TechEssence.info

Should you focus your efforts on a smaller number of really big technology projects, or a larger number of smaller projects? Of course there is no one right answer for all institutions, and it’s likely no institution would rely on one approach to the exclusion of the other. But it can be difficult to find the right balance between the large-scale, high-impact initiatives and those that are more nimble and quick to appear.

I was at a meeting of librarians and library staff recently in which the topic of how to involve more individuals in technology projects was raised. One individual made a particularly salient point – that librarians and library staff be given opportunities and encouraged to participate in technology projects, rather than being given a timed ultimatum to do so.

Many libraries employ usability testing to assess new or updated online services, such as database listings, catalogs, and digital collections. A popular model is observing a small number of potential users perform prescribed tasks using the service, and noting where those users encounter problems. This model, when used as the sole method for gaining user data, requires that the service be relatively well-developed before testing is done, increasing the risk that the fundamental design of the service does not meet user needs.

Grants offer attractive opportunities for carrying out technology initiatives that might not otherwise be possible for libraries. But grant money isn’t truly free money. The additional opportunities for libraries afforded by grants require time, effort, and commitment. In most respects, planning and implementing technology grants are no different than any other type of grant a library may seek and receive.

Concerns about online privacy have recently surfaced again in the news, fueled this type by the meteoric rise of social networking sites like MySpace and disclosure (intentionally or unintentionally) of potentially sensitive information such as that recently by AOL. Libraries have historically been strong advocates of their patrons' right to privacy, as evidenced by the following text appearing as #3 in the ALA Code of Ethics:

I was in a meeting this week where the topic of “Data-centric” vs. “Document-centric” XML arose. These concepts aren’t immediately obvious, and it took me a reasonable amount of time to understand them. So here’s the deal…

I received in the mail today my very own copy of Rachel Singer Gordon's newest book, The Nextgen Librarian's Survival Guide. I've read the introduction and poked through a few other chapters, and I'm fascinated. The book is intended to provide much-needed information on preparing for and being a librarian to GenX and GenY-ers in library school, in the library job market, or just starting out in the librarian profession. I'm in the latter group - I'm finishing up my second year as a librarian, although I've been working in digital libraries for almost six years now. So what am I doing talking about this on a blog for library administrators thinking about technology decisions?

As a library manager or administrator, you may find it tempting to make an executive decision when faced with pending deadlines, and say, "Just do the hack for now so we can get this thing out the door. We'll go back and fix it later." After all, you don't have the luxury of looking at the current project in isolation. You have to take into account the public relations aspects of the project, other initiatives that are depending on this one, funding issues, and a whole host of other things that the ability to balance makes you a good administrator.

A commenter on TechEssence recently wondered "...if knowing about metadata would make me a better librarian even if I'm neither a cataloger nor a repository rat." I'd vehemently argue that the answer is YES.

It's very easy to get caught up in the hype of whatever new technology is receiving mainstream press and funding. Often adopting a technology at this point is a good idea, but other times it's not. So how do you know what the right thing to do is?