Enhancing Library Services with Web 2.0 Functionalities

This article gives a breakdown on the different Library 2.0 systems and how they are designed. It gives a example of how an open-sourced OPACIAL would be developed and the features that would be included. Also, the article goes in depth on how Web 2.0 technologies are already being incorporated.

It looks like as if many of these systems are becoming popular. But as I stated in my last post, I think that there are some privacy concerns that need to be addressed. Even in the system architecture diagram, there seems to be storage of information of outside users.

Given this, should libraries consider adopting a code a privacy?

Library 2.0 Theory: Web 2.0 and Its Implications for Libraries

I'm going to just say that I hate the term 2.0. In fact, I hate the concepts of Web 2.0. I still don't understand how that social interaction technologies is what survived from the Dot.com bust. And no, I really don't think that libraries should adopt the concepts of this movement. 

The article was just about how libraries are integrating Web 2.0 into libraries. The author lists a bunch of technologies, and demonstrates how they can be incorporated in libraries. This includes new media formats like streaming. Then he calls this the Library 2.0 movement. 

I find this absurd. I think that libraries should focus on remaining useful than social. Although, admittedly, that greater interaction with patrons would be helpful,  I think most of this is overblown. Further, I think that given Web 2.0 also presents huge privacy concerns. Essentially Web 2.0 was a means to make users the product for advertisers. And now that more libraries are being privatized, I think so of these concepts creates too many privacy conflicts. 

So my question is what are any other downsides for libraries becoming more social?

*Maness, J. (2006). "Library 2.0 Theory: Web 2.0 and Its Implications for Libraries". Webology, 3 (2), Article 25. 

Re-Integrating the integrated library system

This is article is a past and present critique of ILS. The author feels that ILS technology did not keep up with the times -compared specifically to the web- and that it is now struggling to keep up with new media. Further, the author points out that the lack integration in the available solutions creates an unfriendly user experience.

The blame is pointed to the procurement process in how these systems are chosen. The author believes that libraries are too stringent and should allow the companies that provide solutions to be innovative. Without a certain degree of creativity, libraries will essentially will never get a handle on potential future problems.

I disagree. I feel that the problem is using a proprietary model for an open sourced problem. Proprietary solutions will not be able to give libraries that flexibility needed to tackle the problems rapidly. When every needed functionality comes with a price tag, it makes it difficult to keep up. Moreover, open source would be a way to help integrate the system as a whole. If the parts of the entire system can be easily manipulated to accomodate the other functions, a single system can be easily achieved.

Given this, my question is why not open source?

M. Breeding (2005). "Re-Integrating the integrated library system" Computers in Libraries: 25(25).  

Overview of ILS

This article details the advancement of Integrated Library Systems (ILS) and how they are able to index a multitude of different media platforms. These new systems are able to provide users with cross referenced information from all different types of media and databases. The idea being finding a way to better manage the vast amount of information that's available today.

I think that my only problem with the article, and I suppose the industry, as described, is the fragmentation of the various systems. Given the nature of libraries, it would make a lot more sense to establish and foster an open source program which can be shared, modified and improved on freely. I think that projects such as this is optimal for open-sourced solutions, because it would give the end user a consistent experience. I find the demands for ILS much like was for web hosting, an environment that Apache, an open-source web hosting software, has thrived.

So my question is given the amount of multiple proprietary solutions available,  how is this going to effect the end user and client? And what about those libraries stuck with inferior solutions, how are they going to manage in the near future?

*M. Deddins (2002). "Overview of ILS" EDUCAUSE 

Toward a 21st Century Library Catalog

This article was a behind the scene look at North Carolina State University's new information access platform. The article was fairly comprehensive on the methodology that went behind the design of the system and and the improvements it made.

What struck me most about the new system was how it interacted with the user. What and how other's searched mattered, allowing the system learn from the user. Moreover, I never really though about how inefficient searches currently are. The search test results against web searches were fairly drastic, saving time and gaining accuracy.

My question is whether other institutions will choose to adopt the same system, or will it become a race to see who can develop the best system for harvesting information.

K. Antelman, E. Lynema, A. K. Pace (2006). "Toward a Twenty-First Century Library Catalog". Information Technology & Libraries, 25:3. 128-139 (

Mooers' law or why some retrieval systems are used and others are not

This article is an explanation why better retrieval systems are not used. Although this would mean greater access to information, the author suggests that this is actually something that's avoided. This is because information, at times, can be a threat to the status quo.

He claims that information, for some, can be more of a hinderance than a benefit. The author largely blames this on how work is rewarded. Information may cause conflict, indecision and challenge. In the short term being willfully ignorant is convenient and comfortable. It requires evolution.

My question is what is the ultimate consequence for ignoring information?


C. N. Mooers (1960). “Mooers’ Law or, Why Some Retrieval Systems Are Used and Others Are Not. Bulletin of the American Society for Information Science and Technology,  1996 vol:23 iss:1 

Environmental scan: A report on trends and technologies affecting libraries

This article is about how the advancement in technology affects the library's relationship with society. People of this generation enjoy an access to information like no other. Further, this has allowed incredible advancements in the sharing of information. As stated in the article, the general public has access to large amounts of inexpensive storage and processing technologies. Currently most common smart phones carry as much processing power as some of the servers and desktop computers that I used to build and install back in the early 2000s.

The article also states that even with the abundance of available technology, there still remains an information gap. Not everyone, even in the younger demographics, is comfortable with even a basic desktop computer. The rate of computer illiteracy still remains surprisingly high.

I would like to know what can libraries do to close this gap. Also, although technology is available, it doesn't mean that it's being used optimally. I always wonder why, as an IT professional, why technology isn't making us smarter? I feel that most technology is wasted and not used in the most efficient manner. Essentially, I have not seen much improvement in my life, or others, from technological advancements.

Arnold Hirshon (2008). Environmental scan: A report on trends and technologies affecting libraries