Bernhard Eversberg wrote:
> Tim Spalding wrote:
>
> > I've got a simple tester up at LibraryThing, while we figure what to do
> with it:
> > http://www.librarything.com/talktopic.php?topic=46336
> >
> > To those of us who promoted the use of library data outside of
> > libraries, it is another setback.
> > ... Another step down the long path to irrelevance.
> >
>
> You gotta be kidding. For, under
> http://www.librarything.com/talktopic.php?topic=46336
> you write:
> So what does that tell us about "relevance" of the GB metadata?
> It ought to be a simple job to provide a similar API for any ILS that
> delivers data in the same manner but of much better quality. The
> question is just why not many are currently doing such. MARC, for one
> thing, is certainly not an obstacle to this - and no API user would
> have to be confronted with it.
> Our closed attitudes (or let's say the closed attitudes of American
> libraries) are more to do with a reluctance toward free access than
> with technology complexities or incompetence.
Unfortunately, GB metadata is very relevant when compared to nothing. I've been looking at it a little bit, and I can say that GB metadata is absolutely stinky in almost every way. The problem is, most users or IT experts cannot evaluate the quality of the metadata itself--not the coding, that's another thing, but the actual metadata itself. A simple question such as "Is this a good subject for this resource?" can confuse people no end. For example, if I have a resource on the legal status of pregnant women and new mothers in Russia, and the subject is "Women -- Russia (Federation)" most people would conclude that that this subject is fine, because the concepts of specificity and exhaustivity are completely foreign to them. For expert catalogers, it is child's play to point out the errors with these subjects, but for non-experts, everything seems fine. That is, until it's pointed out to them.
In any case, the world must move on, and web masters will not and cannot wait until the library community is ready to share their information and their knowledge. Average searchers will be more or less satisfied by what they get. Libraries and catalogers could have a huge role to play in this world, but I don't know if this will happen.
Jim Weinheimer
Received on Mon Sep 29 2008 - 04:01:13 EDT