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Re: Website Reliability



>the young
> people were citing as "appropriate for research" sites that were
> clearly not of reference quality, and that they had no idea what the
> difference was between the two kinds of materials.

I wholeheartedly agree, but then is the Encyclopedia Britannica of reference
quality? Students are not being taught reference/research skills nor how
they being taught to think critically about what they are using.

>Or maybe Aunt Jeannie's
Jeaenealogy Newsletter (yes, this is a made up title) and American
Archivist as being equivalent resources for preservation
suggestions. ;->

I wouldn't refer to either one for preservation suggestions.

>Librarians aren't being hypocritical; they're simply
>suggesting that it might be better to err on the side of too much
>access rather than too little until the software designers can
>develop a better means of screening.

But my point is that librarians (individuals) have been imposing their own
values upon what materials are selected for a library, and who could check
out what. I can remember growing up that I had to have permission from my
parents to check certain titles out from the library because I was not an
"Adult". The librarians decided that the title was only for adults. Playboy
magazine is not prominently displayed on library shelves.

I agree that the software could and should be better.



Peter A. Kurilecz CRM, CA
Woodside Summit Group, Inc
Richmond, Virginia
Tel: 804-744-1247 extension 23
Fax: 804-744-4947
mailto:peter.kurilecz@woodsidesummitgroup.com



> -----Original Message-----
> From: Jacqueline Haun [mailto:jehaun@UMICH.EDU]
> Sent: Monday, April 24, 2000 2:32 PM
> To: ARCHIVES@LISTSERV.MUOHIO.EDU
> Subject: Re: Website Reliability
>
>
> Just a couple of comments:
>
> On 24 Apr 2000, at 14:05, Kurilecz, Peter wrote:
>
> > If one did the same rating for the standard public library
> what percentage
> > of the library would be considered suitable for academic
> research.  (could
> > it be a case of the pot calling the kettle black?)
> >
> Public libraries are not intended to be solely research libraries, any
> more than the Web is intended to be solely a research tool. I
> believe that what the librarian was getting at is that the young
> people were citing as "appropriate for research" sites that were
> clearly not of reference quality, and that they had no idea what the
> difference was between the two kinds of materials. Sort of as if you
> cited Playboy and the Kinsey report as being equally valid
> resources for sexual statistics. Or maybe Aunt Jeannie's
> Jeaenealogy Newsletter (yes, this is a made up title) and American
> Archivist as being equivalent resources for preservation
> suggestions. ;->
>
>
> > Finally I find it amazing that librarians are critical of
> internet filtering
> > yet you can not find the hardcopy versions of the same
> material present in
> > the library.
>
> Most librarians are critical of internet filtering because of what
> internet filters filter out in *addition* to those materials that
> librarians might not find acceptable in paper in their copy.  Library
> filters are simply not "smart" enough to know the difference
> between quality material and junk, so can "inadvertently" disallow
> access to valid and useful sites. (Ask the folks at Beaver College,
> who are considering changing its name to evade internet filtering
> bans.) Librarians aren't being hypocritical; they're simply
> suggesting that it might be better to err on the side of too much
> access rather than too little until the software designers can
> develop a better means of screening.
>
> *getting off my soapbox to finish a paper on appraisal because I'm
> still a student*
>
> Jacqueline Haun
>
>
> ==============================================
> Jacqueline Haun
> Master's Degree Student
> Archives and Records Administration
> and Library and Information Services Specializations
> School of Information
> University of Michigan
> jehaun@umich.edu
> ==============================================
>
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A posting from the Archives & Archivists LISTSERV List!

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Problems?  Send e-mail to Robert F Schmidt <rschmidt@lib.muohio.edu>