Cataloging Futures

New book: Conversations with Catalogers in the 21st Century

2010 had been heralded as the year of cataloging research. But I think it was actually the year of cataloging conversation. Whether on discussion lists such as OCLC-CAT and, the mother-of-all-lists, AUTOCAT or the social media vehicles, Twitter and blogs, in 2010 there was a lot of catalogers talking about the pressing issues in our profession. With RDA, the new cataloging code, being the topic du jour for most of the year.

This new book, Conversations with Catalogers in the 21st Century, published by Libraries Unlimited and edited by Elaine Sanchez picks up on this trend. Elaine was kind enough to approach me to write an essay for this book. So, I am grateful to her for the opportunity to get off the Web and actually write something a little more substantial and in print.

If you get a chance to read my brief essay: Changing Mind-Set, Changing Skill Set: Transitioning from Cataloger to Metadata Librarian, please let me know what you think.

I am excited to dig in and read the other essays in this book, not so much a book of cataloging experts, but rather a group of catalogers who write and think with passion and verve on these discussion lists and blogs, the cataloging conversationalists among us.

Codex obsessed (an excursus on digital reading)

In a presentation from 2008 on the future of bibliographic control, Brian Schottlaender describes LC Reference Librarian Thomas Mann as being "obsessed with the codex." Well I may be immersed in digital library development in my work life, but in my personal life, I, too, am obsessed with the codex.

I can describe it in Twitter-like form: I read online because I have to; I read offline because I want to. I read as far as I have to online to see if it's something I want to read closely, then I print it off. (My hunch is there will be a publishing market for reprints because I doubt I'm the only one out there with this reading style of online discovery/offline reading.)

I finally have some hard evidence that justifies my dislike of online reading. Recently, I had to take two long online training programs for work that were mandatory (and I knew were going to be tested at the end of the process). After two hours my eyes hurt even though I tried to break up the reading by stepping away from the computer during that two-hour period. I took a lunch break and then took the second test for another hour and 40 minutes. These tests requiring long periods of reading online confirmed what I knew instinctively, the computer is not a good device for careful, focused reading (the type of reading I prefer as time permits). It's not the task-oriented, find-the-answer reading that the Internet is so suited for. About six months ago I decided that, even thought I love my web life: blogging, tweeting, etc., my offline reading life is way more important to me. I have tried to build more offline reading time into my schedule.

So, if I was asked the stranded on a desert island question: If you could only take your computer or your books, which would it be? It would be my books, hands-down (and my reading glasses). Yes, I'm madly, happily codex obsessed!

New FRBR book

I'll be reading this one in the New Year: Implementing FRBR in Libraries: Key Issues and Future Directions? by Yin Zhang and Athena Salaba.

Whether you pronounce it "FRBR" or "F-R-B-R" this conceptual model remains a hot topic and I would argue is now a full-fledged library standard. There are now several books written about FRBR. My go-to source is still the original text itself. (Yes, I'm an unapologetic cataloging/metadata geek.)

h/t The FRBR Blog

Slow reading: "print is the next big thing"

John Miedema, IT guy and former true believer that "print, books and libraries were on the way out," has written a book titled, Slow Reading:

In the 1990s, society witnessed the mainstream integration of personal computers and the Web. For a time, it seemed likely that print, books and libraries would disappear, and perhaps literacy along with them. A generation later, we have some evidence by which to assess the reality. The analysis that follows shows that there is a close relationship between the media we use to read – books or digital technology – and the way we read and think. This is not to say that reading on screens spells the end of reading. Digital technology is often preferable for searching and scanning short snippets. However, print has endured because it is still the superior technology for reading anything of length, quality or substance. While digital technology lends itself to discovering and remixing ideas in novel ways, slow reading of books is still essential for nurturing literacy and the capacity for extended linear thought. [emphasis mine]

Check out the free chapter.

Via Aggie Librarian

New metadata book and companion website

You might want to check out this new book: Metadata by Marcia Lei Zeng and Jian Qin. One of the interesting things about it is the publisher, Neal-Schuman, has a free companion website with readings, quizzes, and exercises. So, if you currently don't have an opportunity to work with metadata, this website would be a great help. Just download an XML editor and give it a try!

In this new, authoritative textbook, internationally recognized metadata experts Zeng and Qin have created a comprehensive primer for advanced undergraduate, graduate, or continuing education courses in information organization, information technology, cataloging, digital libraries, electronic archives, and, of course, metadata. Instructors seeking a text that covers the theory as well as the how-to's of application design, implementation, and evaluation will find it here. An outcome-based approach lets learners with different orientations adapt their new knowledge and skills to any domain. Examples and practice problems focus on tasks typical to all metadata application projects. Other useful features include sample problems with solutions, quizzes, hands-on tutorials, and a recommended reading list at the end of each chapter. A companion digital library on CD-ROM for instructors includes quizzes, answer keys, and additional exercises. An ideal classroom tool, this book works equally well for self-guided study. Individual modules can stand alone, for reference on an as-needed basis, when transitioning from traditional cataloging to compilations of metadata for locally created resources and websites, for example. Or you can study metadata systematically, module by module. Regardless of your approach, this book is the ideal guide to metadata for both students and working information professionals.