Eric wrote:
> When I think about the library "catalog" I think that it will contain
> more than just metadata about library materials but also the
> materials themeselves.
So, what would we call something that contained a whole load of
materials, and a load of find aids? I'd suggest that we call this a
'library'
>It is more than just find and get. For example:...[whole load of
examples]
I think I'd call these 'Library services'
Hmmm - I think I'm onto something here...
OK - I've got a serious point here (really) - I agree that there is a
need to supply the materials online, and that we need to build services
around them - so in this sense, everything Eric says is very attractive,
and I definitely see this as where we are going/need to go (over 90% of
my institutions journal subs are electronic, e-books are the next big
thing for us...).
However, we shouldn't mistake this for a single system or environment.
We need to build/provide tools that recognise the reality of the online
world of information. We also need to recognise that 'information
seekers' will bring their own tools to the environment, and our stuff
needs to play nicely with theirs.
This is not a 'next gen' system, it's the 'next gen' library - it's an
ecosystem of resources and tools, and our role (as ever) is to help
organise it and make it easily accessible and usable by those we are
providing a service for. This means becoming part of the ecosystem,
pushing our materials/metadata into it, identifying opportunities,
filling gaps (in services or tools) where they exist and exploiting (or
helping others to exploit) existing tools where appropriate.
Owen
Please forgive any frivolity/facetiousness in the above, I'm going on
holiday on Saturday, and not a day too soon... :)
Received on Thu Mar 13 2008 - 12:25:33 EDT