Re: COS, SPIN, or IRIS: If you could choose only one? Farnsworth, Franci 01 Jun 2004 08:59 EST
Thank you Tom Murphy for confirming what I suspected years ago -- that it would be hard to convince non-science faculty "Community of Science" covers all disciplines. That's the reason I never subscribed and I feel vindicated. We have subscribed to IRIS for year and also get SPIN via a consortial arrangement that keeps the price down. I like having two databases available and SPIN may be somewhat better on international sources. IRIS is my preference in terms of the way that search findings are presented and the less common humanities sources that it covers. Many very small institutions are satisfied with The Grant Advisor-PLUS. Franci Farnsworth Coordinator of Sponsored Research Middlebury College -----Original Message----- From: Research Administration List [mailto:xxxxxx@HRINET.ORG]On Behalf Of Murphy, Thomas Sent: Wed, May 26, 2004 12:55 PM To: xxxxxx@HRINET.ORG Subject: Re: [RESADM-L] COS, SPIN, or IRIS: If you could choose only one? From 1995-2003, I worked in a PUI setting and subscribed to both COS and InfoEd's SPIN. Actually, over a four-year stretch, I subscribed concurrently to COS and SPIN. Three observations I would share: (1) In each case the support staffs were really great. (2) In a PUI setting, the director of the sponsored programs office is constantly looking out for funding opportunities in a broad range of disciplines and a wide range of activities. The fact is you're looking out for everyone. So, I appreciated the fact that the InfoEd product provided me funding alerts on a daily basis; the COS alert system, on the other hand, provided a weekly summary. In this regard, SPIN was more helpful. A weekly alert can be overwhelming; a daily alert is much more helpful from the perspective of office director. (On the other hand, I can see how faculty may prefer the weekly summary). (3) This may sound silly, but... You cannot imagine how often COS was perceived as exclusively about the sciences. From a PUI-marketing perspective, the company has a problematic name. My office would be criticized for catering to the science community and invariably COS was cited as evidence - despite the fact that I spent newsletter after newsletter and workshop after workshop trying to educate people to the truth that COS covers all disciplines. COS vs SPIN? You can't go wrong with either. The foolish thing is for PUIs not to invest in one of these services at all. Grants.gov and other free (private) services are nice, but not the same. COS and SPIN are very worthwhile investments. Finally, if money talks - I am presently back in a research-intensive setting and I plan to subscribe to COS in our next fiscal year. IRIS? I have no experience with IRIS - no opinion or observations to share. -----Original Message----- From: Research Administration List [mailto:xxxxxx@HRINET.ORG] On Behalf Of Vileisis, Dr. Birute Sent: Tuesday, May 25, 2004 2:38 PM To: xxxxxx@HRINET.ORG Subject: [RESADM-L] COS, SPIN, or IRIS: If you could choose only one? Dear RESADMers, Faced with an ever-rising COS subscription rate, we are in a quandary whether to ditch it altogether and switch to a more economical funding opportunities database. Any thoughts you'd like to share on the merits of COS vs. SPIN vs. IRIS would be most welcome. We are a mid-size, predominately undergraduate teaching institution with 350 faculty members and 5500 undergraduates. Many thanks. Birute Birute Anne Vileisis, Ph.D. Associate Academic Vice President, Academic Grants Office Loyola Marymount University One LMU Drive, University Hall, Suite 3025 Los Angeles, CA 90045-2659 E-mail: xxxxxx@lmu.edu Tel: 310/338-6004 Fax: 310/338-5193 ====================================================================== Instructions on how to use the RESADM-L Mailing List, including subscription information and a web-searchable archive, are available via our web site at http://www.hrinet.org (click on "Listserv Lists") ====================================================================== ====================================================================== Instructions on how to use the RESADM-L Mailing List, including subscription information and a web-searchable archive, are available via our web site at http://www.hrinet.org (click on "Listserv Lists") ====================================================================== ====================================================================== Instructions on how to use the RESADM-L Mailing List, including subscription information and a web-searchable archive, are available via our web site at http://www.hrinet.org (click on "Listserv Lists") ======================================================================