Comment #1: http://jsslis2600.blogspot.com/2010/09/week-3-reading-notes.html#comments
Comment #2: http://pittlis2600.blogspot.com/2010/09/week-three-reading-notes.html#comments
Showing posts with label LIS 2600 Week 3. Show all posts
Showing posts with label LIS 2600 Week 3. Show all posts
Friday, September 17, 2010
Muddiest Point
If I had to choose what I felt was too vague about this week’s topic, I would have to say it was the readings themselves. Of course, I am well aware that they were talking about computer software, but what is it in particular was I supposed to know about the topic? I did not feel this way about the Paul Thurott article on Windows, since it gave a more straightforward approach. As for the Machtelt Garrels reading on Linux and what was available on Mac OS X, I felt as though the information was all over the place. I wasted so much time trying to figure out in what way the readings were supposed to be connected and how it could all be summarized. To me, information on computer software can be reworded, but it cannot be summarized. The facts are simply taken as they are being presented. It is merely a matter of wording it in a manner that the other person can comprehend. It was not until I discovered about the three computer software systems having a shared history that I finally had something to analyze and worth writing. If I want to have a general idea about a certain computer software system, of course I will look into any source that will be available to me. But if there is any issue in particular about a computer software system that I need to know about, I would like to have a more concentrated article.
Google Desktop
After you have fun, you can think of a question. What does this tell us about the future of library and librarian?
I will need to make a reference to David Weinberger’s theory on “The Three Orders of Order” to answer this question. Of course, a library must fulfill its duty by gathering sources of information, and then attempting to organize them. It is logical to assume that the more a collection will increase, the more difficult it will become to organize it. This also means greater possibilities for desired items being lost in the shuffle, therefore irretrievable. What contributes to the difficulties is never really the increase of the amounts in itself, but rather there are so many books that can belong to so many different fields of study. Whatever model needs to be used for organizing the books, it needs to be carried out all the way. The introduction of the Dewey Decimal System managed to solve the problem, but the man who invented it (and he was a very eccentric man indeed) had been corrupted by his Christian bias and Western Eurocentric views. Just about any book that concentrates on fields outside of those spheres would obviously have some kind of difficulty making its way into a collection that utilizes this model. Despite the imperfections, including some of its discriminating features, libraries still use this system on the grounds that it gets the job done at the least. Regardless as of how the actual books have been arranged, computer software systems offer so much flexibility in terms of organization. The availability of books within the library can be shown just by typing any word in the search engine. When the algorithm used by the search engine is unable to display the results that the patron had been seeking, the search can be narrowed down even further through certain filters, allowing users to seek an item by the author, title, date, publication, genre, etc. Through the use of folksonomy, people are able to exercise their own methods as of how they identify items by tagging them. Although these features are giving the patrons better chances of finding what they need, whatever has been invented and introduced shall always remain far from perfect.
What patrons need to realize is that librarians cannot do everything for them. Just because librarians spend a lot of time surrounded by books, it does not necessarily mean they actually take the time to read them all. It is never as though a patron can just provide a description of a book with just a few details and expect a librarian to know automatically what the person is talking about and then immediately retrieve it. Of course a librarian needs to know how the library’s organizational system works, be it the Dewey Decimal System or the Library of Congress System. As the libraries incorporate newer technologies for their services, it is just as vital for the staff members to know how to use the equipment as well. Whatever resources the librarians are able to utilize, the most they are really able to do is narrow down the search. Without the guarantee the item will actually be found all the time, the patrons need to take it from there. The patrons also need to realize that since the librarians, who are not perfect, have organized the materials based on models that are not perfect either, a particular item may not always be found in locations they anticipate. For example, there is a book on French cuisine. The librarians would have to decided as to whether it should belong in a section devoted to French culture or cooking, seeing as how it covers both fields. The patrons can debate all they want as to what section it should have belonged, but it in the end, this is the decision the librarian made for the sake of getting the job done. At least the computer system is more capable of reaching a compromise. However, even if the computer system is able to give an exact location as of where the item is located, it does not necessarily mean it will be found. Because most patrons never take the time to familiarize themselves with any organizational system, they have a tendency to throw books into some of the most random places all over the library. Regardless as to what sort of solutions are being provided in the future, whether they are intended for the physical or digital formats, something will always get lost in the shuffle in one form or another. Regardless as to how efficient the system becomes, the patrons will always have certain issues to bring up to the librarians. Then again, it is because of those complaints that technologies evolve.
I will need to make a reference to David Weinberger’s theory on “The Three Orders of Order” to answer this question. Of course, a library must fulfill its duty by gathering sources of information, and then attempting to organize them. It is logical to assume that the more a collection will increase, the more difficult it will become to organize it. This also means greater possibilities for desired items being lost in the shuffle, therefore irretrievable. What contributes to the difficulties is never really the increase of the amounts in itself, but rather there are so many books that can belong to so many different fields of study. Whatever model needs to be used for organizing the books, it needs to be carried out all the way. The introduction of the Dewey Decimal System managed to solve the problem, but the man who invented it (and he was a very eccentric man indeed) had been corrupted by his Christian bias and Western Eurocentric views. Just about any book that concentrates on fields outside of those spheres would obviously have some kind of difficulty making its way into a collection that utilizes this model. Despite the imperfections, including some of its discriminating features, libraries still use this system on the grounds that it gets the job done at the least. Regardless as of how the actual books have been arranged, computer software systems offer so much flexibility in terms of organization. The availability of books within the library can be shown just by typing any word in the search engine. When the algorithm used by the search engine is unable to display the results that the patron had been seeking, the search can be narrowed down even further through certain filters, allowing users to seek an item by the author, title, date, publication, genre, etc. Through the use of folksonomy, people are able to exercise their own methods as of how they identify items by tagging them. Although these features are giving the patrons better chances of finding what they need, whatever has been invented and introduced shall always remain far from perfect.
What patrons need to realize is that librarians cannot do everything for them. Just because librarians spend a lot of time surrounded by books, it does not necessarily mean they actually take the time to read them all. It is never as though a patron can just provide a description of a book with just a few details and expect a librarian to know automatically what the person is talking about and then immediately retrieve it. Of course a librarian needs to know how the library’s organizational system works, be it the Dewey Decimal System or the Library of Congress System. As the libraries incorporate newer technologies for their services, it is just as vital for the staff members to know how to use the equipment as well. Whatever resources the librarians are able to utilize, the most they are really able to do is narrow down the search. Without the guarantee the item will actually be found all the time, the patrons need to take it from there. The patrons also need to realize that since the librarians, who are not perfect, have organized the materials based on models that are not perfect either, a particular item may not always be found in locations they anticipate. For example, there is a book on French cuisine. The librarians would have to decided as to whether it should belong in a section devoted to French culture or cooking, seeing as how it covers both fields. The patrons can debate all they want as to what section it should have belonged, but it in the end, this is the decision the librarian made for the sake of getting the job done. At least the computer system is more capable of reaching a compromise. However, even if the computer system is able to give an exact location as of where the item is located, it does not necessarily mean it will be found. Because most patrons never take the time to familiarize themselves with any organizational system, they have a tendency to throw books into some of the most random places all over the library. Regardless as to what sort of solutions are being provided in the future, whether they are intended for the physical or digital formats, something will always get lost in the shuffle in one form or another. Regardless as to how efficient the system becomes, the patrons will always have certain issues to bring up to the librarians. Then again, it is because of those complaints that technologies evolve.
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Week 3: Computer Software
As computer hardware had been evolving, so did the means to operate the equipment, which in turn inspired the creation of computer software. What inspired the creation of the computer software were people’s needs to operate on a system that is much smaller and more sophisticated in appearance, and simpler and reusable for using. This was the goal that UNIX had been able to achieve, which eventually became Linux by maintaining the model. As effective as it may have been, it was certainly not perfect, as what Steve Jobs was able to demonstrate. During the 1980s, Apple introduced a newer version of the computer system, which actually borrowed certain elements from UNIX, while incorporating some of their own ideas. The renovating of the system became another model of its own, which later led to the creation of Mac OS X. What Bill Gates had conjured, which later led to the creation of Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Windows 7, had certainly been an accomplishment that was not itself very unique either. In the end, the computer software products that we have are nothing more than what originally began as variations of the same system, eventually prospering in their own directions. Regardless as to how much one is differentiating from the other, the core elements seem to be remaining.
The parallel between the evolution of computer hardware and computer software lies in people’s demands for tools that are more presentable and easier to utilize. At first, such technologies used to be solely available to the military. However, big companies were able to obtain them first for their own use. Seeing as how they have the money, it seems logical that the best materials are often given to the highest bidders. Much like how the U.S. Government constantly felt a need to update its equipment for the sake trying to remain a step ahead of the Soviet counterpart, businesses are driven by the same urge when it comes to outdoing the competition. Each competitor tries to gain an advantage by looking for the flaws that the products have and then trying to improve on it by presenting a much better version of the previous. However, if there is anyone who is good at finding any short-comings, it is the consumers themselves. Because people by nature can never be satisfied, they will always look for any excuse to complain, and they will always have a reason to feel disappointed with their products. The only way these businesses can stay alive is if they continue to accommodate for the non-stop dissatisfaction. The competition and the complaining is what make the technology and industry prosper and evolve.
The parallel between the evolution of computer hardware and computer software lies in people’s demands for tools that are more presentable and easier to utilize. At first, such technologies used to be solely available to the military. However, big companies were able to obtain them first for their own use. Seeing as how they have the money, it seems logical that the best materials are often given to the highest bidders. Much like how the U.S. Government constantly felt a need to update its equipment for the sake trying to remain a step ahead of the Soviet counterpart, businesses are driven by the same urge when it comes to outdoing the competition. Each competitor tries to gain an advantage by looking for the flaws that the products have and then trying to improve on it by presenting a much better version of the previous. However, if there is anyone who is good at finding any short-comings, it is the consumers themselves. Because people by nature can never be satisfied, they will always look for any excuse to complain, and they will always have a reason to feel disappointed with their products. The only way these businesses can stay alive is if they continue to accommodate for the non-stop dissatisfaction. The competition and the complaining is what make the technology and industry prosper and evolve.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)