News
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/eb045152 |
| Date | 01 March 1992 |
| Pages | 169-177 |
| Published date | 01 March 1992 |
| Subject Matter | Information & knowledge management,Library & information science |
News
Industry news
Software benefit no
deal
When Chancellor Norman Lamont
presented the Government's Budget
this spring, he proposed that up front or
lump sum payments for software licen-
ces qualify for a
25%
annual tax deduc-
tion. This so-called benefit is not as at-
tractive as it sounds, says Daniel
Feingold, a tax specialist at the London
law firm Bird & Bird, and could leave
users worse off.
Mr Feingold points out that, under
the existing tax law rules, even high
value licensed or downloaded software
is not eligible for a 25% deduction as
part of the business plant. However, in
practice, licence fees are often treated as
revenue expenditure with
a
more gener-
ous 100% tax deduction. This conces-
sion is likely to end if the 25% deduc-
tion comes in, he says.
He recommends that companies
about to buy licensed software should
take legal advice to make sure that
licence terms are structured for the best
tax advantages.
Global information essential to
environment
'Timely, reliable and cost-effec-
tive access by all people to
needed information is a crucial
element in sustaining a livable
planet.'
This is the assertion of 27 information
associations from 23 countries around
the globe, part of a declaration made
under the auspices of The Global Al-
liance of Information Industry Associ-
ations (GAIIA) and directed at dele-
gates to the Earth Summit.
The declaration explains that a liv-
able planet depends on the accumulated
decisions made by all people in their
personal, social, economic and political
lives.
Because the ramifications of deci-
The Electronic Library, Vol. 10, No. 3, June 1992
sions that affect the environment are
often not readily apparent, it says, re-
liable information is crucial in affecting
the options people consider and the
choices they make.
GAIIA interest in sustainable devel-
opment goes beyond the forthcoming
UN Conference. A follow-up is on the
agenda for the Fifth Special Working
Meeting of GAIIA senior repre-
sentatives in Seville, Spain in Septem-
ber. The subject will also receive atten-
tion during the first GAIIA Global
Congress in Washington, DC during the
week of 14 November 1993.
GAIIA comprises 27 associations
representing nearly 2000 information
companies around the world.
A private Earth Summit
The UN Conference on Environment
and Development in Rio de Janeiro has
made the environment the focus of
worldwide attention. In response, pro-
ducers have launched new databases
that deal with the earth and its environs.
We've grouped them with previously
available databases, to provide a work-
ing list of titles should you care to have
an Earth Summit of your own.
ESA-IRS announced two online da-
tabases directly related to the Con-
ference. Agenda 21 has documents,
papers and reports with detailed plans
for restoring and protecting the world's
ecology. Most important of these is the
Agenda 21 document — an 800-page
list of environmental protection tasks,
actions and practical programmes for
countries into the 21st century. Prep-
Comms has documents and reports re-
lated to four preconference negotiation
meetings held prior
to
the Earth Summit.
Longman Cartermill launched the
EARTH Disc CD-ROM for IBM PCs in
May.
It
is
designed
to
help organisations
locate independent experts on an entire
range of environmental products, from
acid rain to wind erosion. The CD-
ROM has some 2500 detailed records of
individuals, including their qualifica-
tions and expertise, plus data on the
technical services and facilities avail-
able in over 200 different departments
and laboratories. Cost is £985 p.a. with
annual updates.
Microinfo numbers two water infor-
mation databases and a waste manage-
ment file among its newest CD-ROM
titles.
AquaLine comes from Britain's
Water Research Centre and has more
than
30 years
of references
to the
world's
literature in water-related studies. To-
pics include water resources and sup-
plies,
water quality, chemical analysis
and monitoring of water and wastes,
water and wastewater treatment, under-
ground services and water use, sewage,
industrial effluents, effects of pollution,
instrumentation control and computing,
and appropriate technology.
Wastelnfo, from the Waste Manage-
ment Information Bureau of AEA Tech-
nology, has over 60 000 references to
published material on non-radioactive
waste management. It covers waste
treatment, disposal, recycling and asso-
ciated environmental
hazards.
The
data-
base is updated quarterly by complete
disc replacement.
WaterLit has over 185 000 citations
and abstracts to the world's literature on
water, wastewater and sanitation. It is
produced by the South African Water
Information Centre which added some
12
000 records
to
the database each year.
The disc
covers 1975 to present
and,
like
AquaLine, is updated quarterly.
ORBIT Search Service provides
access to
ERTH,
a subfile of the TULSA
database from Petroleum Abstracts. It
has over 21 000 citations dealing with
petroleum-related environmental is-
sues.
Subjects include oil spills, pipe-
line,
storage tank and disposal well
leaks,
wildlife hazards, drilling waste
disposal, disposal of tanker
bilge,
petro-
leum toxicity and other issues.
Predicasts added nine full-text titles
covering environmental issues this
spring, making a total of
50
titles avail-
169
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