ELPUB workshops a catalyst for engaged idea/issue sharing

So I should intro myself as the other blogger of the ELPUB conference here in Toronto . . . Bill Mann, a returning grad student to the Faculty of Information (the faculty just axed the adjective "Studies" only days ago). At 48 I'm on my way to a third career change (pastor-roofer-librarian!) and the exciting developments on OA environments makes this a stimulating job choice for the next few decades. I just finished a class in Serials Management for the May Term and almost half the course focus was on OAJ/OAR (kudos to Prof. Juris Dilevko for his course design!) so I come in to the conference fresh from these learnings and with deep pockets full of questions, curiosities and a genuine interest that I'm sure will be more than adequately met by the content of this conference.

There were a few workshops offered over the course the day . . . I sat in on 3, for which I'll comment more at length tonight after the Welcome Reception. A few preliminary comments,
. . . this is quite a change from other mainstream conferences where publishers, agents and other vendors fill the conference halls trying to hawk their wears and entice client sign-ups through "libation centers" and other swag offerings. Here at ELPUB there is only engaged conversation and resource (and idea) sharing around the Coffee Breaks and in the workshop break away sessions.
. . . its also great to see an international community gathered in one place with one common purpose, of making scholarly communication and other knowledge resources available for common public access.
. . . and it is a further treat to watch organizer Leslie Chan in action, making people feel welcome and comfortable, getting us from here to there and back again, and all the while taking the pics that help capture the engaged dialog going on in this "common good" community.

The details of the workshops will follow later tonight . . . its time now to get back to the conversation. Bill