----- Original message ----------------------------------------
From: "Grace Wiersma"
>Re Dan's comment (...the real issue....the fact that the notation is nothing but a
>place to put the damn book...) I would like to chime in that I thought we were talking
>here about notation in a different way, that is, as a metaphorical way of organizing
>resources in virtual space so that discovery of knowledge and relationships could
>actually be facilitated by the notation (and its representation via the user interface).
I guess I wasn't clear enough. Sorry 'bout that. No argument about the metaphorical/theoretical aspect, but part of what I was trying to get at was the idea that librarians resist change, at least in part, due to practical matters like the books on the shelf, etc. Plus, most of us that catalog will still be cataloging physical items for the foreseeable future, as well as electronic files of various sorts.
>Whether "discovery" means: (a) mere capture of the current state of the art, or
>may also result in (b) creation of new knowledge through novel collocations of
>existing resources or even "learning" by an automated system that assimilates user
>input, involves theoretical questions needing proper *research* I think. In any case,
>I did not think we were talking about where to put books on the shelf. That an
>existing physical library has and will have its own cultural bias should not be
>controversial. I thought we were talking about virtual organization, where questions
>of universality and of extensibility are in need of attention. Reshelving or
>resystematizing the physical library should not be a necessary consequence of
>making progress on this front, even though the next OPAC will be serving both
>physical and virtual collections.
No argument that the physical library should not be a limiting factor in virtual organization. But if that new and virtual organization is going to be of maximum use for the next few decades, at least, then that new system is still going to have to link back to physical items, as well as virtual ones. The user who finds item that is XQ7:TR9*&:4JR9# still has to link to get to the item Z1223.Z7 L46 (yes, a real LC class number, one I happen to know).
But, no, I can assure you, I'm NOT in any way trying to limit things to the physical world or to traditional library materials.
dan
Show Up, Suit Up, Shut Up, and Follow Directions
dan_at_riverofdata.com
Dan Lester, Boise, Idaho, USA
Received on Tue Jun 05 2007 - 14:01:56 EDT