Page 158 - DLIS105_REFERENCE_SOURCES_AND_SERVICES

Unit 14: Development of Abstracting Services

14.3 Governing Laws of Patents Notes

The grant and enforcement of patents are governed by national laws, and also by international treaties,
where those treaties have been given effect in national laws. Patents are, therefore, territorial in nature.
Commonly, a nation forms a patent office with responsibility for operating that nation’s patent system,
within the relevant patent laws. The patent office generally has responsibility for the grant of patents,
with infringement being the remit of national courts. There is a trend towards global harmonization
of patent laws, with the World Trade Organization (WTO) being particularly active in this area. The
TRIPs (Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights) Agreement has been largely successful
in providing a forum for nations to agree on an aligned set of patent laws. Conformity with the TRIPs
agreement is a requirement of admission to the WTO and so compliance is seen by many nations as
important. This has also led to many developing nations, which may historically have developed
different laws to aid their development, enforcing patents laws in line with global practice.

Self Assessment

Multiple Choice Questions:
3. The grant and enforcement of patents are governed by:
(a) National laws (b) Patents office
(c) National governing body (d) National organisation.
4. TRIPS stands for:
(a) Trade related aspects of intellectual property rights
(b) Trade rational aspects of intellectual proporty rights
(c) Trade related aspects of international property rights
(d) None of these.

14.4 Criteria of Evaluation of Software for Libraries

In any endeavor in which we make a substantial investment of money, energy, and time or other
resources, we like to know what kind of return we are getting. The ability to evaluate the return on
our investment gives us the basis on which to choose between alternative. So, an evaluation is basically
a judgement of worth. It is a matter of comparison of actual result with external standard, in the light
of existing institutional realities which may be relevant to evaluating the future trajectory of the
programme or services and provide an objective basis for decision making.
Software evaluation is quite a difficult task; we have to consider the following procedure, features
and aids to evaluate software packages.
1. Preliminary step:
(a) Consult others: You do not want software that stops unexpectedly, slows down on
large network, report error message, so consult with other who have already used
the software in the same way you intend to use the system or consult other who have
already experienced on that software.
(b) Who is the advisor: The reputation of person or the institution, his/her experienced
on that particular software should also be justified at this point.
(c) Reputation of the manufacture and vendor: The reputation of the manufacturer
and vendor should also be considered.

LOVELY PROFESSIONAL UNIVERSITY 153