Gray & Proprietary Literature

ISchool2004

Definition: Gray Lit

Frankly, gray literature is an abstract concept because for every generalization there are exceptions.

Most reference people just know it when they see it!

After this lecture, I hope you will be in the "know" too!

Gray literature consists of:

Publications that are: Non-conventional, Fugitive, Ephemeral.

Or another way White Gray Black—secure, secret

Or another way to look at

Open lit vs closed lit a.Getable—might not be easy but…b.Hard to get—ephemeralc.Very hard to get—proprietaryd.Can’t get for love of money--secret

Gray Literature for Sure Product literature and manuals Brochures and event programs Local government reports White papers—think tanks, universities Proprietary analysis—reports and

market research Transportation schedules Personnel information

Gray ish : Preprints Reports

progress, technical, statistical, memoranda, contractor, etc.

Conference proceedings Theses, master’s reports Standards/specifications Non commercial translations National Government reports Workshops and Power point slides Public web!

So what is a Preprint Paper that has gone through a peer-

review process and awaits publication in a traditional journal. A preprint accessible over the Web may be

referred to as an “e-print.” Papers submitted for publication, but no

publication decision has been reached. Papers electronically posted for peer

consideration and comment before submission for publication.

Preprint Servers Grayish on preprint servers Ephemeral on open web Hard to get when old..

Writer dies or retires Web page disappears Research center loses interest

Technical & Research Reports Nearly every organization produces

some kind of 'open source' technical or research report.

The ones we will be talking about in this section are truly open-source.

This means they are getable —isn't quick or easy but it can be done. 

Reports AKA Technical Reports Technical Memoranda Contractor reports Progress Statistical

Reports are: Most not yet available full text on the

Internet Not in cataloging utilities such as RLIN

or WorldCat Not cataloged by owning library or

agency If treated, treated serially

Even if all reports aren't available on the Internet — a whole bunch are.

Technical Report Numbers EPA 500-F-97-105 NASA CR 111879 NMWRRI TR330 UMICH CITI 03-1

Example 1: The effects of atomic oxygen on the thermal

remittance of high temperature radiator surfaces. Rutledge, Sharon K. (NASA Lewis Research Center, Cleveland, OH., United States); Hotes, Deborah L. (Cleveland State Univ., OH., United States); Paulsen, Phillip E. (Cleveland State Univ., OH., United States)

NASA Center for AeroSpace Information (CASI)NASA-TM-103224 , 1989

No digital

Example 2:Comparison of On-Orbit and Ground Based

Hollow Cathode Operation. Burke, Tom; Carpenter, ChristianNASA Center for AeroSpace Information (CASI)

NASA/CR-2003-212585; E-14140; NAS 1.26:212585; AIAA Paper 2003-5145; 39th Joint Propulsion Conference and Exhibit, Huntsville, AL, United States, 20-23 Jul. 2003

No digital

Places to Look NTIS http://ntrs.nasa.gov/ DTIC Firstgov.gov Web

http://www.cis.upenn.edu/~ircs/reports/ http://wrri.nmsu.edu/publish/techrpt/

techrpt.html http://www.cs.ncl.ac.uk/research/pubs/trs/

search.php

Conference Proceedings No written record Written Record

Theses and master’s reports U.S. Non-US Dissertation Abstracts

Standards and Specs Another lecture Vendor accumulations No vendor accumulations

Some Likely http://graylit.osti.gov www.ntis.gov/search http://citeseer.nj.nec.com/cs http://Trisline.bts.gov http://Stinet.dtic.mil www.osti.gov/energycitations www.osti.gov/eprints

Product Information Catalogs Product inserts {non pharmacy} Product manuals Product spec sheets Bid info, pricing info Web pages

Getable and ephemeral

Proprietary Information describes the level of

confidentiality given to documents or information by the owner.

Generally, a document classified by the owner as proprietary limits who can view it or know about its contents.

Another name for proprietary information is "trade secrets". 

Caveat

Publication and dissemination of gray/open information is not centrally coordinated by anybody, therefore, it can be particularly difficult to identify and locate. 

Mantra

Who created it often tells you where to look.

EPASpring ManufacturersStone DurometersUSGS