New York SBDC Research Network

When doing research on non-profits, I often check GuideStar.org . GuideStar provides data on more than 1.5 million non-profit organizations. When you search the GuideStar database without registering, you find a non-profit by its name, city, and state. You'll see its NTEE (National Taxonomy of Exempt Entities) code, and whether contributions to it are tax deductible. If you register (for free), however, you get much more, including: Address Mission and program descriptions Goals and results Three most recent Forms 990 received from the IRS* for an organization Any documents a nonprofit has posted through the eDocs service *Form 990 is an annual reporting return that certain federally tax-exempt organizations must file with the IRS. It provides information on the filing organization's mission, programs, and finances. If you're looking to work with a non-profit or thinking about donating to an organization, GuideStar.org can help you become better-informed, and make more ef

To follow on Darrin's earlier post... No doubt everyone has visited the DOL site for data at some time for employment law or other tips and stats. I tend to get in and out, going straight for what I need without really looking around, especially since there is such an alarming amount of information jammed in there. A few spots that are worth a visit if you haven’t been recently are: OSHA - Injury and Illness: Recordkeeping Reports on Computer and Internet Use at Work Temporary help agency workers report Occupational Outlook Quarterly We often go straight to Occupational Outlook Handbook and certainly you will recognize the reports from that source from enquiry packets. A source you may not check as often is the Occupational Outlook Quarterly Online. While poking around I came upon the You’re a What? feature. This quarter they focus on a modelmaker , past issues have been flavorist , and perfusionist . But they also covered acupuncturist , corporate concierge , dog walker , and gree

I was looking for more cool resources for you when I came across a November 2003 article in Entrepreneur magazine online , with the title shown. While the other librarians and I have cited some of the sources they've included, there are a few others that you might want to check out. Business Basics Business.gov : "Sponsored by the SBA, this site asserts that its purpose is to make the relationship between business and government more productive." U.S. Postal Service : "The USPS delivers when it comes to helping you figure out the ins and outs of shipping your precious letters and packages. Of particular interest: a section on direct mail—how to do it, rates and mailing info, templates, FAQs and more." Also in this section: SCORE and something called the Small Business Development Centers . Business Opportunities Cited here: Export.gov : "Register to receive the Export.gov newsletter, and you'll get monthly updates on feature articles, trade events and n

Sometimes, a library is improved by what it removes, rather than what it adds. Since 1992, the Research Network has been buying, cataloging, and lending Business Start-Up Guides, as published by Entrpreneur magazine. These are guides that are regularly borrowed by you on behalf of our clients. At the beginning of 2005, we had exactly 200 guides in the collection. However, a recent review of our holdings shows that 75% are more than 10 years old. I knew we had some dated guides on the shelves - however, I didn't realize it was that prevalent. In traditional public & academic library settings, items that are this old are kept as a matter of historical record. We don't have that luxury here - there's simply not enough space, nor are these guides of any practical value to the clients we serve. (In fact, they can do more harm than good. A recent evaluation came back to the Central office, specifically noting a client's disappointment with "very old" info

You have by now likely seen or used a wiki . A wiki is a simple but useful web tool to learn about any number of things. A natural outgrowth of email and blogs, it is server software that lets users to communally control content. A group of people can edit parts of text on the wiki, tweaking the information found there. The strength of the wiki comes from so many eyes constantly improving it. It is the closest thing to the original concept of what the web should be – an open tool for people to share information. While abuse does exist, moderators can correct incidents. One highly visible wiki is wikipedia , there is also wiktionary , wikiquotes , but they are well suited to collaborative projects. Organizations that are interested in knowledge management may be looking in this direction for information sharing. For more information on wikis check out HowStuffWorks.com for an article by Marshall Brain entitled “ How Wikis Work ”.

As a librarian, I tend to be cognizant of, and pulled by, two often conflicting values, the widespread distribution of information versus the desire to honor intellectual property rights (copyright, trademark, patent), the latter so the creators will be willing and able to "do it again." So, I was very interested in reading an article in the July/August 2005 Searcher, "The Magazine for Database Professionals" . The article, "Generosity and Copyright" by Laura Gordon-Murname , asked the question, "How can you help patrons identify public domain content...?" The copyright law has become more skewed towards the copyright holder over time, with longer periods and more lenient applications, so that the doodle on a napkin or a quick e-mail becomes copyrightable. According to Gordon-Murname, there are many critics who believe these changes fly in the face of the law as envisioned by Jefferson and others. She quotes Larry Lessig, who says this "per

I frequently prepare usage statistics for presentation at meetings. A blog seems a good place to present them, too. Here's a few items of note: As most of you know, the Research Network has been serving the SBDC community since September 1992. On May 31st of this year, we received our 20,000th request for information. Thanks to John Narciso at our Farmingdale SBDC for being the one to help us reach this milestone! We answered 146 requests asked during the month of June. This is about right - we've averaged exactly 146 for every June since 1993. To put that number in perspective, know that our busiest month ever was April 2002, when a whopping 217 requests came to our doors. The lowest? October 1998, when there were but 74. Generally, March is our busiest month of the year, and (unsurprisingly) December is the slowest. In June, we devoted 1.4 hours of prep time per question. This isn't unusual - historically, we've spent 1.5 hours on a request. I'll try to re