Sunday, September 26, 2010
Friday, September 24, 2010
YouTube and Libraries: it could be a beautiful relationship
In this article by Paula Webb, YouTube is presented as one solution to libraries for a way to tutor patrons on how to use the library's resources, or as a creative way to show patrons the resources available at their local library.
While I'm not completely adverse to the concept of using YouTube in such a fashion, this method of posting a library instructional video on the library's web page would only be useful to patrons who had Internet access. I also believe most patron's first experience with the library does not occur online, and that usually the library web page is used most often to access the catalogue database.
However, I think the best use of a YouTube video for my local library would be to show all of the resources available to the patron as a sort of online commercial for the library.
While I'm not completely adverse to the concept of using YouTube in such a fashion, this method of posting a library instructional video on the library's web page would only be useful to patrons who had Internet access. I also believe most patron's first experience with the library does not occur online, and that usually the library web page is used most often to access the catalogue database.
However, I think the best use of a YouTube video for my local library would be to show all of the resources available to the patron as a sort of online commercial for the library.
Imaging Pittsburgh: Creating a Shared gateway to Digital Image Collections of the Pittsburgh Region
Written by Edward Galloway, I found this article rather interesting because I enjoy learning about history.
The article discussed most of the challenges met jointly by the University of Pitt Digital Research Library, the Carnegie Museum of Art, and the Historical Society of Western PA when they received a two year grant to form a digital photo library of 10,000 photographs from the mid-eighteen hundreds through the mid-twentieth century.
Among the challenges were those of communication among the three parties, the selection of the photographs and the meta data challenge to organize the photographs.
The article discussed most of the challenges met jointly by the University of Pitt Digital Research Library, the Carnegie Museum of Art, and the Historical Society of Western PA when they received a two year grant to form a digital photo library of 10,000 photographs from the mid-eighteen hundreds through the mid-twentieth century.
Among the challenges were those of communication among the three parties, the selection of the photographs and the meta data challenge to organize the photographs.
Data Compression Basics
This article demystified data compression. Essentially, data compression involves "taking a representation of information and replacing it with a different representation that takes up less space and from which the original can be recovered."
With lossless compression, the recovered info is guaranteed to be exactly the same as the original. This type of compression is recommended for computer programs, because every bit is important to the functioning of the program.
Lossy compression, on the other hand, preserves meaning of data rather than the data. The recovered info is never identical to the original. This type of compression is useful for info that is meant to be interpreted by a "meaning processor" such as a human being or an image recognition system. Uses of lossy compression could be to take the hiss out of a voice recording, or to store photographs.
Although this article did an excellent job of explaining the different data compressions, I believe the examples used and some of the technical information only palatable to someone interested in sound and video engineering.
With lossless compression, the recovered info is guaranteed to be exactly the same as the original. This type of compression is recommended for computer programs, because every bit is important to the functioning of the program.
Lossy compression, on the other hand, preserves meaning of data rather than the data. The recovered info is never identical to the original. This type of compression is useful for info that is meant to be interpreted by a "meaning processor" such as a human being or an image recognition system. Uses of lossy compression could be to take the hiss out of a voice recording, or to store photographs.
Although this article did an excellent job of explaining the different data compressions, I believe the examples used and some of the technical information only palatable to someone interested in sound and video engineering.
Wiki Article: Data Compression
According to the article, data compression is the process of encoding information using fewer bits than an uncoded representation.
A related topic is data deduplication, which is a specialized data compression technique used to eliminate redundant data in order to improve the use of storage.
Data compression is useful because it reduces the use of hard disk space or transmission bandwidth. However, compressed data must be decompressed to be used, and can only be understood if the decoding method is known by the receiver.
There are two types of data compression: lossy and lossless.
Lossy compression "provides a way to obtain the best fidelity for a given amount of compression" but some data is lost in order to achieve higher compression. Lossy compression works on rate-distortion theory, and involves more than four stages.
Lossless compression is reversible so that the original data can be completely reconstructed. It works on algorithmic information theory, and is usually accomplished in four stages.
A related topic is data deduplication, which is a specialized data compression technique used to eliminate redundant data in order to improve the use of storage.
Data compression is useful because it reduces the use of hard disk space or transmission bandwidth. However, compressed data must be decompressed to be used, and can only be understood if the decoding method is known by the receiver.
There are two types of data compression: lossy and lossless.
Lossy compression "provides a way to obtain the best fidelity for a given amount of compression" but some data is lost in order to achieve higher compression. Lossy compression works on rate-distortion theory, and involves more than four stages.
Lossless compression is reversible so that the original data can be completely reconstructed. It works on algorithmic information theory, and is usually accomplished in four stages.
Saturday, September 18, 2010
An Update on the Windows Road Map
This article was actually a letter written by an official at Microsoft and posted by a blogger.
Over a billion pcs run Windows worldwide. XP users who buy Vista will be able to get Vista and still use XP due to downgrade rights.
The letter enthusiastically discusses Vista, which shouldn't be a surprise considering the source, but everyone I have known who used Vista has hated it. Their complaint: too many bells and whistles, and incompatible with their applications.
I can't understand Microsoft's rationale: why fix something (invent Vista), if it's not broken (Windows XP)?
The main jist of this article: Microsoft will support XP until 2014, Windows Vista is a "better" experience, and Windows 7 is coming January of 2010.
Over a billion pcs run Windows worldwide. XP users who buy Vista will be able to get Vista and still use XP due to downgrade rights.
The letter enthusiastically discusses Vista, which shouldn't be a surprise considering the source, but everyone I have known who used Vista has hated it. Their complaint: too many bells and whistles, and incompatible with their applications.
I can't understand Microsoft's rationale: why fix something (invent Vista), if it's not broken (Windows XP)?
The main jist of this article: Microsoft will support XP until 2014, Windows Vista is a "better" experience, and Windows 7 is coming January of 2010.
Wiki Article MacOS X
MacOS X stands for Mac Operating System 10, and is a series of UNIX-based OS and GUI (graphic user interface) developed, marketed and sold by Apple.
Releases are named after big cats: cheetah, puma, snow leopard, etc.
A version of MacOS X, a POSIX operating system built on top of the XNU kernel, has been released as Open Source and is called Darwin.
As of 2009, MacOS X was the second most popular OS in use for the Internet after Microsoft Windows, with 4.5% of the market share.
Releases are named after big cats: cheetah, puma, snow leopard, etc.
A version of MacOS X, a POSIX operating system built on top of the XNU kernel, has been released as Open Source and is called Darwin.
As of 2009, MacOS X was the second most popular OS in use for the Internet after Microsoft Windows, with 4.5% of the market share.
What is Mac OS X?
I found this fairly extensive article to be too technical to understand, and the author's opinions to be too slanted.
All I learned from this document was that MacOSX is an operating system which runs on Mac computers.
All I learned from this document was that MacOSX is an operating system which runs on Mac computers.
Introduction to Linux
- 30 years ago, each computer had its own software
- UNIX was an operating system developed by Bell Labs which was simple and elegant, written in C language, and able to recycle code.
- Because UNIX could recycle code, and only needed a kernel to adapt to any system, it could run on many types of hardware.
- At the end of the 1980s, one had to work at a university or for the government in order to use a machine running UNIX.
- In 1991, Linus Torvalds started to develop Linux, an open source academic version of UNIX.
- Linux is a stable and reliable OS, making it a workhorse for such firms as Amazon.com, the U.S. Postal Service, even the German Army. ISPs use it for firewall protection, proxy and web servers. Machines running Linux were even used to create Titanic and Shrek.
- Because Linux is scalable, it can run on workstations as well as PDAs and experimental wristwatches.
- Linux can be downloaded from the Internet for free, and allows itself to be redeveloped and repackaged as long as the new code is available to all users.
- The only drawbacks to this OS are there are too many distributions, it's not very friendly for beginners, and how reliable can something be if it is free?
Friday, September 17, 2010
Sunday, September 12, 2010
A Virtual Visit to the Computer History Museum
A fun place to spend a rainy morning, www.computerhistory.org, the Computer History Museum's mission is "to preserve for posterity the artifacts and stories of the information age."
Established in 1999, it is "home to one of the largest international collections of computing artifacts in the world, including hardware, photographs, moving images, documents and software."
Currently, the site boasts 12 online exhibits including my personal favorite, This Day in History, which tells what happened in computer history on the present date.
Established in 1999, it is "home to one of the largest international collections of computing artifacts in the world, including hardware, photographs, moving images, documents and software."
Currently, the site boasts 12 online exhibits including my personal favorite, This Day in History, which tells what happened in computer history on the present date.
Moore's Law Wiki Article and video
Gordon E. Moore, in a 1965 article, described a trend in the history of computer hardware, paraphrased here: "the number of transistors that can be placed inexpensively on an integrated circuit has doubled approximately every two years."
Moore's Law has continued for more than half a century and is not expected to stop until 2015 or later. (I didn't think we used transistors any more?) In fact, many capabilities of other devices are strongly linked to this law: processing speed, memory capacity, even the size and number of pixels in digital cameras--all of these are improving at exponential rates.
Moore's Law has continued for more than half a century and is not expected to stop until 2015 or later. (I didn't think we used transistors any more?) In fact, many capabilities of other devices are strongly linked to this law: processing speed, memory capacity, even the size and number of pixels in digital cameras--all of these are improving at exponential rates.
Wiki Article on Computer Hardware
Personal Computers are made of 10 basic physical components called computer hardware: monitor, motherboard, CPU, RAM, Expansion Cards, Power Supply, Optical disc drive, Hard disc drive, keyboard, and mouse.
The motherboard is the main component inside the case and connects the rest of the parts of the computer, including the CPU, the RAM, the disc drives and any peripherals.
A CPU (Central Processing Unit) performs most of the calculations which enable the computer to function, AKA "the brain".
RAM (Random Access Memory) stores all running applications and the operating system.
Peripherals (which I've always thought of as anything that plugs in) fall into two categories: input and output devices. Some examples of input devices: keyboard, mouse, scanner, webcam, microphone. Output devices include: printers, speakers, headphones, and LCD monitor.
The motherboard is the main component inside the case and connects the rest of the parts of the computer, including the CPU, the RAM, the disc drives and any peripherals.
A CPU (Central Processing Unit) performs most of the calculations which enable the computer to function, AKA "the brain".
RAM (Random Access Memory) stores all running applications and the operating system.
Peripherals (which I've always thought of as anything that plugs in) fall into two categories: input and output devices. Some examples of input devices: keyboard, mouse, scanner, webcam, microphone. Output devices include: printers, speakers, headphones, and LCD monitor.
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Muddiest Point of the Lecture of August 30th
The muddiest point of the lecture for me was NASA's definition of Information Technology.
Vaughan: Lied Library @ four years: Technology Never Stands Still
This article chronicled the improvements made to an already state of the art library which opened at UNLV four years ago.
I was surprised to find out that they use Innovative's Innopac Millennium software because the library in which I work also uses the same software to deal with cataloguing and patron accounts.
I found their response to patron printing numbers expanding by 49% a little excessive: "the library implemented an override print queue that allows staff to override print jobs." I think the best solution would have been to charge more money for the black and white print outs.
The article went into some detail in explaining the computer acquisition of summer 2003. It bears repeating that "equipment and software purchases are a huge expense for any library," and that "licensing and support costs run into the tens of thousands of dollars per year."
According to the article, "redundant hardware, capable support staff and vendor support all contribute to a well functioning library."
While I was at West Chester University, as in Lied Library, they also installed Deep Freeze Software which causes all user installed software, background changes and system modifications to be erased. I think it's the best security software to have on a public computer network.
I found it typical and interesting that Lied Library's problem with Adobe Acrobat files being printed mirror-imaged could be attributed to a staff member rotating the images as they load.
I was surprised to find out that they use Innovative's Innopac Millennium software because the library in which I work also uses the same software to deal with cataloguing and patron accounts.
I found their response to patron printing numbers expanding by 49% a little excessive: "the library implemented an override print queue that allows staff to override print jobs." I think the best solution would have been to charge more money for the black and white print outs.
The article went into some detail in explaining the computer acquisition of summer 2003. It bears repeating that "equipment and software purchases are a huge expense for any library," and that "licensing and support costs run into the tens of thousands of dollars per year."
According to the article, "redundant hardware, capable support staff and vendor support all contribute to a well functioning library."
While I was at West Chester University, as in Lied Library, they also installed Deep Freeze Software which causes all user installed software, background changes and system modifications to be erased. I think it's the best security software to have on a public computer network.
I found it typical and interesting that Lied Library's problem with Adobe Acrobat files being printed mirror-imaged could be attributed to a staff member rotating the images as they load.
Monday, September 6, 2010
Clifford Lynch, Information Literacy and Information Technology Literacy: New Components in the Curriculum for a Digital Culture
February 1998:
- information technology literacy: an understanding of technology, the tools technology provides, and the legal, social, economic, and public policy issues which shape the use of technology
- information literacy: deals with content and communication; authoring, info. finding and organization, the research process, info. analysis, assessment and evaluation. Content can be text, images, video, computer simulations, multi-media interactive works. (Content serves many purposes: news, art, entertainment, education, research and scholarship, advertising, politics, commerce, documents that structure activities of everyday business and personal life.)
Both are essential to function and succeed in today's society. Distinct, but inter-related. Need to be closely coordinated when taught.
- People with Information Technology Literacy Demonstrate:
Emphasis in the use of tools: word processing, spread sheets, basic operation of computers, use of Internet tools, a superficial knowledge of programming language.
Skills with tools become outdated very quickly with today's technology life cycle.
To learn the principles of how these infrastructure components work, how they have evolved, and what the key issues are is more valuable, but takes longer to convey and absorb. However, this type of understanding will be increasingly critical to function as an informed citizen.
- People with Information Literacy Demonstrate:
The assessment of purpose, bias, accuracy, and quality needs to be extended from text to the full range of visual and multi media communication genres.
A knowledge of interactive media, the fluid nature of digital forms, plus an understanding of the computer's ability to edit or fabricate factual events.
An understanding of how search systems work.
They have formed a conceptual map of information space (what's available to them from documents on the Internet, databases, and library collections).
They need to develop a sense of what info. is most appropriate for their needs.
They will have to learn to assess info. through the lenses of: legal, social, economic, ethical issues of intellectual property; privacy questions; authenticity of info.
OCLC Report: Information Format Trends: Content, Not Containers
This article, a report, was generated by the Online Computer Library Center. It found the most significant trend was "the rapid 'unbundling' of content from traditional containers such as books, journals, and cds, has had a significant impact on the self-search/find/obtain process."
It claims that most consumers of unbundled content are middle aged "format agnostics" who, as I understand this, don't care if a movie they want to see is on dvd or bluray at their local library, but they will gladly order it on demand from their cable company for twice as much money. (Especially because that movie can be downloaded to their cell phone so they can watch it on the plane.) Or they don't care if the book they are currently reading can only be downloaded from the Internet as an ebook.
As Marshall McLuhan stated in 1964 "The medium is the message." Changes in how content is made available, accessed and consumed have created a new message which is an effect of Internet access expanding. "Books, radios, VCRs, telephones, or tv are no longer sacred objects" as "the format of the content becomes less important than its ability to be delivered via a low cost convenient channel to the consumer."
It was estimated at the time of the report that 2 billion text messages and 16 billion emails were sent per day, as opposed to 51,000 interlibrary loans.
"Cell phone ringtones, wallpaper, single tracks of music...are now part of a $3.2 billion microcontent industry" which libraries see no parts of, since microcontent is not available from them. The report suggested libraries need to find a way to provide microcontent in order to be competitive, as well as the incorporation of Open Content such as a wiki or blog, to reach their patrons.
At the time of the report, 4 million blogs existed. The magazine publishing industry reported a net loss in 2003, ebooks were the fastest growing segment of the publishing industry, and on-demand services appeared to be the future of the entertainment industry.
It is estimated libraries spent 20% in 2002 on packaged, distributed electronic resources for their collections.
According to the report, libraries not only need to adjust to "Everything, everywhere, when I want it, the way I want it" they also must "move beyond the role of collector and organizer of content to one that establishes authenticity and provenance of content and provides the imprintur of quality in an info-rich but content-poor world."
In other words, we are awash in information. We lack context in which to place all of the new content. This is where librarians should step in.
It claims that most consumers of unbundled content are middle aged "format agnostics" who, as I understand this, don't care if a movie they want to see is on dvd or bluray at their local library, but they will gladly order it on demand from their cable company for twice as much money. (Especially because that movie can be downloaded to their cell phone so they can watch it on the plane.) Or they don't care if the book they are currently reading can only be downloaded from the Internet as an ebook.
As Marshall McLuhan stated in 1964 "The medium is the message." Changes in how content is made available, accessed and consumed have created a new message which is an effect of Internet access expanding. "Books, radios, VCRs, telephones, or tv are no longer sacred objects" as "the format of the content becomes less important than its ability to be delivered via a low cost convenient channel to the consumer."
It was estimated at the time of the report that 2 billion text messages and 16 billion emails were sent per day, as opposed to 51,000 interlibrary loans.
"Cell phone ringtones, wallpaper, single tracks of music...are now part of a $3.2 billion microcontent industry" which libraries see no parts of, since microcontent is not available from them. The report suggested libraries need to find a way to provide microcontent in order to be competitive, as well as the incorporation of Open Content such as a wiki or blog, to reach their patrons.
At the time of the report, 4 million blogs existed. The magazine publishing industry reported a net loss in 2003, ebooks were the fastest growing segment of the publishing industry, and on-demand services appeared to be the future of the entertainment industry.
It is estimated libraries spent 20% in 2002 on packaged, distributed electronic resources for their collections.
According to the report, libraries not only need to adjust to "Everything, everywhere, when I want it, the way I want it" they also must "move beyond the role of collector and organizer of content to one that establishes authenticity and provenance of content and provides the imprintur of quality in an info-rich but content-poor world."
In other words, we are awash in information. We lack context in which to place all of the new content. This is where librarians should step in.
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