A Brief Description:
Weblogs, or "Blogs" are web pages that contain entries or posts. They are often short, often updated and they are in chronological order according to when the post was originally entered (though the creator can manipulate this to organize the page and make it appear in the manner they desire). Blogs are frequently rather informal, so that they show a certain amount of personality--and they are often from one point of view, so that they can also be biased. They are easy to use--both as a place to post, and in terms of responses to those articles, which readers can make by posting their own comments. Blogs are actually very interactive. Blogs make many potentially confusing and complicated transactions obsolete. They do not require their creators to know HTML (they work similar to WYSIWYGs, like Nvu--so that the HTML is inserted or incorporated into the document for the creator based on buttons that are pushed, like "insert link" etc). They also do not require their creators to know how to do file transfers, and (this would make Krug happy) the web designs are integrated into the blog site so that the creator has a number of templates to choose from. They are "protected from their own 'bad taste' in web design" (SIRLS 571 Unit 5 Part 3 lecture, "Blogs"). Here is a link to the Social Epistemology Blog I recently created with two classmates for a group project.
Use in a Library:
Libraries use blogs to engage in social networking, to post important or interesting news, to make people aware of events, technologies, and search options at the library, for marketing purposes, to accomplish epistemological goals through knowledge and information sharing and to reach out to the larger community (this may include elements of marketing, awareness or epistemological activities as well).
Expected Social Impact of the Technology:
Weblogs are, by and large, a technological social medium. They have a great potential for information sharing and can help greatly with the epistemological goals of making information and knowledge accessible in a way that is reliable, powerful, fecund and speedy. Although with all things created on the Internet, it can be difficult to determine whether the information presented in a blog is absolutely reliable (as they often present just one, and a very specific, point of view), they can be a place to start in research. They, then, can be a great tool in students' or researchers' information seeking behavior. For someone who delves deeply they can be a starting point in the research that helps the explorer to gain a larger picture of a subject. For those who tend to do their research in a more shallow way, they can contain all of the essential facts that are needed to fulfill an assignment--though as stated before, it is best that research is begun with blogs until it is known what kind of authority the blog exhibits. Still, blogs can be a useful tool in helping researchers to think about a subject and organize it into a way that is understandable to themselves. They can gain access to other sources through blogs--many of which list sources. They can also be a medium of discussion through the comments that others can post about the subject, and in some instances can serve as a wonderful tool for computer supported cooperative work (CSCW) within organizations such as businesses, libraries, schools, etc. In a world of debate over the status of what the current state of copyright should be, the blog can be a beacon of disintermediation, taking out the middleman in copyright--the publisher. I believe that many blogsites, such as blogger (which I am now using), uses Creative Commons share alike licenses to publish the blogs that people create using their site. As has been intimated in the discussion above, blogs can also foster free inquiry about, and access to, information about myriad subjects and can be a great powerhouse of knowledge sharing and interaction.
Sunday, December 2, 2007
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
RSS
A Brief Discription:
RSS is a family of feed formats used to publish web content that is often changed, updated or modified. Such content includes things such as blog entries (see the blog post above), news channels or podcasts. An RSS document (also called a "feed", "web feed", or "channel") includes a brief summary or full text content from the site and allows people to stay informed about favorite sites automatically. This saves them the time of engaging with the site manually. RSS content can be read using an aggegator (also known as an RSS reader or feed reader). The user can subscribe to a feed either by clicking a linked RSS icon in a browser that begins the subscription process, or by entering the feed's link directly into the reader. The reader then downloads any new content it finds when the subscribed feeds are searched or scanned. This is done at regular intervals.
Use in a Library
RSS is used in libraries as a part of the libraries' use of blogs. As Fichter and Cervone say in "Technology for the Rest of Us", a number of libraries have begun to "exploit blog [and RSS] software and take advantage of this easy means of bublishig and distributing content." Libraries use them as a means of advertising the events and services that they offer to their patronage, as well as a way to publish and distribute articles, sites and other mediums of interest. They also use RSS for epistemological goals (RSS allows users to be made aware and have access to new information on sites), interactive and community services, and CSCW (See blog entry above).
Expected Social Impact of the Technology
RSS' possible social impact is largely the same as that mentioned in the above blog entry. They have a offer a significan means of information sharing and can have a large influence on making information and knowledge accessible Along with blogs and news sites, RSS can be a great tool for students or researchers in finding information that is of interest or importance to them. As an instrument of blogs, news sites and the like, they may help researchers to think about a subject and organize it in a way that jogs their cognitive processes. This can only encourage free inquiry debate and discussions, especially among those who share interests, and perhaps encounter each other in more than one setting--thus, building an online community focused on a subject.
RSS is a family of feed formats used to publish web content that is often changed, updated or modified. Such content includes things such as blog entries (see the blog post above), news channels or podcasts. An RSS document (also called a "feed", "web feed", or "channel") includes a brief summary or full text content from the site and allows people to stay informed about favorite sites automatically. This saves them the time of engaging with the site manually. RSS content can be read using an aggegator (also known as an RSS reader or feed reader). The user can subscribe to a feed either by clicking a linked RSS icon in a browser that begins the subscription process, or by entering the feed's link directly into the reader. The reader then downloads any new content it finds when the subscribed feeds are searched or scanned. This is done at regular intervals.
Use in a Library
RSS is used in libraries as a part of the libraries' use of blogs. As Fichter and Cervone say in "Technology for the Rest of Us", a number of libraries have begun to "exploit blog [and RSS] software and take advantage of this easy means of bublishig and distributing content." Libraries use them as a means of advertising the events and services that they offer to their patronage, as well as a way to publish and distribute articles, sites and other mediums of interest. They also use RSS for epistemological goals (RSS allows users to be made aware and have access to new information on sites), interactive and community services, and CSCW (See blog entry above).
Expected Social Impact of the Technology
RSS' possible social impact is largely the same as that mentioned in the above blog entry. They have a offer a significan means of information sharing and can have a large influence on making information and knowledge accessible Along with blogs and news sites, RSS can be a great tool for students or researchers in finding information that is of interest or importance to them. As an instrument of blogs, news sites and the like, they may help researchers to think about a subject and organize it in a way that jogs their cognitive processes. This can only encourage free inquiry debate and discussions, especially among those who share interests, and perhaps encounter each other in more than one setting--thus, building an online community focused on a subject.
OPACs
A Brief Description
An Online Public Access Catalog, or OPAC, is a technology housed in a library that allows patrons to have electronic access to their library's catalog and holdings. It offers search functions and access to one's personal library account. As group 3's presentation for IRLS 571, Fall 2007 tells us, "access may be site-based, part of an organization's intranet, or internet-based for 24/7 searching from any online workstation anywhere in the world." Though most OPACs currently in use are the only type of access that patrons have to the catalog, their format is based on the paper-based card catalogs of the past.
How it is Used in a Library
This is likely obvious from the description above, but it is possible to go into a bit more detail. OPACs utilize MARC (MAchine Readable Cataloging) records as a "standard for representation and communication of bibliographic information" in, of course, machine readable form (IRLS 571, Unit 1 Part 5 lecture). This record is similar to a database record, but it is more complicated and can stand on its own. It is metadata and transportable, and it defines the fields of the record. They are flexible and are a comprehensive solution to all problems found in bibliographic data. The fields and records of MARC can very in length, which makes it possible for it to handle different kinds of formats. Though this is true, most OPACs are crossroads for libraries and patrons. They still have a long way to go before they are able to fulfill the expectations (or at least wants) of most library patrons. Many catalogs have interactive functions, giving direct access to electronic articles, course reserves and ebook checkout. They can also allow the formation of a booklist and help patrons to formulate bibliographies tailored to a specific citation format. OPACs can also offer reading and site recommendations, bestseller or best checkout rankings, ways of finding other services, access to pathfinders on specific subjects, ILL services, document retrieval, access to other libraries' catalogs, information about that specific library, and basically any possible electronic service a library could have.
Expected Social Impact of the Technology
OPACs are not really socially centered technology, as blogs are, but they do offer tools to help in information seeking. As stated above, they give access to any, all, and even more information than the library itself holds. They also can give access to references services that helps researchers to accomplish their information searching goals. Through this research, patrons have access to records and the possibility of exercising free inquiry as they gain knowledge about subjects they have developed interests in. OPACS also keep records of various library transactions so can be a significant and instrumental part in the libraries CSCW. These records can help librarians in decision making about weeding and acquisition, about technology use, about frequent searches and about reference inquiries.
An Online Public Access Catalog, or OPAC, is a technology housed in a library that allows patrons to have electronic access to their library's catalog and holdings. It offers search functions and access to one's personal library account. As group 3's presentation for IRLS 571, Fall 2007 tells us, "access may be site-based, part of an organization's intranet, or internet-based for 24/7 searching from any online workstation anywhere in the world." Though most OPACs currently in use are the only type of access that patrons have to the catalog, their format is based on the paper-based card catalogs of the past.
How it is Used in a Library
This is likely obvious from the description above, but it is possible to go into a bit more detail. OPACs utilize MARC (MAchine Readable Cataloging) records as a "standard for representation and communication of bibliographic information" in, of course, machine readable form (IRLS 571, Unit 1 Part 5 lecture). This record is similar to a database record, but it is more complicated and can stand on its own. It is metadata and transportable, and it defines the fields of the record. They are flexible and are a comprehensive solution to all problems found in bibliographic data. The fields and records of MARC can very in length, which makes it possible for it to handle different kinds of formats. Though this is true, most OPACs are crossroads for libraries and patrons. They still have a long way to go before they are able to fulfill the expectations (or at least wants) of most library patrons. Many catalogs have interactive functions, giving direct access to electronic articles, course reserves and ebook checkout. They can also allow the formation of a booklist and help patrons to formulate bibliographies tailored to a specific citation format. OPACs can also offer reading and site recommendations, bestseller or best checkout rankings, ways of finding other services, access to pathfinders on specific subjects, ILL services, document retrieval, access to other libraries' catalogs, information about that specific library, and basically any possible electronic service a library could have.
Expected Social Impact of the Technology
OPACs are not really socially centered technology, as blogs are, but they do offer tools to help in information seeking. As stated above, they give access to any, all, and even more information than the library itself holds. They also can give access to references services that helps researchers to accomplish their information searching goals. Through this research, patrons have access to records and the possibility of exercising free inquiry as they gain knowledge about subjects they have developed interests in. OPACS also keep records of various library transactions so can be a significant and instrumental part in the libraries CSCW. These records can help librarians in decision making about weeding and acquisition, about technology use, about frequent searches and about reference inquiries.
Integrated Library Systems
A Brief Description
An integrated library system, or ILS (sometimes also Library Management System), is a system that libraries can utilize to monitor pieces of their respective collections, orders they have submitted for acquisition, bills that have been paid, and patrons who have borrowed, or currently have borrowed materials.An ILS houses a relational database, software to interact with the database, and two GUIs (one for patrons, one for staff). ILSes have modules which isolate different functions of the system's software. These are amalgamated into a unified interface. They include things like acquisitions, cataloging, serials and, of course, the OPAC (see post above). Each patron and item has a distinct ID in the database that allows the ILS to monitor its activity.
How it is Used in a Library
As Emily Gallup Fayen states (2004), "Integrated Library Systems have revolutionized library operations. they have led to tremendous advances in ease of use and producivity, both for the library staff members and for library users" (p. 1). As stated above, the ILS is used for most, if not all, of a library's technological functions--core modules like catalogs, OPACs, and circulation system. Other modues, such as authority control, acquisitions, serials, holdings support, materials booking, course reserves, inventory, binding and even a community bulletin board, among others are also possibly (likely) included. It is the ILS that keeps the library running and functioning properly. As with the OPAC, which is part of it, the ILS can help librarians to make decisions about acquisitions and weeding, new services needed and obsolete offerings. Librarians no longer have to spend time tablulating reports and gathering statistics. This is done for them automatically through the ILS.
Expected Social Impact
The expected social impact of the ILS is much like that of the OPAC, since the two are so closely intertwined, and since the public GUI of the OPAC is the part of the system that patrons are likely to interact with. The ILS gives patrons the opportunity to interact with all the library's collections. They also can allow for interatction, in an indirect way, with library staff, by letting the system's statistics tell the staff what is popular, what is obsolete and what is needed for patrons to fulfill their information goals. It is the ILS modules that keep records of various library transactions for that moduleso can be a significant and instrumental part in the library's collection status as well as the library's CSCW (see entry above).
An integrated library system, or ILS (sometimes also Library Management System), is a system that libraries can utilize to monitor pieces of their respective collections, orders they have submitted for acquisition, bills that have been paid, and patrons who have borrowed, or currently have borrowed materials.An ILS houses a relational database, software to interact with the database, and two GUIs (one for patrons, one for staff). ILSes have modules which isolate different functions of the system's software. These are amalgamated into a unified interface. They include things like acquisitions, cataloging, serials and, of course, the OPAC (see post above). Each patron and item has a distinct ID in the database that allows the ILS to monitor its activity.
How it is Used in a Library
As Emily Gallup Fayen states (2004), "Integrated Library Systems have revolutionized library operations. they have led to tremendous advances in ease of use and producivity, both for the library staff members and for library users" (p. 1). As stated above, the ILS is used for most, if not all, of a library's technological functions--core modules like catalogs, OPACs, and circulation system. Other modues, such as authority control, acquisitions, serials, holdings support, materials booking, course reserves, inventory, binding and even a community bulletin board, among others are also possibly (likely) included. It is the ILS that keeps the library running and functioning properly. As with the OPAC, which is part of it, the ILS can help librarians to make decisions about acquisitions and weeding, new services needed and obsolete offerings. Librarians no longer have to spend time tablulating reports and gathering statistics. This is done for them automatically through the ILS.
Expected Social Impact
The expected social impact of the ILS is much like that of the OPAC, since the two are so closely intertwined, and since the public GUI of the OPAC is the part of the system that patrons are likely to interact with. The ILS gives patrons the opportunity to interact with all the library's collections. They also can allow for interatction, in an indirect way, with library staff, by letting the system's statistics tell the staff what is popular, what is obsolete and what is needed for patrons to fulfill their information goals. It is the ILS modules that keep records of various library transactions for that moduleso can be a significant and instrumental part in the library's collection status as well as the library's CSCW (see entry above).
A Technology to Improve Libraries for Libraries
A technology that will most improve libraries for the librarians is the ILS. Though these are not perfect, and do not always meet patron expectations, they were created specifically with librarians in mind, and most librarians can navigate through the system rather well. With new technology and ever-more education about the possibilities of this technology, these systems will only become better: easier to use, and more sophisticated with heightened possibilities of function. Hopefully, the librarian will not become obsolete--I do think that unlikely. One newer implementation that is amazing to me is the hosting capabilities that ILS have. These include servers, data storage, network control so that really knowledgeable IT staff members are not absolutely needed--though I am always still thankful when my library's IT guy is around. Also possible are data conversion, electronic resource management and scanning of archival quality pieces through ILS.
A Technology to Improve Libraries for Patrons
I think that blogs will most improve libraries for patrons because by they are social by nature, and they bring with them so many epistemological possibilities. Blogs give patrons an opportunity to access information in a way that is fast, fecund, powerful and, for the most part, reliable. This is especially so when librarians are engaged in taking steps to promote the most authoritative of these blogs. Blogs give patrons a chance to interact with one another (and others outside the library), express opinions, debate topics and engage in a free-flow of information inquiry and receipt. They can also give information about accessing knowledge through the library in other ways. Blogs can be very good at distributing information about events and services.
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