On the thought of having users design what serves them .... and the myriad
systems that might result .....
I've used a bit of an honorarium to treat myself to a new IPod .... a Touch
.... and have spent many interstitial hours browsing the ITunes App Store
(now THERE'S something that needs better organization!). I have concluded
that there are way too many teenage (or slightly older) boys who (1) own
IPhones or ITouches, or (2) program for them. Look under the category
"Entertainment" and find what must be 40 different fart or belch simulators,
plus perhaps 30 apps whose main purpose gets described as "annoy your
friends."
Needless to say, I have not downloaded the fart simulator apps, even if
free, so I can't speak about them with authority, but I would venture to say
that each one is slightly different, each has its particular advantages (!),
each has its particular glitches, and that some do the job better than
others. The job in question is rather basic, and while it satisfies the
needs of some, it is useless to others. I have this vision of something
like this resulting from Karen's thought about users designing discovery
systems.
On the other hand, I DID get an app to simulate popping bubble wrap; a koi
pond; a lava lamp; and singing pumpkins. I wonder what the discovery
system that's analogous to the singing pumpkin might be. But maybe koi
ponds, or apps that let you record your hotel room number, or ones that tell
you where you parked your car (and where it is from where you are) would be
the result of "users gone wild" with programming, and each of us could pick
and choose which app to use, according to what our need of the moment might
be.
Janet Swan Hill, Professor
Associate Director for Technical Services
University of Colorado Libraries, CB184
Boulder, CO 80309
janet.hill_at_colorado.edu
*****
Tradition is the handing-on of Fire, and not the worship of Ashes.
- Gustav Mahler
-----Original Message-----
From: Next generation catalogs for libraries
[mailto:NGC4LIB_at_LISTSERV.ND.EDU] On Behalf Of Ranti Junus
Sent: Saturday, March 14, 2009 11:43 AM
To: NGC4LIB_at_LISTSERV.ND.EDU
Subject: Re: [NGC4LIB] What do users understand?
On Sat, Mar 14, 2009 at 1:18 PM, Karen Coyle <lists_at_kcoyle.net> wrote:
>[...]
> I wish we could see what systems would look like if users designed them.
> Yes, we'd have hundreds or thousands of designs, but it would be
fascinating
> to really see the user views of bibliographic data.
Funny, I've been thinking about this for quite sometime. Part of me
want to see the kind of point of view the users would show so we can
learn from them. And part of me cringes at the possible wrath from
our public services librarians if I dare to suggest to let the users
loose. ;-)
ranti.
--
Bulk mail. Postage paid.
Received on Mon Mar 16 2009 - 11:38:29 EDT