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From the February SPARC Open Access Newsletter, by Peter Suber Every research funding agency should have an OA policy, many already do, and most are probably thinking about it.  Here's a guide to the major decisions which come up in framing a new policy, reviewing an older one, or thinking about policies elsewhere.  Peter Suber starts with the choice-points facing funding agencies (1-12), and then look briefly at the choice-points which only arise for universities (13-18).  He offers a recommendation for each. 

This week, California took a big step forward in open-source education. Governor Jerry Brown signed into law a proposal to create a website that will allow students to download popular textbooks for free. The legislation contains two bills: One, a proposal for the state to fund 50 open-source digital textbooks, targeted to lower-division courses, which will be produced by California's universities. The other bill is a proposal to establish a California Digital Open Source Library to host those books.

"'Open' accounting doesn't make you an accountant; 'open' long-haul trucking doesn't make you a long-haul trucker; and 'open' science doesn't make you a scientist. It takes more than permission to become competent."

Will open access journals accept anything for publication? Account of an experiment with a Bentham open access journal.

October 14 is Open Access day. Co-sponsored by the Public Library of Science, open access is gaining ground, but PLOS, SPARC, and Students for FreeCulture are hoping to get a little boost with this first OA Day.

Likelihood of open access being favored by the new administration.

Textbook pricing continues to be an issue, and open source alternatives gain attention. 

Quick news on Marlin, a new open-source DRM, that does not restrict users to a single device.

A grapple with how such funds should be administered.

The implications of Net Neutrality may well affect how people can get to online epublished works, especially those put out by smaller publishers....The Federal Communications Commission unanimously voted to open the proceeding that could lead to open-Internet regulations, although the two Republican commissioners dissented on whether rules are warranted. The approval of the notice to consider net neutrality rules is the culmination of contentious lobbying by the telecom industry and an intense exchange of letters from members of Congress.

New Open Access Journal announced with no clear business model, but plans to tackle some of the ethical issues in STM publishing.

The dark side of open access?  

Find Hundreds of Free eBooks, Audio Books, and Textbooks at Open Culture

Thought this article might be a good place for people, like myself, trying to understand NIH Open Access Research Rules