glorious menagerie that is scholarly comms" **BOOK THIS WEEK** or you will miss it! www.uksg.org/events/confe... @uksg.bsky.social

✅ Hope HAS WON! 💪 Only the GREENS can take on Farage 🇬🇧 Politics has changed forever 🪠 Hannah the Plumber is now Hannah Spencer the MP for Gorton and Denton! 🐝 The FIRST NORTHERN GREEN MP 🥀 Labour have been replaced 🚫 Reform's rise has been halted. Hate has been defeated.

Ensure your content budget strategy makes ‘open’ a commitment, and is signed off at the highest level. Another great point from Pete Barr. There’s important ‘soft politics’ here. Do we have the diplomacy and leadership skills to be sure we can make this approach succeed? #CopimConference

The latest from #UKSGInsights Peter Barr (@tweeterbarr.bsky.social) re: @unisheffieldlib.bsky.social "The collections concept at the University of Sheffield: a varied approach to the role of research library collections" dub.sh/bKwiJWt

I'm upgrading a bunch of OJS and OMP instances now I'm working as part of @edinburghdiamond.bsky.social and SCURL Open Hosting. Upgrading these applications is fiddly as heck so I've written scripts to make my life easier and maybe anyone else who regularly works on OJS/OMP.

Just casually ruminating how a certain VC backed this man like his life depended on it till @tristanoscars.bsky.social and I went on telly to suggest he cease that. Not that I think there'll be a real consequence (for this, or his other alleged wrongdoings), but it's a start...

Congratulations to the Journal of Cultural Analytics 🎉 Princeton’s Center for Digital Humanities is now its publisher. JCA has migrated to @janewayolh.bsky.social and joined the @ojcollective.bsky.social launch collection! Details: cdh.princeton.edu/news/2026/02...

"Python's PyPI registry bandwidth needs for shipping copies of its 700,000+ packages (amounting to 747PB annually at a sustained rate of 189 Gbps) are underwritten by Fastly, for instance. Otherwise, the project would have to pony up about $1.8 million a month." www.theregister.com/2026/02/16/o...

CONTINUING www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-o... joining the rejectors are London South Bank University and Sheffield Hallam University (apologies that all these stories are paywalled - the university websites have press releases)

me, 50 years from now, doing a Zoom lecture from a hospital bed: “though other formats for encoding bibliographic data hold great promise, and MARC’s days are clearly numbered, it manages to hang on”

GM: Charisma check. Mamdani: [rolls natural 20] GM: that’s a d6 how did you Mamdani: [direct to camera] Did you know you can check out board games at your local public library? 😊

I absolutely burst out laughing

1/ I'm seeking expressions of interest from nonprofit orgs to take over the Open Access Tracking Project ( #OATP, @oatp.fediscience.org.ap.brid.gy ) and the open-source software on which it runs. Details in this Google doc: bit.ly/TransferOATP #OpenAccess #OpenScience #OpenSource #ScholComm 🧵

Hello Bluesky. I am a cultural and media theorist working across the fields of (book) publishing and digital culture, researching the future of scholarly communications and experimental forms of knowledge production.

I was on a video call with a friend, walking around my house, but had forgotten I bought (just over) my height in panettone this year. I forgot that what I affectionately call "panettone mountain" is in fact a freak occurrence in most people's eyes 😅

Throw back to that one listserv email that had me wondering why we even bother with panels (and if literacy is dead).

Between being a nerd who reads the occasional manga and following Formula 1 since my partner is a fan, my Instagram algorithm has decided I must be an F1 fujoshi which feels deeply humiliating - despite this /not/ being the case. If anything, I'm confused as to what's going on.

"China’s citation impact is now also well above the world average." Sinophobia is about to do more to de-emphasize focus on citation impact metrics than all 13 years of SF DORA combined... newsletter.journalology.com/p/journalolo...

Can't believe that in the space of a season I've gone from not caring about F1 to "I can't believe Verstappen needs to rely on a Ferrari driver to have a chance at the championship".

We're hiring! We have 2 jobs advertised: Library Engagement Lead and Operations Manager, deadline Tues 6 January 2026. Links: openjournalscollective.org/static/engag... openjournalscollective.org/static/opera... Come work for a major new international organisation funding #openaccess publishing!

I've got a new piece at @lseimpactblog.bsky.social today following on from my previous piece about the British Library cyberattack and arguing that, since the UK Government clearly doesn't care about the UK knowledge sector, we need to develop our own community-led tech and infrastructure solutions.

I'm not surprised, as it's the culmination of the undervaluing (and disrespect, even) of translation as a skill. The amount of shitty translations I've seen recently is starting to really anger me and it puts me off using services.

I'm glad to have signed this statement in support of queer and trans staff at the National Library of Scotland, who by the sounds of it are going through an awful time at the moment: docs.google.com/document/d/e...

#CollaborationNotCompetition! Toby Steiner and Zoe Wake Hyde (@radishpress.bsky.social) here at #Munin2025 talking about the ongoing collaborations between @thoth-metadata.bsky.social and @pkp.sfu.ca / #OpenMonographPress, showcasing the potential of open data workflows

I believe this is a first for the @resprofnews.bsky.social opinion section.

I would prefer it if Wes Streeting did not become Prime Minister

Opinion: Chaos is coming for scholarly publishing. Buckling of commercial models alongside maturing of community-led efforts promises major shifts, says Caroline Edwards (@theblochian.bsky.social). www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-v...

Every technology problem is three social problems in a trench coat

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.

Apologies to anyone expecting us to be at the Tales Of The Weird event at the British Library this weekend, but in support of the PCS industrial action, we’ve decided not to cross the picket line. Will and I are both former librarians, and want to show support to the striking staff.

Applications Open for 2026 Will Eisner Graphic Novel Grants for Libraries Contact @libcomix.bsky.social with any questions! #libcomix 📚 www.ala.org/news/2025/10...

my workplace is recruiting for a Digitisation Officer to work in special collections if anyone wants to come and join us (full time, fixed term) jobsite.sheffield.ac.uk/job/Digitisa...

Don’t cross a picket line, folks. I know it’s super difficult and inconvenient so let’s hopes resolution can be agreed and planned action called off

We are excited to announce that Caroline Ball @heroicendeavour.bsky.social has joined as our new Community Engagement Lead. Hooray! 🥳 Caroline is a committed advocate for libraries, #OpenAccess & knowledge equity, a Trustee at @wikimediauk.bsky.social, & played a key role in the #EbookSOS campaign.

Words being printed and bound into book format doesn't convey sacredness upon them. Some books are devoid of value and it would be fine if every last copy disappeared from the earth. Weed your little free libraries. Toss that shit in the trash.

The best part about being a non-native speaker of English is that I can show up to all the classic plays and productions of classic literature with 0 idea of what's about to hit me. Experiencing theatre the way God intended.

Trying to fix a particularly nasty corrupt system file without my external hard drive on hand for an easy back-up + reinstall is reminding me why I decided a career in IT is not for me. One mental breakdown away from rage-installing Linux and calling it a day.

The ability to gather and report information without authorization from the government is pretty much the definition of a free press

The solution is clearly to double the number of testicles per young man through Dr Brinkley patented xenotransplantation of goat testes! Improves virility, hardiness and balance!

What might seem like a small announcement—it’s just one institution—actually carries substantial weight and has a strong symbolic meaning. @utrechtuniversity.bsky.social, has taken another bold step: it won't renew its Web of Science license. www.uu.nl/en/news/acce...

So, who is taking bets that the pause of the REF is for an AI-ification implementation or an AI-related policy change?

Today in "AI made me do it" ...

Four Al Jazeera staff, including reporter Anas Al Sharif, were killed in an Israeli attack on a tent for journalists outside the main gate of Gaza's al-Shifa hospital aje.io/onll19