I have to admit, I always hesitate to post a question of this sort to a list, for a variety of reasons. However, as I try to figure out how I'm going to contribute to the cataloging world, honestly, you just seem like the best people to ask.
I'm a very good cataloger (and modest, too, as you can tell). However, I am becoming very aware that in order to remain a good cataloger and make any forward progress, I am going to need to know other things than cataloging. Specifically, technology. I will need to learn more about the workings of our catalogs, what we know and need to tell our customers about the digital resources we have, what is necessary to share our data with the Web, and so on.
So, where do I start? Are there particular things to learn about technology that would be the most useful, particular classes, particular topics? What software do I need to know? I want to learn what I need to know, but just have no idea where to start! I have 3 universities and a community college in my immediate area, but do I need a computer science degree, or can I be more targeted than that?
I want to know why RDA is a good or bad idea, I want to be able to tell my library how big of a project it will be to implement, and to tell the truth, I want the background to be part of the discussion as RDA continues to be modified and improved. ANYTHING you can tell me about how to learn what I need to know and what it is I need to know will be very, very much appreciated.
Sarah Simpson
Tulsa City-County Library
Received on Fri Apr 16 2010 - 11:03:35 EDT