Week 4 Reading Notes

Data Compression

I’m familiar with .zip, .mp3, .avi, .rar, etc. and all the sometimes obnoxious ways they are rendered usable. My initial reaction after learning about the ways these files get compressed was immense gratitude to the programmers who develop these algorithms. 

So many of the things I use every day (and often take for granted) wouldn’t be possible without compression technologies. 

YouTube & Libraries

YouTube is a great tool for libraries to increase their reach to patrons. I don't think this will replace current methods of instruction any time soon (if ever), but I'm a firm believer in reaching out to as many different populations as possible in as many formats as is feasible

There's no doubt there are still many library patrons with limited access to the technology required to view a YouTube video, but there is a huge chunk of the population (I'm not a fan of the term "digital native," but that's who I'm talking about) that practically lives online. When the odds of a patron watching an online video are greater than the odds of them coming to the library for instruction, then it's time to start providing services in formats that will be used. 

Imaging Pittsburgh

I clicked around in this collection during an instruction session at the SIS Library; I was impressed with it then. After reading this article I have even more appreciation for the effort that went into creating it--just thinking about the level of collaboration needed to bring all those images together under a common metadata scheme is enough to give me a migraine. I've worked on projects with similar challenges outside the library world, and have seen lesser teams collapse.

I'm glad the author discussed the lack of communication via email and the project website. It's really easy to get excited about communication platforms, but much more difficult to actually get people using them (see: Google Wave). The times I've been part of active wikis/forums/listservs have been great; I wish I were able to pinpoint the factors that made those instances successful.