Karen Calhoun
metadata management bw (before the web) and aw (after htet web)
bw
– or finding library materials
– catalog records (well-understood)
– shared cooperative cataloging systems
aw
– for finding all kinds of things
– many types of records and sources
– loosely-coupled metadata management
– multiple batch creation and extract
metadata is now really cool stuff
recommends O’Reilly’s article “What is Web 2.0?” and David Weinberger’s book Everything Is Miscellaneous
“the third order of order” – make the biggest pile you can
“include and postpone” – can be organized over time, some of them will be grassroots (like LibraryThing), some will be official (taxonomies, etc.)
– need them both, but have to pay attention to the less formal ones
people are using metadata to interact and contribute, even though they may not know what it is
what would metadata 2.0 be like?
– not your father’s metadata
– remixing, reuse, mashups
– wth the necessary rights
– metadata syndication
– enabling a rich user experience
– global, group, and local metadata management
– long term vision
– things you can do right now at your library
Amazon relentlessly enhanced metadata and redefined it for the world of books
what is a “full record?”
showed the same record from Libraries Australia, WorldCat, and Amazon to show the differences between a “full record” for each
from a user perspective, which one is the “full record?” amazon
– the horse has left the barn
using metadata from multiple sources
all of this remixing has generated a high interest in copyright
Creative Commons licensing has proven to provide an alternative to full control – it’s a bridge between a world that controls every use (“all rights reserved”) and anarchy where content providers are exposed to exploitation
CC lets you protect your work while also allowing your content to be remixed
“intellectual property management” is one of the burning issues of Web 2.0
be where their eyes are; syndicate your metadata outwards
OCLC calls this getting libraries to “web scale” – getting collections to show up in as many places as possible through this kind of syndication
showed WorldCat Facebook widget
– showed how you can share a WC list with people in FB
makes library collections more visible and connects everyday users the ability to share books in new and exciting ways
overwhelmingly, users start with an internet search engine, not library resources
this doesn’t mean people are no longer using libraries or library resources, but it does mean they no longer begin with the library website
so we have to take our collections where the users are
catalog used to be our sun in the galaxy, but now it’s just a planet in the user’s galaxy
the story of the catalog is not over
one library working by itself is not going to make this happen, is not going to get to “web scale”
can’t command a huge amount of attention for just one library
she believes that to keep libraries strong and vibrant in their communities, we need to work together to command a much larger presence on the web for library collections
talked about Open WorldCat Partner Program
showed an example of driving traffic from the web to a library-owned title
chose a German title (since the internet and books aren’t just for English readers)
we can be connected: a new vision for metadata management
data can flow local <--> group <--> global
worldcat.org statistics
– number of libraries visible through WC and partner sites = more than 10,000
(ed. – see my Flickrstream for the rest of this slide)
everywhere, the library
anchors for neighborhoods and communities, just as they always have been
welcoming space in the community + great visibility of the collection on the web so that no matter where you start, you can end up at your library
long-term vision
no less than a new age in which an individual library catalog is one node on the web that is attached to many other nodes and the user can traverse those nodes easily and conveniently to their library’s collections
can retain your independence but be loosely connected in Web 2.0-fashion, the same way so many other things are today
what can you do right now?
– take libraries to a wider audience, eg surface your collections in as many places as you can on the web
– encourage a Web 2.0 “culture of participation” in your own communities; support digital citizenship
– partner with museums, historical societies, cultural organizations, eg to add new online content
pushing our data out, pulling users in: libraries and course management systems
in 2004, 40% of classes used course management systems; more now
good: embed a library presence in course sites
better: customize RSS feeds to course sites, links to course readings
American University has done some great work integrating conent into LMS courses using customized RSS feeds
public libraries in Canada created http://mycommunityinfo.ca/
working with the community to index locally-relevant sites
has a “life events” section (retirement, what to do if you lose your pet, going off to college, etc.)
public libraries in the UK created The People’s Network
was funded by the lottery
partnering with individuals and community groups to create content
question: if we spoonfeed the content into the LMS, does that give students less incentive to learn how to do it themselves
answer: if 2% are starting with the library website, 98% of them aren’t seeing this stuff anyway; doing this can drive users back to using your resources and services
question: what should catalogers be doing differently in terms of their work
answer: they should be embracing many sources of data, reuse it, get it done as quickly and as easily as you can; make sure your catalog is current – never have a backlog; revamp your skills and this kind of metadata management; learn how to interact with your user community; learn how to handle special collections
question: is there a way for me at my public library to find out how many links are coming back to my catalog from WorldCat?
answer: yes!