Or like vandalism?
Here's the thing. I'm a librarian because generally, I like people. This afternoon, that likability is being tested a bit by the patron wear patchouli, the worst scent in the world. The smells from my uncle's hog barn which waft near the hot tub when the breeze blows from the south (sore muscles must be eased after a hard day of labor and chores) are sweet compared to this ungodly foul unwashed medieval pungent smell.
Anyway, I am a librarian. In library school I quickly learned that there are two type of people: people who like people (and aren't they luckiest people?) and those who don't, better known as catalogers. I appreciate all that my cataloging colleauges do, for without them, it would be difficult to find things. It's easy to find things because they catalog things, organize things, label things based on a set of rules that all librarians know. What's to say then when the world goes wacky and starts cataloging or tagging things are on their own, without following any sort of rules? I'm all for organizing things--my friends will attest--but how can I find your pictures with light bulbs when you are labeling them as (gasp!) light bulbs and I am referring to them as their properly assigned subject heading: incandescent filters? Is it a case of tomato and tomato? Or should I just learn to embrace another new Web 2.0 tool and rejoice in the idea of more people getting organized?!
Here's the thing. I'm a librarian because generally, I like people. This afternoon, that likability is being tested a bit by the patron wear patchouli, the worst scent in the world. The smells from my uncle's hog barn which waft near the hot tub when the breeze blows from the south (sore muscles must be eased after a hard day of labor and chores) are sweet compared to this ungodly foul unwashed medieval pungent smell.
Anyway, I am a librarian. In library school I quickly learned that there are two type of people: people who like people (and aren't they luckiest people?) and those who don't, better known as catalogers. I appreciate all that my cataloging colleauges do, for without them, it would be difficult to find things. It's easy to find things because they catalog things, organize things, label things based on a set of rules that all librarians know. What's to say then when the world goes wacky and starts cataloging or tagging things are on their own, without following any sort of rules? I'm all for organizing things--my friends will attest--but how can I find your pictures with light bulbs when you are labeling them as (gasp!) light bulbs and I am referring to them as their properly assigned subject heading: incandescent filters? Is it a case of tomato and tomato? Or should I just learn to embrace another new Web 2.0 tool and rejoice in the idea of more people getting organized?!
I can see the application for librarians and teachers to create a list of websites for students to use and setting up a spot for them to add what they find.
2 comments:
Sara,
I wish you had spent some time with Diigo as a research tool. If teachers have students collaborating on research, or if students want to annotate Web pages, making comments or adding sticki notes...a great tool. This to me is a way for you, someone who likes to highlight in books, to do that on-line!
Sara,
Saw this after my first comment. I think it speaks to the tagging question. Is it better to get info from an expert, or from the masses?
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