http://pittlibrarian.blogspot.com/2008/11/week-13-require-readings.html?showComment=1227844920000#c9187200440824591970
http://corrinewxly.blogspot.com/2008/11/week-13-readings.html?showComment=1227845340000#c2591608225975393553
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Week 13 Readings
There are a few disconnected things worth saying about "No Place to Hide", but none of them have anything to do with library science. When considering companies that gather data about behavior, it's crucial to consider whether or not that data is connected to individuals by name. I understand that the CIA and the FBI not communicating with each other is a huge problem, but I don't understand how it's supposed to be a concern for the average American. "No fly" watch lists are ridiculous and need to be practically wiped clean.
I have to say that I'm glad the Information Awareness Office never quite got off the ground. The idea of attempting to monitor all actions of all people at all times is moronic at worst and Orwellian at best. Also, the Office's original logo was totally creepy. I should note that the one video we were supposed to watch this week is no longer available. Could this be the work of the IAO, continuing its mission in the shadows? Start your conspiracy engines!
I have to say that I'm glad the Information Awareness Office never quite got off the ground. The idea of attempting to monitor all actions of all people at all times is moronic at worst and Orwellian at best. Also, the Office's original logo was totally creepy. I should note that the one video we were supposed to watch this week is no longer available. Could this be the work of the IAO, continuing its mission in the shadows? Start your conspiracy engines!
Muddiest Point: Lecture 12
When libraries decide to put digital collections online and let users help out with the tagging, what can they do to deal with incorrect or malicious tags?
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Week 12 Readings
The article on blogs hit home for me with one of its points about what it's like trying to collaborate with people for a project via e-mail. That's what I'm doing for my poster project in 2000 right now, and - like the article predicted - my inbox has quickly become twice as full as it was before.
The article on library instruction and wikis recalled for me time wasted in my undergraduate studies not too long ago. While I did occasionally learn something from these sorts of sessions, I usually just wanted to zone out. If I could have instead taught myself what I needed to know when I needed to know it by reading wikis, that would have been an improvement.
I wasn't terribly persuaded by the article on "folksonomies" - a term I feel justified in placing in scare quotes since it's only been around for three years and it sounds ridiculous. Why enlist faculty or librarians to create special bookmarks when they could simply submit lists of useful sites along with their respective hyperlinks? Allowing users to post their own tags sounds almost as stupid as the you-won't-find-that-in-any-dictionary term for it: "spagging".
Even though I knew plenty about Wikipedia before watching the video on it - shot in mid-2005 - I still learned a few interesting facts about the site. Those facts are: 1) only 1/3 of the traffic to the site is to English-language pages, 2) perhaps 1,000 people are responsible for the majority of edits made to the site, and 3) freely-licensed textbooks are in the works. That last point is actually quite exciting!
The article on library instruction and wikis recalled for me time wasted in my undergraduate studies not too long ago. While I did occasionally learn something from these sorts of sessions, I usually just wanted to zone out. If I could have instead taught myself what I needed to know when I needed to know it by reading wikis, that would have been an improvement.
I wasn't terribly persuaded by the article on "folksonomies" - a term I feel justified in placing in scare quotes since it's only been around for three years and it sounds ridiculous. Why enlist faculty or librarians to create special bookmarks when they could simply submit lists of useful sites along with their respective hyperlinks? Allowing users to post their own tags sounds almost as stupid as the you-won't-find-that-in-any-dictionary term for it: "spagging".
Even though I knew plenty about Wikipedia before watching the video on it - shot in mid-2005 - I still learned a few interesting facts about the site. Those facts are: 1) only 1/3 of the traffic to the site is to English-language pages, 2) perhaps 1,000 people are responsible for the majority of edits made to the site, and 3) freely-licensed textbooks are in the works. That last point is actually quite exciting!
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Muddiest Point: Lecture 9
We were told that every XML document begins with a prolog stating what version of XML is being used. What major changes have been made to XML as it has repeatedly advanced from one version to the next?
Week 10 Readings
The article on digital libraries' challenges opens with the observation that "we live in interesting times". As is often the case when I hear that expression, I can't help but wonder whether it's meant as a positive or a negative. Carnegie Mellon's development of "integrated speech, image, video, and language understanding software" sounds like an interesting positive. When the interesting negatives come along, I guess we'll just have to reach for the tools "in our armamentarium".
The article on digital libraries' origins seems to dramatize the conflict between librarians and computer scientists. I'm not sure what the big fuss is about. Then again, I'm still not even sure what digital libraries are all about. Is there anything more to them than catalogs, finding aids, and digital media accessible from afar? That all sounds like old hat at this point, as opposed to something worth fighting about.
In the article on institutional repositories, Clifford Lynch does a good job of describing the kinds of services that librarians need to provide in order to be effective. Among other duties, we should capture events digitally, open up new forms of communication, and ensure that patrons know what materials are available to them. The main idea is that we ought to be making information as easily accessible as we can, and that seems like a reasonable goal.
The article on digital libraries' origins seems to dramatize the conflict between librarians and computer scientists. I'm not sure what the big fuss is about. Then again, I'm still not even sure what digital libraries are all about. Is there anything more to them than catalogs, finding aids, and digital media accessible from afar? That all sounds like old hat at this point, as opposed to something worth fighting about.
In the article on institutional repositories, Clifford Lynch does a good job of describing the kinds of services that librarians need to provide in order to be effective. Among other duties, we should capture events digitally, open up new forms of communication, and ensure that patrons know what materials are available to them. The main idea is that we ought to be making information as easily accessible as we can, and that seems like a reasonable goal.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
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