Defining What We Do - Or Don't Do

Recently I had an interesting discussion with a colleague, friend and mentor when I was both technician and a neophyte librarian. It was one of those conversations that really gets the wheels turning. And after an earlier, three hour meeting, getting the wheels turning is really something.

We discussed a wide range of ideas that orbit the theme of "what is the meaning of what we do, as 'library' people"? I was surprised to suddenly realize that nowhere in my library training (and I have had a fair amount) was there ever a course or formal exploration into the foundations of librarianship. Another colleague, involved in library instruction for nearly 30 years, wryly informed me that although he had more than 15 courses examining the foundations of philosophy in his undergrad career, never did he have a similar course in library school.

Something is very wrong with this picture.

Without adequate discussion and reflection about what it is we do as librarians, library technicians, library assistants, records managers, information technicians, etc., we run the risk of losing our purpose in a world that is grappling with incredible change. So, where can we start talking about the philosophy of information work?

Everywhere.

As a group, information professionals are often wary of "blowing their own horns" and celebrating the accomplishments of the profession. We know we add value to society and, more importantly, improve people's lives. Yet, we hold back and fail to adequately assert ourselves as bastions of culture and democracy. We make life better. This is a very good thing.

So what DO we do? I don't mean things like loan out materials, complete interlibrary loan requests or answer reference questions. The question is much bigger than all of those pieces.

I put the question out there for you to ponder.

It is my hope to investigate this much more fully in an upper level course where, in the safety of the "classroom" (virtual or not), we can explore the meaning of information work.






http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGCJ46vyR9o&feature=channel

Internet Archiving - Illegal?

In pre-Internet years, most people understood archiving to be a process of preserving original data for future research and analysis. Since much of today's society is migrating to a "life" on the Web, many worry that the preservation of web sites is essential to capturing the thoughts and ideas of the developed world. Sounds reasonable, right? Yet, we run into a huge problem. A printed document, whether it is a personal letter or a published book is considered something which can be "owned" and "preserved". A web site, however, is something that carries its own unique problems for preservationists.

Because anything on the Web must be hosted by a server and hosts fade in and out of existence, there is no assurance that once an item is published, it will be preserved. Although much can befall printed works, their requirements for longevity are far more promising. More than one may be produced and owned. "Hosting" a book or document can be a simple as a providing shelf space or filing cabinet space. Photocopiers allow archivists to preserve deteriorating materials and so on. Rights to information published on the Web, is very different. One can easily link to a document but it is entirely different to house that document - even in the interests of preservation. There is a fine line between archiving information and "copying" information. At least, that is what evolving copyright legislation would have us believe....

To cache or not to cache, that is the question. Linking versus caching. What is legally acceptable? Should we be concerned? At what point does ownership begin to interfere with the enhancement of knowledge or does it? How do we preserve what we are creating on the Web and is it feasible? These are difficult questions that need to be mulled over and discussed. As information professionals, we need to consider what ramifications law has on our need to gather and disseminate information.