How stuff works:
The history of the internet and its subsequent blanket of global communications with cables and wires emphasize the impact it has had on the world. The fact that connectivity moves from a few to billions in a short space of time can be a very humbling prospect for an individual user. LANs can migrate into CANs, MANs and WAN’s and these expand exponentially to eventually include the WWW. It is interesting to note just how this connectivity works and the level of dependence it has generated within the global populace. The article is easily understandable and it is evident that the writer kept the technicality to a necessary level so as not to scare off readers. I found the sections on DNS and URLs to be very enlightening and the coverage of ‘caching’ and ‘client /server’ relationships very informative.
Dismantling ILS :
Converting to an automated library system is costly, time consuming and sometimes nerve wracking even in a small library with less than ten thousand items. It took months before we could operate confidently and comfortably in the knowledge that we could handle minor glitches as they arose. This article jarred me out of my relative complacency with the information that unless I am able to change with system alterations I will be left behind and my interaction with outside resources compromised.
It is unreasonable to expect that the same system will serve the needs of disparate institutions and library systems will evolve to become more marketable and competitive. Interoperability and scalability are two elements that are important in ILS and so far these have not been adequately addressed hence the proliferation of options open to libraries. Though competition is a good and healthy thing in that the strongest, and hopefully the best, emerges victorious, in this instance it may create isolation for those libraries that are unable to adapt or acquire at the same rate as others. If legacy systems are being dismantled to make way for improved models there are probably implications for hardware requirements as well, and that is a costly time consuming process.
Sergey Brin and Larry Page on Google
This talk is a fascinating exposé on the extent to which Google impacts the world. The use of fiber optics and satellites to transfer data and the traffic it generates is mind boggling. A great sales pitch for the Google foundation and its philanthropic endeavors as well as some interesting insights into how Google functions- complete with employee laundry humor!
Brin and Page is a sales pitch for Google. It started showing their muscle (the globe with the Google traffic), but they tried to make it more palatable by adding some humor and showing that they are looking into "giving back" by rewarding employees (hoping that will stimulate new revenue bringing ideas) and by giving grants. But, in the end, the upside is that Google gives access to information to people regardless socio-economic status and geographical location free of charge, and that is good enough.
ReplyDeleteNan, your library is a great illustration of the need to make the ILS cheap and user friendly. When there is no money to continually upgrade the system, nor to pay staff to keep these systems updated and operational, the whole system itself becomes a useless albatross. Larry Page stated in the Google video that Google is available for the same price to everyone around the globe, regardless of their ability to pay. Perhaps Google should work on an ILS!
ReplyDelete