Mentat
February 1, 2008
Choose RFID for the Right Reasons
Do you understand that you can incorporate automated check-in machines and sorters for your library without taking on the enormous costs associated with RFID tags? Self check out is old news. Everyone is doing it (or should be) and they are getting a very high rate of self checkout use (85% and higher) with and without RFID. If you are NOT getting 85% self check on your machines it properly has more to do with where the bar codes are located, whether everything in your library is indeed self check out-able. It could also be an problem related to where you've located your machines and how well you are driving your customers to those machines (instead of the old circulation desks). Anyway, if you aren't getting 85% self check on your self check machines, it isn't because you are using bar codes, I assure you.
In fact, you can do most automation stuff with RFID tags as well as bar codes and that includes self check out, self check in and sorting.
Here's where RFID really makes a difference: inventory and book drops. You may actually do inventory of your collections if they are RFID tagged because it is so much easier. And I'm convinced that more frequent inventories would be a good thing. Now that everyone is pulling so many holds/requests for customers, we're seeing how frequently things are not where they belong. Frustrating, isn't it? Well, guess what. That's been the customer experience all along. Customers and staff both benefit from a tighter correlation between what the catalog says and what the reality on the shelves is. RFID could help with that.
Book drops can be RFID-enabled too. To be clear, I'm not talking about automated check in machines that work almost as well with bar codes as with RFID tags. An RFID-enabled book drop is literally a book drop that just checks in the item. No sorting happens because it is just a book drop. The reader reads the tags as they are dropped into the book drop and they get checked in (later in batches or in real-time if you have a connection to the ILS).
Automated self check in machines can be RFID or bar code based. With bar codes, the customer has to feed in each item with the bar code oriented properly so it can be read (although you can have a top and a bottom reader so they don't have to be THAT fussy). Ideally, your automated check in machine is equipped with a sorter that AT LEAST separates Holds from Returns and maybe even puts Children's material, Adult Fiction, NonFiction, and A/V material all in their own special bins. So, whether its bar codes or RFID tags, you are getting the benefit of instant check in (for the customer) and sorting (for the staff). And remember, that if you are sorting (which totally rocks), the items have to be fed in one at a time anyway so its not like the customer can just shove in a pile of books either way.
From my point of view, the RFID-enabled book drop is handy for customers but not nearly has useful as the automated check in that feeds right into a sorter. And that automated check in with sorter works very well with either RFID tags or bar codes (assuming bar codes are on the outside of your material).
So, please. Don't collapse sorting and self service automation in with RFID. It just isn't necessary. You may choose to implement RFID at the same time but hopefully its because you really want that inventory feature, or you want to have the security and identification of items all in one unit (the RFID tag) rather than using security strips for security and bar codes for identification. (Caveat: there are still some issues with how well RFID tags do the security thing especially with A/V material)
Another reason you may choose RFID now is because you've got a library full of nasty 'ol bar codes stuck on the inside of your material instead of nice clean ones uniformly located on the outside of each item. If you'd need to rebarcode everything anyway, yes, then, you should definitely be considering RFID tags.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not anti-RFID. I think libraries are going to end up with RFID tags eventually. But it would be nice to wait for the standards to be in place (ISO and NISO data model standards) so that they are interoperable and will only work with library readers (read about Application Family Identifiers in the latest NISO report).
In fact, RFID poses some very interesting new ideas but if we treat it like a glorfied bar code, we don't take advantage of some of the really innovative possibilities. The current generation of RFID tags are just that: glorified (and very expensive) bar codes.
Innovative possibilities? Consider the department store in Germany that is tagging their men's clothes and then reading the tags in the fitting room to customize suggestions that help shoppers find other things they might like or which might be a nice addition to the outfits they've selected. Here's the article from ZDNet.
Or what about the little device called the TellMate that helps visually challenged people identify objects that are difficult to identify by touch (e.g. credit cards and generic containers). Could blind customers someday have a device that reads titles out loud for them to help select DVDs perhaps?
These kinds of truly innovative applications get me to thinking about how we could might someday take advantage of RFID technology in libraries. But to do that, we have to agree on how to store data on the tags, how our customer's privacy will be protected, how to ensure they are interoperable across vendors, how we can use them throughout the lifecycle of the item including during ILL transactions and delivery. And all that requires standards. Oh, and why not have the book publishers install them instead of having library staff do it. Once we get all these things in place, our creative juices can flow. "Stand here to get recommendations of other items you might like (based on what you have in your book bag now." Okay, potentially creepy but also potentially cool.
In sum, choose RFID tags for the right reasons and those reasons are very limited right now. But stay tuned because there will someday be some very exciting reasons to choose RFID tags, just not yet. We've still got some work to do before everyone should be jumping on that bandwagon.
Posted by at 4:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)
January 7, 2008
Recommended: The Complete RFID Handbook
I just finished The Complete RFID Handbook by Diane Marie Ward. It's excellent. Every library considering RFID should read it. Ward provides nice coverage of the technology (including the obligatory statement about how RFID has been used since WWII) andshe explains the technology thoroughly but in accessible language.
She does the best job I've ever seen in explaining library applications for RFID with a strong focus on the benefits of using portable scanners for shelf reading and for locating misshelved material.
Aside: Right now, I'm working on a materials handling study and finding that a big issue for my client is the time it takes to locate items that have been put on Hold. Libraries can spend hours tracking down items needed to fill requests. Many are never found and ultimately they get removed from the catalog. With RFID, inventory can be done quickly and easily which means libraries might actually do it! I hadn't really grokked the significance of this application before. I only noted that RFID vendors push it and libraries don't use it. But I think it's big. Using RFID makes inventory do-able. Inventorying collections keeps the catalog current. A current catalog increases the changes that an item that is supposed to be somewhere really will be there. Combine this with more shelf-reading (also made much easier with RFID) and you get a much more satisfactory experience for customers (who actually find what they are looking for) and a much more efficient operation for library staff. Win. Win.
Ward has a chapter on ROI but of course she articulates more intangible benefits than tangible. Why? Because no one has the hard data yet for the more tangible benefits of RFID. Still, she does a great job of providing some numbers to work with and covers the RSI connection as well as it can be at this point given the lack of data there as well.
If you are thinking of doing an RFI, RFQ or RFP for RFID...this manual is a must. She puts together a very nice outline for getting you started and on your way with a sample structure fully populated with questions to ask the vendor.
She covers the marketplace well -- both Europe and the U.S. -- and addresses installation and maintenance as well as selection and implementation.
There's also a DVD with interviews and demos of equipment (which I would have liked indexed so I could jump to specific excerpts, but oh well, I'm not complaining).
Overall, this is a great resource and its about time someone did this. Good job, Diane!
Posted by at 12:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)
July 11, 2007
RFID Tag Compliant with Emerging Data Model?
TAGSYS has announce a new RFID tag, the Folio 370L Tag. It has a password protected electronic article surveillance feature. This sounds good but I'm not sure what that means exactly. What is most interesting to me and most annoying is TAGSYS' claim that it "meets the emerging NISO (US National Information Standards Organization) data model standard for libraries.
If its an emerging standard, it means it ain't there yet. It's a standard-to-be. It's in development and subject to change. The point of a standard is that we all know what it is and comply with it. An emerging standard means we haven't quite worked that out yet but we're trying. So to claim a tag meets the emerging NISO data model standard is more marketing hype than anything else. Don't some of you other vendors have a tag that is equally "compliant" with the emerging standard?
I had the same reaction to reading that as I do when I read that an Internet filter is "CIPA-compliant." CIPA of course is the Children's Internet Protection Act which seeks to prevent kids from seeing Internet material that is "harmful to minors" which is a legal term that is so subjective as to be meaningless across communities. What is harmful to your minor may not be harmful to my minor. At any rate, who knows what a filter that claims to be "CIPA compliant" thinks is harmful to minors.
Similarly, what are the features of an RFID tag that meets an emerging standard? Still, I'll be keeping my eye on it just in case we get that standard someday!
[From Biblio-Tech Review]
Posted by at 7:22 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)
April 4, 2007
RFID Standards Update
Just came across the PPT of Vinod Chachra's presentation at ALA-Seattle (PDF here) in which he summarizes what is going on with the NISO Standards Committee on Library Applications of RFID.
His slides are detailed enough that you can pretty much make sense of what's happening and I'm happy to say there's a bit more going on that I would have thought. The best news is that the group has established four levels of interoperability that they are concerned about and they are roughly described as compatibility within the library, within the community, for ILL and for the supply chain.
Interoperability Level One: Within the Library
Addresses the fear that tags may not be useful or available in the future requiring expensive and time-consuming retagging. Suggestions include standardization of tags and data on tags and interoperability of tags from different manufacturers.
Interoperability Level Two: Within the Community
Addresses the issue of library tags being read by non-library readers or non-library tags being read by library readers. The group is recommending adopting the Application Family Identifier (AFI) to address this issue.
Interoperability Level Three: ILL Purposes
The concept here is that a tag from library A should be able to service the circulation needs of Library B. This requires a standard data model for all tags.
Interoperability Level Four: Supply Chain
Tags should be being applied as high up in the supply chain as possible so they can be used by the manufacturer, distributor, book jobber and libraries. Requires standards to be normalized for each party in that supply chain.
A final report from the NISO Working Group is due in June of 2007. That's progress!
Posted by at 2:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)
February 19, 2007
CSI:NY - How Could You?
I'm a big fan of CSI:NY (and CSI:Miami). I have an HDTV and a fabulous satellite signal so the images are incredible. I enjoy the colors and textures of the city shots and the ability to see the pores, freckles and sometimes bad make-up on the actors' faces.
I also enjoy the gizmos they use to solve crimes. They seem to have machines that do whatever they need: wrist watch opener uppers, inventories of munitions scheduled for destruction each day, amazing photo enhancers, animated crime scene re-enacters (-ors?), beeping, buzzing, whirring, wonderful machines that can report the little plot of land from which dirt clots came. And, all of their data repositories are interlinked, have freakishly handy and cool interfaces, and are never lacking any data elements. There's ALWAYS a photo, address and history of every person they are looking for (whether they are in prison, rehab, the military, or whether they are a contractor, lawyer, or alarm installer).
The point is, I know it isn't real.
Still. The February 7 episode went too far. The storyline involved someone hiding an RFID reader in a $25,000 purse. Let's call that the perp purse. The badguy (actually the bad girl) would set the perp purse next to the target purse and the RFID would slurp up all the personal information it could find in the target purse and store the name, address, phone numbers, credit card numbers, driver's license numbers, and who knows what else in its database.
The way it worked was unlike any RFID reader I've ever seen and which I'm pretty dang sure doesn't exist. You see, the RFID reader in the show had super magic powers and could read the data on magnetic stips like those on the back of credit cards and drivers' licenses. That just doesn't work.
RFID readers read radio signals. Magnetic strips don't have radio signals. They have magnetic strips. That's why you have to swipe them.
I guess its like anything, when you know a bit too much about something, it takes all the joy away. I can let me imagination run wild with most of the CSI gizmos but I have to draw the line with the Amazing RFID Reader That Reads Magnetic Strips. Sigh.
Posted by at 4:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)
January 18, 2007
RFID Update - Sort of
Don Wood put up a post entitled RFID in Libraries: Privacy and Technical and Managerial Aspects which highlights some useful RFID resources including the PowerPoint slides from Jim Lichtenberg's presentation at ALA (2006). Jim does a nice overview of where we are with RFID in libraries from the book publisher perspective. Thankfully, he states that the key to successfully deploying RFID in libraries lies in the development of standards. Hooray. He quotes the NISO RFID Technical Committee which states:
"It is important for any RFID standard for libraries to focus on the key requirements for interoperability interoperability, while allowing for differences between solutions that foster healthy competition in the marketplace, ...and to allow for the development of more advanced
solutions as technology evolves."
He's got a couple interesting slides about the diffusion of new technology which tends to follow a bell curve as follows:
innovators (2.5%)
early adopters (13.5%)
early majority (34%)
late majority (34%)
laggards (16%)
I believe he puts us in the early adopters phase, which makes sense to me. And again, the key to moving beyond this point is all about the standards. RFID only makes sense for libraries when we have standards that ensure interoperability and ongoing development.
I was pleased to see that Don linked to one of my articles on RFID but rather than linking to my position paper (which is pretty old already, date August 2004), I'd rather he linked to my RFID Backgrounder (April, 2006). Even that is getting old....time to get something even more current on my resources page, eh?
Posted by at 8:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)
October 14, 2006
Dutch book distributor applying RFID tags on books
Modern Materials Handling reports that a Dutch bookseller, Selexyz has teamed up with a large book distributor to test the idea of applying item-level RFID tags before delivering their books to the retailer. Whereas libraries have been using item-level RFID tags for a few years, most of the RFID tags used in supply-chain operations are applied to containers and pallets rather than individual items.
One of the RFID vendors involved in this project is Progress Software which, strangely enough, lists our library pal, Dynix as a customer. Interesting.
The article reports that the tags are used to automatically receive books in the store's inventory management system, provide visibility to the location of the books, automatically notify customers when special orders are available for pick up and automate store replenishment.
When RFID tags are interoperable across library systems and are applied by the booksellers...that's when it starts making more sense to me for libraries.
Posted by at 5:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)
September 8, 2006
Two More California Libraries Jump on RFID Bandwagon
Per BiblioTech, two more California libraries have decided to move to RFID. El Dorado County Library has chosen TechLogic and will roll out RFID as part of the construction of a new branch. Riverside County has chosen P.V. Supa.
My concern with the choice to implement RFID today is that libraries may get stuck holding the bag when the data model standard finally gets adopted. The good news is that there is finally some progress being made in that regard. In fact, both Denmark and Finland have accepted the Danish Data Model which makes choosing a Finnish company like P.V. Supa possibly a better choice than some others.
The data model standard for libraries is just getting started in the U.S. with the formation of a Technical Committee at NISO. In their last meeting meeting (June, 2006 (PDF)), the Committee notes:
To facilitate real interoperability, all libraries should be utilizing standardized tag architectures. ISO 15693 is the standard most widely used in libraries at this point, and all ISO 15693-3 / ISO 18000-3 Mode 1 tags do support AFI. To further facilitate interoperability, all library RFID systems, regardless of security method, should use AFI codes authorized by ISO for use by libraries for library items. This facilitates interoperability with other applications. Such codes have not yet been assigned, but ISO JTC1 SC31 WG4 SG1 is working to secure a pair of codes which can be used by the library industry, based on a request from UK-based EDItEUR, and supported by information on AFI use in libraries provided by NISO.
So, when those codes get assigned, what happens to all the libraries who already have RFID systems in place? The goal of the standards is to design a data model that accomodates remote borrowing and interlibrary loan...every library needs that!
Again, from the meeting minutes:
Systems should be designed so that should an AFI code or EAS bit be changed during an inter-library loan event, they will seamlessly reprogram the AFI code or EAS bit on the item back to a compatible setting upon its return to the owning library.
Hopefully, the libraries making deals with RFID companies today have included in their negotiations a guarantee that their RFID vendor will provide an affordable and timely conversion to the new standard when it becomes official in the U.S.
Posted by at 8:16 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)
August 28, 2006
Privacy Concerns with RFID Systems "Under Development "
According to the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC), even the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Office of the Inspector General is concerned about the use of RFID tags.
According to EPIC, the DHS Inspector General recently (July 27, 2006) issued a report that found a "lack of systematic inventories of RFID technology and consistent policies, and identified security concerns
regarding user access permissions, password management, and auditing in
the Department's RFID databases." The report says that in the absence of "adequate security measures", data on the tag "can be read by a variety of authorized and
unauthorized readers".
The report entitled Additional Guidance and Security Controls Are Needed Over Systems Using RFID at DHS (Redacted) found that "security controls were not always present in developing systems, creating the risk that many systems under development would not be adequately tested prior to their application in the real world."
Although the report is talking about RFID tags in immigration documents and passwords, I submit that library RFID systems would qualify as "under development" too. 'Nuf said.
For more on RFID from EPIC, see http://www.epic.org/privacy/rfid/.
Posted by at 12:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)
July 27, 2006
Libraries, Thomas Frey and a Dash of Waynn Pearson
I was just enjoying some futuristic reading on the DaVinci Institute website. Thomas Frey is the Executive Director there. He wrote two articles that I'd like to discuss. One is called Findability vs Spyability: Will the convergence of search technology and RFID chips improve our lives or forever put us in a fishbowl for all to see? and the other The Future of Libraries: Beginning the Great Transformation.
From the RFID article:
1) "Privacy cannot be viewed in isolation without considering how it affects security and convenience. There is a three-way tension between privacy, security, and convenience and one cannot be changed without affecting the other two." Frey explains that it is important to find the right balance of these aspects of RFID so that no one issue dominates. When I began talking about RFID, I was concerned about the potential privacy issues but I found myself increasingly uncomfortable with the fear-mongering associated with RFID. As Frey points out, just because one can kill a person by beating them over the head with a book doesn't mean we should outlaw books. It's true that RFID tags can be abused by ne'er-do-wells but what has become ever more clear is that there are exciting possibilities in RFID for libraries. I still don't recommend leaping on the RFID bandwagon just yet, but it's not because RFID is evil. It's that RFID library applications are half-baked.
2) "All new technology begins with a lawless Wild West stage. Typically the technology is poorly defined and poorly understood and for an initial time period the developing industry is self-regulated." That's what I was getting at with my half-baked comment. We are in the Wild West stage of RFID. The industry is self-regulated and the library RFID technology is most definitely poorly-defined.
In the Future of Libraries article, Frey identifies ten trends. My reflections on a few of them:
Trend #4: "Search Technology will become increasingly more complicated." Frey forecasts that new attributes will be introduced into search technology including taste, smell, texture, reflectivity, and more. He argues that librarians will continue to serve as intermediaries in the search process because it will be too complicated for normal folks and people just won't have the time to keep up to speed. This is almost exactly the opposite of the self-service trend others have identified.
Trend #5: "Time compression is changing the lifestyle of library patrons." Or put another, cleverer way "we have more needs faster." This trend appears to be intricately connected to trend #4. Addressing the patron's need for instant information gratification is going to keep our profession busy. Think metasearch tools only way cooler.
Trend #6: "Over time we will be transitioning to a verbal society." Literacy, he says will be dead by 2050. The keyboard will be the first to go and this will signal the beginning of the end. Soon thereafter, we'll be getting and sending our information verbally. He may be on to something here. How many of us already tell our phones who to call or who to text? How many would rather listen to a podcast than read a report?
Trend #9: "We are transitioning from a product-based economy to an experience based economy." Well, anyone in the gravitational pull of Waynn Pearson knows this already. Waynn was the City Librarian for Cerritos where he created the first Experience Library. Waynn was on to this trend like white on rice. Thanks to him, many of us have had a chance to experience information in very new ways. At the Cerritos Library information was liberated from the page. Waynn retires tomorrow but I'm guessing he's only retiring from Cerritos, not from libraryland. Given Waynn's tendency to bubble over and erupt with enthusiasm I'm hoping we haven't heard the last from him. |  |
Trend #10: "Libraries will transition from a center of information to a center of culture." Gosh, this sounds familiar. I recently suggested that libraries were going to turn into community centers if they didn't find a convenient way to get information to their customers (think NetFlix and Amazon). But my scenario was bleak. Frey's scenario is rich and exciting. He paints a picture of a library tapped into the "spirit of the community, assessing priorities and providing resources to support the things deemed most important."
Thomas Frey is an interesting fellow. He and his colleagues at the DaVinci Institute provide an intriguing and unique twist to some familiar topics. Maybe Waynn Pearson will end up over there.
Posted by at 5:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
June 21, 2006
New RFID Chip for Libraries: ICODE-SLI S
Philips has announced a new RFID chip for libraries with enhanced security and privacy features. It is the next generation ICODE chip and has a next generation name to go with it: ICODE-SLI S. (Pronounced eye-code-sly-ess?)
The new chip boasts a "password protection feature that prevents unauthorized access to sections of the on-chip memory and allows only authorized parties to have the capability to modify the stored data" and "prevents people from illicitly switching off the electronic article surveillance (EAS) anti-theft functionality." It is compatible with ISO 15693, ISO 18000 and HF EPC class-1 protocols as well as the ICODE infrastructure.
According to Philips the chip is "specifically suited for automated management of media in libraries" and faster check-out of books, CDs and DVDs.
Not sure what the practical ramifications of the new chip are but if you use Philips chips (or your RFID vendor does), you might want to have a sit-down with them to find out when you'll see any benefits from this new technology.
Oh, and see if they'll pay to have all your books retagged with the groovy, new chips too.
Posted by at 4:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
June 19, 2006
World Cup Tickets Have RFID Tags
Here's an article that says everything you need to know about the corporate concern about personal privacy....
World Cup Soccer tickets have all been embedded with RFID tags. This is done to help prevent counterfeit tickets from being used. Accroding to a Phillips spokesman (provider of the RFID tags used for this purpose), they wanted to avoid any 'conversations about privacy' so there is no personal information on the tag, just a unique number that links back to....well, probably some big database that links to lots of other things, but that's a whole 'nother story.
My favorite part of the story is that the left hand didn't seem to know what the right hand was doing because the article also reports that each ticket is 'personalised with the holder's name.'
So much for that privacy conversation they were trying to avoid.
Posted by at 1:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
April 13, 2006
NISO Launches RFID Committee for Library Applications
This announcement , from the National International Standards Organization, represents the first step in a long process of establishing a data model (schema) for library RFID tags. These are the standards that will lead to interoperable and secure systems. We need these standards in order to reap the greatests rewards of RFID in the library.
From the announcement:
Bethesda, MD (USA) - March 21, 2006 - The National Information Standards Organization has formed a Technical Committee to create guidelines that lay out best practices for the use of radio frequency identification (RFID) in library applications. Chaired by Dr. Vinod Chachra, CEO of VTLS Inc., the diverse group is composed of RFID hardware manufacturers, solution providers (software and integration), library RFID users, book jobbers and processors, and related organizations. The NISO Committee's work is limited to RFID tags used in libraries, that is, tags operating at 13.56 MHz.
This best practices document will form a part of a larger input document on U.S, requirements for the ISO TC 46 working group developing a standard data model for encoding information on the tag. The group will also coordinate with American Library Association/Book Industry Study Group working group around the interaction of technology and privacy issues.
The current generation of tags are essentially being used as glorified bar codes. This has some benefits but it does't take advantage of the most exciting possibilities inherent in RFID technology. Once we tap into the power to read and write to tags, store useful information on the tags and use them to intelligently respond to the environment, we can develop those Library 2.0 approaches to browsing the stacks. Imagine books that could not only check themselves in and out but could also be used to track where the book was as it moved through the library's delivery system (but couldn't be used to track our patron's movements). Imagine a tag that could send a bibliographic citation to a library user's PDA or a book that could alert the shelver that it was in the wrong place or needed to be weeded. Imagine books that were smart enough to identify themselves as candidates for offsite storage because they hadn't been removed from the shelf even once in the last 10 years?
There are possibilities far beyond RFID Tag As Bar Code, but they require the tags to be standardized and the data adequately secured. This standards process is just the beginning.
Now, let's be sure there are librarians on the NISO Committee. Not just tag manufacturers, vendors and publishers.
Also, let's start thinking outside of the bar code box and get ready for the next generation of tags. Librarians need to lead the development of library RFID applications. Not the book publishers and jobbers. Afterall, they'll just use the tags to get them to us. We'll be using them for a lifetime - a book's lifetime.
Posted by at 7:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
April 11, 2006
Updated RFID Backgrounder for Library Workers
Just came back from the Oregon Library Association where I participated on a panel called RFID in Context: Libraries Won't be Walmarts. Other panelists included Marilyn Sheck of Seattle Public Library, Alan Bern of Berkeley Public Library, and Margaret Hazel of Eugene Public. We pointed out the benefits and limitations of the current library RFID technology and discussed what is likely down the road.
As readers of my blog know, I'm not convinced that the current library RFID systems are worth the investment. Some studies are out there that will help us answer that question but since the oldest installation (in CA) is only six years old, its really too early to tell how RFID affects RSI injuries and how fast the return on investment is. We'll have more data available to answer those questions after the California State Library releases their report (underway now by Karen Coyle and Elena Engel).
Here are the issues with first generation systems: (1) no meaningful standards. Data model standards (aka data map or schema) are a good three years away. NISO just formed a committtee to begin work on this. As a result of the lack of standards, current systems are incompatible; (2) there are persistent problems with metal interference (on DVDs and CDs in particular), and (3) tags that are in use are not as secure as they should be (this improves some as libraries move to ISO 18000-3 tags).
Help yourself to the handouts I made available to OLA attendees: RFID Backgrounder for Library Workers (updated April 2006), and Big Picture RFID Resources.
Posted by at 12:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
February 21, 2006
US Passports Adding RFID?
According to a CNET article, US Passports are going to start being implanted with RFID tags as early as October 2006. While I find this extremely difficult to believe, I do believe this part of the article:
"Out of the 2,335 comments on the plan that were received by the State Department this year, 98.5 percent were negative. The objections mostly focused on security and privacy concerns.....[b]ut the Bush administration chose to go ahead with embedding 64KB chips in future passports...."
I wonder what the point of asking for comments is? If I asked for feedback about something I was considering and 98.5% of the respondents said "Bad Idea!," I might at least hesitate. But that's just me.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation and Privacy Rights Clearinghouse (among others)have given the Feds a piece of their mind.
Posted by at 8:41 AM | Permalink
January 3, 2006
Walmart, FasTrak, DoD and Libraries
Well, it has happened. A friend sent me an article in which libraries are lumped in a group with other RFID users like FasTrak and Walmart thereby giving the technology the Librarian Stamp of Approval.
The January 2006 issue of National Geographic contains a short article (not available online) by Joel Achenbach about RFID entitled "The Radio Age: RFID tags are tracking everything - even you." The article describes far-fetched futuristic applications of RFID ("gizmos" that beam back name, occupation, hobbies, obsessions...availability for a date Friday night to other singles). He also gives readers an overview of the technology which includes this line:
Already, RFID technology is used by highway toll plazas, libraries, retailers tracking inventory, and it might appear in your passport.
Unlike WalMart, FasTrak and the Department of Defense (the usual RFID suspects), libraries are an institution committeed to protecting the privacy of its users. To fulfill our mission, we must help ensure that privacy protections are co-developed with RFID applications. Otherwise, how can we justify using them and being unintentionally among the industries giving RFID the thumbs-up?
That means pushing for privacy protections for all RFID applications. Not only in our library applications. The citizenry doesn't really see the difference between our applications and the Walmart applications. All they know is "if libraries are using it, how bad can it be?"
Posted by at 8:24 AM | Permalink
December 28, 2005
Book Review of RFID: Applications, Security and Privacy
 | Having written one of the chapters, I've been anxious to see how this book is being received. Here's the first review I've seen so far by Konomi of RFIDBuzz "This is a very rich collection of articles contributed by people with diverse backgrounds, viewpoints, and stances. It was just published from Addison-Wesley this summer and includes a number of fresh topics that are highly relevant to the ongoing debates on RFID technology and its implications for all facets of our lives." |
I'm just now reading the book myself and I'm finding it to be a good, balanced look at RFID. To quote from the preface, this book "is the most balanced and accurate discussion you will find of RFID technology and its attendant controversy anywhere on the planet." Possibly true!
P.S. Happy Birthday, Mom!
Posted by at 4:02 PM | Permalink
August 17, 2005
RFID Data Model For Libraries
The RFID Data Model for Libraries was just released by the RFID Data Model for Libraries Working Group last month (July 2005).
The work is spear-headed by Denmark. Danish and European organizations seem to be more cognizant than American companies that standardized RFID tags are critical to the success of library use of RFID.
In a statement issued September 9th, 2004, the Danish National Library Authority set 5 objectives for usage of RFID in Danish libraries:
- For inter library loan safeguarding an rfid tag from one library shall be readable and usable in other libraries
- An RFID application shall have a standardised interface to any library system
- To ensure independence of suppliers RFID tags shall be available from several sources
- To ensure backwards compatibility RFID tags shall use the same identification numbers as used on present barcode systems
- Danish library RFID applications shall comply with existing international standards.
Hooray! Imagine that...an RFID tag that would actually work during inter-library loan! They're thinking ahead over there.
So, the working group decided to develop a data model for each tag that would work for all library purposes. They came up with a model that includes space on the tag for the following mandatory pieces of information:
Type of usage:
- In acquisition: Item has not been entered into the library inventory yet. It can not be circulated.
- Item for circulation
- Item not for circulation
- Discarded item. Item is discarded and permanently removed from circulation.
Number of parts: For example, book with CD would be 2 parts
Original part number: The part number of the book/CD combination.
Primary item ID: Current bar code number
Country of owner library
Owner library
Media format: Used to define items that need special handling (by sorting equipment, for example)
They are also defining optional items in the data model including supplier id, item identification (by supplier), order number, invoice number. Again, anticipating that one day libraries might want to optimize their acquisition process and suppliers might want to use the tags in their own manufacturing and delivery process.
The working group came out very clearly in support of the ISO/IEC 18000 family of standards for air interface standards...a standard I do not believe any of the current vendors follow. Vendors, let me know if I'm wrong about this.
What isn't ready yet: Application Family Identifiers (AFI):
These are used on the tag to control which tags talk to which interrogators. Some variation of AFIs are used for item security (is this checked out: yes or no) but I'm referring to a international AFI standard here. In other industries (medical, supply chain, etc), they define the AFIs that are pertinent to them. There are no official library AFIs. Nonetheless, Denmark has proposed two library AFIs (checked in, checked out) and though this isn't yet supported by any of the standards organizations, it's a start. The idea is that if your tag has a "library AFI" on it, it won't be read by the scanner at Walmart or the local health clinic. Let's hope the Danes keep at it.
The working group isn't taking up privacy issues but they did support and include as Annex C, the ALA's Resolution on Radio Frequency Identification and Privacy Principles.
I'd like to see more participation in this working group by our own RFID companies. Bibliotheca and Tagsys are members. Checkpoint is nowhere in sight. Wouldn't it be nice if they got on board?
Posted by at 8:29 AM | Permalink
June 27, 2005
SB 682 Turned Upside Down
Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) seems to be fighting an uphill battle with AB 682, a bill originally designed to prohibit the use of RFID in driver's licenses, student IDs, government health and benefit cards and public library cards. Now, instead of prohibiting the use of RFID, the bill mandates security measures that must be used when employing RFID on such documents. Not exactly what he had in mind:
- The document?s RFID tag must not transmit anything other than a unique ID number.
- Encryption must be used to protect the data on the RFID chip from unauthorized reading.
- The reader and document?s chip must use mutual authentication.
- The ID holder must authorize the reading of the ID?s data and be notified in writing that the ID uses RF to transmit information, and that he or she can use a shield to prevent the data from being transmitted through RF.
- The ID holder must be informed of the locations of all devices intended for use in reading the ID.
Something called the High Tech Trust Coalition has tried to convince Simitian that there should be a three-tiered approach to securing RFID-enabled documents. The strongest data protection would be reserved for driver's licenses, whereas items like library cards and identification badges for accessing buildings would "have progressively fewer security protections."
Source: RFID Journal
Read SB 682 (the entire bill, as amended June 15th.
Posted by at 4:16 PM | Permalink
March 4, 2005
RFID Legislation Starting to Catch Up?
From RFID in Libraries, Laura Smart writes:
The California Senate has had the first reading of bill SB 682, the identity Information Protection Act of 2005.
The legislation (read full text), would make it a misdemeanor to include a ?contactless integrated circuit or other device that can broadcast personal information? on any government issued ID card.
The bill contains this excerpt:
1798.10. No identity document created, mandated, or issued by the state, county, or municipal government, or subdivision or agency thereof shall contain a contactless integrated circuit or other device that can broadcast personal information or enable personal information to be scanned remotely.
This proves my point that anyone getting involved in RFID at this stage of the game is doing so at their own risk. What I mean is that you may end up having to do some expensive retrofitting of your RFID system once the privacy issues and standards start to develop. This bit of legislation may not go anywhere or it may make all those new library cards with embedded RFID tags illegal.
Next on my radar is the standards that apply to item-level tagging...appropriate standards are in the works, but not yet in the products. All the RFID vendors still use the old standards that apply to container-level tagging which is really a whole different beast. See Molnar for more on that score.
I spoke with a library representative recently who said they would be pursuing a feasibility study on RFID for their library. Now that makes sense -- don't rush this thing! Do plenty of research, figure out what it would really take to convert all your systems and let some of the issues shake out before you make a million dollar investment in new technology...that's what I say.
Posted by at 1:48 PM | Permalink
November 30, 2004
Report on CLA: RFID Vendors Answer the Tough Questions
At the California Library Association's Annual Conference, I moderated a panel of RFID vendors entitled "The Vendors Answer the Tough Questions."
The format was a pointed Q&A by me followed by some questions from the audience. In anticipation of the questions I posed to the panel members, I had sent each panelist the same set of questions and told them that, based on their responses, I would be picking who the respondent for that question would be.
In other words, they had to provide their response to my questions ahead of time and not everyone would get a chance to respond to each question.
Soooo, the first interesting thing to note was who appeared on the panel and who didn't. The reason this is interesting is because TechLogic basically chickened out. I am informed and believe (<---useful term I learned from my work at a law firm) that a TechLogic rep was in the audience but was not 'permitted' to participate. Kudos to the companies that were willing to talk about the tough issues!
Companies on the panel included the following:
3M - Rebekeh Anderson
Integrated Technology Group (ITG) - Ron Birchard
Library Automation Technologies (LAT) - Oleg Boyarsky
Tagsys - Charles Boyer
Bibliotheca - Emmet Erwin
VTLS - Dan Denault
Checkpoint - Doug Karp
Libramation - Frank Mussche
Dan Denault and Ron Birchard tackled the question "What kind of ROI can I expect from my RFID implementation -- when will it have paid for itself?" They pointed out that the data isn't really out there yet but that 3-4 years was looking reasonable. They talked about the passive savings (I think that was the term) resulting from keeping the staff the same size while increasing circulation. Arguing that the savings is in not having to increase your staff as you do more work.
Becky Anderson and Charles Boyer addressed the question of "what happens when the next generation tag comes out and I've already tagged my collection with last generation tags?" Again, both vendors agreed that their company would always support the last generation tags so the new technology would support the old. No problems there. Ah, but what if you want the technology perks associated with the new tags such as better privacy control? Well, that didn't come up and since this wasn't a debate, I left that one alone.
Things got interesting when Frank Mussche and Oleg Boyarsky responded to the question "How is your company responding to the privacy concerns raised by RFID use?" Basically, Mussche suggested the concerns were overblown and that the only way of 'eavesdropping' on the tags would require the eavesdropper to carry some big reader with a huge antenna. The idea being that you'd draw so much attention to yourself that no one could do it surreptitiously. Boyarsky, on the other hand, felt the concerns that had been raised needed to be addressed by vendors and that was why he had been working with some of the people raising those concerns such as David Molnar (the UC Berkeley RFID engineer). His company claims to have a safer product (privacy-wise) than the others.
Emmett Erwin and Doug Karp were asked about the ISO standard with which all the vendors had claimed to be compliant (ISO 15693). My question was this...if all the vendors are compliant, then shouldn't that mean I could use one company's tag and another company's reader. In other words, I shouldn't be locked into an "RFID Solution" from just one vendor. Right? Wrong. They explained that there was much more to interoperability than standards compliance. Karp explained that the ISO standard only applies to data communication. But there was much more to communicating between readers and ILSs than data communication. There is a whole data model that differs from company to company which results in tag and reader not necessarily playing nice together across companies.
There were some other questions asked and answered that the vendors didn't agree upon such as the viability of using RFID only for security purposes, the desireability of having the publishers place tags on their books before shipping them out, the availability (or lack) of documentation on the health effects of exposure to the RFID radio signal, the availability (or lack) of information about the reduction of RSI injuries to library workers switching over to RFID systems. Unfortunately, I don't remember exactly who said what so I can't report more specifics.
In closing the panel, I decided to ask what seemed to be to be the obvious question: why would ANYONE get into RFID at this stage?
I asked this question because throughout the discussion, it became clear that the technology is so new that many of those "tough questions" couldn't be answered authoritatively.
- Standards are still being developed (data communication)
- Some standards (data model) haven't even BEGUN to be developed
- Health effects (radio exposure, RSI) studies haven't been done
- The ROI isn't documented
- The cost is very high to get started and once you commit to a vendor (at this point), you are really committed to the vendor
I'll leave it to each vendor to make their pitch to you about why now is the time. Suffice to say, I'm not convinced it is time to leap in just yet.
Posted by at 9:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
August 23, 2004
Position Paper on RFID and Libraries
I recently took advantage of a term paper assignment for one of my classes (you did know I was in library school, right?) to study RFID very thoroughly. The result was a whopping 60 pager on the topic.
That got whittled down to something a bit more accessible with the help of Beth Rosenberg, the managing editor of the upcoming book Wireless Privacy: RFID, Bluetooth, 802.11 to be published in early 2005 by Addison-Wesley/Prentice Hall. Simson Garfinkel is Rosenberg's co-editor. My sixteeen page paper appears as Libraries and RFID: Benefits, Threats, Responsibilities.
I'm now making the chapter available on my website as a position paper on RFID and libraries. I have done so with the blessings of Rosenberg and Garfinkel.
From what I saw of the other contributors' works, this book will be an excellent resource for those of us struggling with the beautiful and beastly qualities of wireless technology. I'm proud to have been included.
Posted by at 11:55 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
August 20, 2004
Booksellers Installing RFID Chips
News to me... from the RFID_LIB mailing list...
Per a poster to the list, there is a Dutch-based company called Nedap that provides RFID systems for libraries in Netherlands and Belgium. Nedap use tags supplied by NBD|Biblion. NBD|Biblion is a library-supplier, selling 2.7 million books annually.
Here's where it gets interesting...the NBD|Biblion books all come equipped with RFID-labels (since April 1st 2004).
From my point of view, this is one of the more dangerous developments in RFID technology yet.
If we were worried about bad guys figuring out what I'm reading by reading the RFID tag that contains only a bar code, think how easy it will be for them to conduct their nefarious business when they don't have to bother with that pesky translation step (bar code to book title).
Oy.
Posted by at 4:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
August 17, 2004
RFID Panel at CLA
I'm organizing a panel at CLA on RFID. The panelists will be vendors. The plan is to have a five minute presentation from each vendor and then to use the rest of the time to get them to answer questions we all want answered.
What questions do you have for RFID vendors? Give me your feedback. I'm working on the list and would like to give them an advance copy to ensure they are all prepared to tell us not only what they want us to know but what we want to know!
Also, you RFID vendors out there...get back to me. So far only Library Automation Technologies and Vernon Library Supplies has RSVPd that they'll be on the panel. Checkpoint may have a scheduling problem. But where is everyone else?
On a related note, I just submitted a chapter to Beth Rosenberg, managing editor, for her upcoming book Wireless Privacy: RFID, Bluetooth and 802.11 (Addison-Wesley/Prentice Hall). My thanks to Laura Smart of RFID in Libraries for the referral -- with help from David Dodd).
My chapter addresses library use of RFID. Highlights to follow in future posts.....
Posted by at 9:02 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
August 9, 2004
AT&T WIRLESS
For the last several days, my cell phone has displayed 'AT&T WIRLESS' on the screen. It used to say 'AT&T Wireless.'
Is this one of those annoying "Think Different" types of marketing campaigns?
Posted by at 8:55 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
July 16, 2004
Current Library RFID Not Ready
There's a lot of talk about RFID tags and whether or not libraries should be using them given the possible privacy abuses inherent in the technology. Rather than point to another big long list of articles to read on the topic (although I can do that too....contact me offline), I'm going to refer you to this one, very technical, article:
Privacy and Security in Library RFID Issues, Practices, and Architectures by David Molnar and David Wagner.
The article explains that current tags used in library applications are very different from those used in supply chain applications. Library tags operate in the 13.56 MHz band and perform item-level tagging. Supply chain tags operate at the 915MHz band and tag pallets or boxes, not individual items. The issues and capabilities of the tags are very different in these two applications and yet most of the papers addressing privacy issues associated with RFID tags have focused on the supply-chain variety, not the library tags.
Some best practices have been identified for libraries using RFID and these should be followed (see Berkeley Public Library's Best Practices for RFID Technology to get started). But there are still issues of tracking and hotlisting to consider with today's library RFID systems.
Tracking refers to the ability to read the book's RFID tag in multiple locations. The authors state that "combined with video surveillance or other mechanisms, this may allow an adversary to link different people reading the same book. In this way, an adversary can begin profiling individual's associations and make inferences about a particular individual's views..." The argument that the read range of today's RFID readers makes this type of tracking impossible are falacious because all that is required is that more powerful readers be used than those that are "lawful" in the 13.56 MHz band. In other words, it's a legal range limit, not a technical limit.
Hotlisting is when a number of items (books in our case) are determined to be of interest and so they are checked out by the "adversary" in order to learn the unique tag numbers associated with these items. It is then simply a matter of scanning tags to find people who have checked out any of the items onthe hotlist.
The solution, per Molnar and Wagner, is to design private authentication systems into library RFID systems. This allows the tag and the reader to simultaneously authenticate one another based on a shared secret. The recipe is in the article. Now, which library RFID vendor will step up to the plate?
One note of caution, unlike wireless networks, the cost of converting from one RFID system to another is extremely expensive and time-consuming. You might want to sit tight a bit longer before you jump in bed with a vendor. The only way libraries are going to get the kind of RFID system that makes sense in a library is if we wait them out.
What we need can be done, let's insist on it.
Posted by at 9:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
March 30, 2004
Wireless Notebooks
Network Computing, 3-18-04 issue has a buyer's guide on "untethered notebooks."
Here's some highlights and my commentary.
Standards: 802.11b is still the most popular but 802.11a and g are gaining ground fast. Used to be safe to invest in 802.11b -- at least safe in the sense that everything would be compatible for a year or two. But no more. Looks like it is time to purchase 802.11a/b/g products to get the kind of compatbility you need (in your library or your working laptops).
Centrino: Centrino is Intel's processor with the Pentium-M 855 chipset plus Intel's Mini-PCI wireless NIC. Centrino currently only supports 802.11b. I knew that Centrino and wireless went together but hadn't clearly understood what made a Centrino processor a Centrino processor -- well there it is. But isn't it disappointing that it is limited to 802.11b? To get wireless in your laptop that is a/b/g, go with a Broadcom mini-PCI instead of Centrino. Atheros, Cisco and Intel also offer some alternatives. Dell offers a Centrino to Broadcom upgrade on their laptops.
Battery Life: With your wireless NIC turned "on," you can expect your battery life to be reduced by half. Might be worth investing in laptops that have an off switch for your wireless, eh?
Ports: Lots of port options available these days. With laptops, you can't just add them later by sliding in a new card so figure out which ports you may need and be sure they're included in your laptop: USB 2.0, PC card slot, headphone/microphone, integrated modem and Ethernet -- and for the person who wants it all -- S-Video output, IrDA, FireWire (1394), and your choide of portable storage (SD memory, memory stick, compact flash). This article doesn't mention BlueTooth but I'd be sure to include that in my laptop as soon as its available. Wouldn't it be nice to print from your laptop without a cable?
Posted by at 7:33 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
March 10, 2004
Wireless to Idaho
Well, I travelled to Idaho recently and on the way there tested out where I could pick up a free, wireless Internet connection. I was surprised to find that the Flying J truck stops offer wireless service for the low low cost of $2.00 for a one hour subscription. There are several of these truck stops along 80 in Nevada.
I had to try it out of course and found the connection very slow but I was able to get my mail. I tried to share my connection with my fellow traveler but the service was clever enough not to let us do that. As soon as I ended my session -- after 10 minutes, so we could log in on the other laptop using the same subscription -- my subscription was over. No logging back in allowed. What a rip!
Even better than paying for service was using connections we picked up along the way. The best one was along a two lane highway in the middle of nowhere. Well except for the farm houses we passed every three or four miles. Turns out one of those farmhouses had a darn strong signal and we were able to get to the Internet for several minutes as we screamed down that highway in our diesel truck. We fit right in, no one would suspect we were Internet rustlers!
Picked up another wireless connection in the mountains with no signs of civilization in sight. That was odd. Wondered if maybe one of the cars we were passing had a PC Connection card that we were joining in on. But we'll never know.
On the way home, we stopped in at Starbucks and signed up for their pay-as-you-go service which is $6.00 each time you sign on which makes it kind of pricey if you just want to do email but a fine price if you're going to hang out for awhile. [I forget how many minutes you get for $6.00 but it seemed like plenty to me so "plenty" is all I stored in my overstuffed brain.] We had something we needed to mail to our pal, Linda at Infopeople, so $6 was a small price to pay to make Linda's life easier. :)
At any rate, it was fun to see how easy it is to borrow the Internet. Turns out it can be quite easy. Of course you have to be able to leave your computer 'on' while you're driving so that means getting an adapter so you can plug it into the lighter. But those are cheap. You can pick one up at Costco. And it's crucial to have a partner. I don't recommend shopping for wireless connections alone -- while driving.
Posted by at 1:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
November 24, 2003
RFID Position Paper
The ACLU, Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC), the Privacy Clearinghouse and many others have signed on to an RFID Position Paper that argues that the use of RFID technology should cease until after a formal technology assessment has been done. They state that "RFID implementation must be guided by Principles of Fair Information Practice [and that] certain uses of RFID should be flatly prohibited." If you are using or considing using RFID in your library, I recommend reading this paper before you get too along the road.
Below is an excerpt from one section.
RFID Practices that Should be Flatly Prohibited:
- Merchants must be prohibited from forcing or coercing customers into accepting live or dormant RFID tags in the products they buy.
- There should be no prohibition on individuals to detect RFID tags and readers and disable tags on items in their possession.
- RFID must not be used to track individuals absent informed and written consent of the data subject. Human tracking is inappropriate, either directly or indirectly, through clothing, consumer goods, or other items.
- RFID should never be employed in a fashion to eliminate or reduce anonymity. For instance, RFID should not be incorporated into currency.
Posted by at 9:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)