Digital Libraries: Challenges and Influential Work
It sounds like there are a lot of interesting projects going on in digital library land. The article gave some examples but didn't really go too in depth about the different projects. Has anyone used any of these before? What did you think of your digital library experience?
Dewey Meets Turing
This article clearly laid out the sometimes complicated relationship between computer scientists and librarians. There was a lot of discussion about one group or the other worrying about getting their toes stepped on. I can understand these concerns. But I think that there will always be rooms for both groups because they do different tasks, have different focuses, and different skill sets. Does anyone think that these two groups might one day merge though? Will librarians of the future have to have the technical knowledge of computer scientists?
Institutional Repositories
This article details the challenges and benefits of institutional repositories. One thing that stuck out to me in light of conversations we've had in LIS 2000, was the chance that it might shift control of what scholars publish from scholars to institution. The issue of control popped out to me, since in 2000 we've talked so much about digital repositories being open access and giving authors more freedom to publish what they want.
Hello Christy,
ReplyDeleteI'd like to comment on your questions related to Dewey Meets Turing. With what we are covering in our classes, and with what I am witnessing in the workplace, it would seem as though the skill sets of computer scientists are slowly being integrated into library services.
For example, being able to design a website is becoming more and more of a standard, even if you are only doing it through CMS. Librarians also have to learn how to do basic troubleshooting of computers, as not every library will have an IT department or specialist on hand to help with patron needs. Additionally, with more of the publications going to e-print, and more of the library services moving to digital forms (e.g. card catalogs, item renewal, etc), librarians will need this skills to do their jobs.
I do not believe the two branches will merge altogether, but librarians will need to acquire a great deal more than just simple knowledge of the collection and how to perform research.
Just my thought, feel free to debate it as you will.
--Anthony
Christy and Anthony,
ReplyDeleteI think that the Dewey Meets Turing article suggests that librarians will need some technical knowledge in order to manage collections based on Internet hubs. Even in class this week I think Dr. He was suggesting that we will need a basic knowledge of how HTML and XML operate in our future careers. I think Anthony made a good point about librarians in smaller institutions needing to have some basic computer trouble-shooting skills. Unfortunately, I think that in the future librarians will need more IT skills, depending on where they work, so they remain valuable to the information profession.
As to how much technical knowledge librarians need to have, I agree with what everyone else has said so far but would add that, in general, I think they should really strive to stay relevant. I'd be surprised if librarians were ever expected to have the full technical knowledge base of a computer scientist, but they do need to be able to help the average user with whatever their computer/technology needs might be. I think troubleshooting is a good place to start for now, but as the general public becomes more technologically adept, librarians will need to do the same.
ReplyDeleteI think that even if librarians are not required to have a basic knowledge of HTML or XML, having a knowledge of either will benefit librarians. I don't think librarians should be expected to have the same amount of technical expertise as computer scientists in the future, although I think that librarians should try to learn as much as possible about computer science. It seems as though that librarians will have to have experience with HTML or XML because of their burgeoning interactions with computer scientists, and I think that this will have a generally positive effect upon both disciplines.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what everyone is saying here. To stay relevant librarians will need to have at the least some basic knowledge of HTML, XML, Java, and a variety of other/new programming/coding languages. I don't necessarily think that librarians and computer scientists will merge to become one, but I also think that the lines are blurring already and will continue to do so in the future as the public gains more knowledge of programming/coding. I also think it is really important for librarians to be well versed in Web 2.0 as that is very important now and I don't see it becoming less popular in the near future.
ReplyDelete