Reference librarian's thoughts on the benefit of cataloging

It's often reference librarians who recognize the value of cataloging and metadata. You'll want to read Cliff Landis' excellent post, The Future(?) of Cataloging:

And no, I’m not talking about folksonomies and tagging here. Although they are fun and very useful, they are no replacement for standards-based high-quality metadata. I would never want my library’s catalog to look like my personal photo collection–with spotty tagging and organization at best! Reference librarians, library staff, other catalogers and users all make use of high-quality cataloging metadata for locating the specific items that they need. All it takes is a single mistake in a cataloging record to ensure that an item is lost to its user forever. Catalogers: take it from a Reference Librarian–what you do is important.

Cliff also shares his thoughts on the importance of internships, mentoring, and training LIS students.

Comments

[Jenny]

Hooray! It's nice to see good cataloging appreciated by everyone-- not just tech service geeks like me.

However, I've got my doubts this will translate to a plethora of catalogers freshly minted from ALA-accredited schools. With libraries feeling the economic crunch, I think cataloging will become more centralized, with technicians picking up the work at local branches and acquisitions librarians stepping in only to edit and standardize records.

[Christine Schwartz]

Hi Jenny, Yes, what you say seems to be the trend in technical services these days.

Cliff makes a great point about the need for standards-based, high quality metadata. The fact that it comes from a reference librarian, rather than one of us TS geeks means a lot. I'm reminded that one of the most eloquent advocates for cataloging is another reference librarian, Thomas Mann.