I'm not mixing up library data and catalogs. I'm saying that most people's experience with library data comes from using library catalogs.
--- On Wed, 9/16/09, Thomas Krichel <krichel_at_OPENLIB.ORG> wrote:
> From: Thomas Krichel <krichel_at_OPENLIB.ORG>
> Subject: Re: [NGC4LIB] $$$ Library data is the best $$$
> To: NGC4LIB_at_LISTSERV.ND.EDU
> Date: Wednesday, September 16, 2009, 11:52 AM
> B.G. Sloan writes
>
> > Nathan Rinne says of library data: "There *is* value.
> Tremendous value. And scholars and the elites of
> society know it."
> >
> > I think that's somewhat of an exaggeration.
>
> I concur.
>
> > Sure, undoubtedly *some* scholars think library data
> have tremendous
> > value. But I'd bet that many of the scholars who
> regularly and
> > succcessfully use library catalogs don't spend much
> time thinking
> > about the underlying data.
>
> Bernie mixes up libary data and catalogs.
>
> > I've talked to scholars about library data (i.e.,
> about their
> > experiences using catalogs). While they tend to value
> librarians and
> > value what's in the library's collection, quite a few
> of them only
> > *tolerate* library *data*. One professor even went so
> far as to say
> > that he viewed the catalog and its underlying data as
> a "necessary
> > evil", the only tool he knew of for navigating the
> library's
> > collection. And then there are the scholars who avoid
> using library
> > data. Some studies have shown that using the catalog
> ranks pretty
> > far down the list of methods that scholars use to find
> relevant
> > information.
>
> Bernie continues to treat library data and catalogs
> together. It's
> not astonishing since biblographic data has been
> tied to one
> particular catalog, later to one particular web
> site.
>
> Starting in 1993 I pioneered the building of a
> bilbliographic
> dataset that can be used in many end user
> interfaces. That's
> the RePEc digital library for economics. In fact
> RePEc has NO
> user interface of its own. It's a point that 16
> years on,
> still causes some confusion with librarians and
> scholars alike.
>
> RePEc has been tremendeously successful based on a
> model
> of resource and task sharing. While library catalog
> data
> may become more freely available, and thus
> increasingly valuable,
> I don't see much task sharing and specialization
> coming from
> the library community. Institutional repositories
> are a timid
> first step, we need more in this direction.
>
>
> Cheers,
>
> Thomas Krichel
> http://openlib.org/home/krichel
>
>
> RePEc:per:1965-06-05:thomas_krichel
>
>
>
> skype: thomaskrichel
>
Received on Wed Sep 16 2009 - 13:54:34 EDT