Givens Cataloging in Swaziland
This was a project and paper I wrote for Theological Librarianship class… perhaps a better title would have been “Cataloging for Swaziland”, since I wasn’t actually IN Swaziland… but anyway. The project and the paper were a great experience.
This is the paper I wrote for Theological Librarianship class:
Cataloging in Swaziland
Rebecca A. Givens
LS568 – Theological Librarianship
University of Illinois
April 30, 2017
Introduction
Over the past year I have had the privilege of volunteering on a project to copy catalog books for the library of the Southern Africa Nazarene University (SANU). The project director was Dr. Sharon I. Bull, Dean of Academic Services & Library Director of Northwest Nazarene University, in Nampa, ID. Sharon graciously allowed me to interview her via email, and I will begin this paper with that interview and an outline of the Swaziland cataloging project. I will then review some of the literature concerning theological library needs and projects around the world.
The Swaziland cataloging project
Becky: How did this project come about, and how did you get involved?
Sharon: A couple of projects came together for this project to come into being. I had helped with a theological library in Haiti in 1987 and in 1991 I spent a month at what is now the Faculty of Theology library there in Swaziland. Because of that involvement and people I worked with, I became part of EDUF [Education Development United Foundation, a Nazarene organization involved with education in Africa] and proposed that for my sabbatical from NNU in 2006, I would visit the small Nazarene libraries in Africa, write assessment reports and conduct a workshop for the staff. I became a known entity to the Nazarene educators and sometimes was asked for suggestions.
The second project began in about 2012, when the International Board of Education for the Nazarene denomination began working on a digital library project and the librarians in the USA, Canada and Britain were invited to help launch this digital library. The project manager, Tammy Condon, saw how the librarians worked together and knew we had established a strong, positive group.
In 2014, I think it was, I got a plea for help from the Faculty of Theology library as the system they had been using, Librarians Helper, had crashed and was no longer supported. About the same time, Tammy had also received an inquiry about a library system and we got our heads together to see what we could do.
Becky: You took a group to Africa… what was accomplished on that trip? And what was left to do when you came home?
Sharon: In the spring of 2015, Tammy asked me if I would consider going to Swaziland to get them started with OPALS. By this time all 3 libraries of Southern Africa Nazarene University (SANU) had the infrastructure in place. There were going to be just a couple of librarians, but in the fall Tammy felt we should take a larger team. Tammy dreams big dreams and she wanted this project to be successful and to give the staff in Swaziland a shot in the arm. We then ended up with 6 librarians (5 from the USA and 1 from the UK), a computer person who was actually there to work on another project but was certainly part of our team, Tammy and her 12 year old son, and my sister who had planned to go with me when it was just going to be a couple of people.
Tammy’s wisdom in deciding we needed a larger group became evident very quickly. I was the team coordinator and the other 5 librarians each took on a specialty so to speak. One had great experience with Circulation, another helped with the webpage, another with cataloging etc. As well, because there were 5 libraries involved, each of them teamed up with a library.
SANU has existed as a university only since 2010. Before that there were 3 separate colleges. The College of Nursing and the Teacher Training College are located just a few yards apart in Manzini. They have been in existence in one form or another since the late 1920s/early 1930s. The Bible College is located in Siteki, about an hour away and it dates back even earlier. The three institutions became SANU and at this point have maintained their individual libraries and campuses.
We were there for about 2 and 1/2 weeks and in that time we were able to get all 3 libraries off to a solid start. Together we catalogued almost 1600 items, barcoded 8000 items, set up circulation loan rules etc. Now, 14 months later, there are about 10,000 items in the 3 systems!
In addition to the 3 SANU libraries, we had staff from Nazarene Theological College in Malawi and also NTC in South Africa. All together there were 9 individuals we trained. All but one had some type of library training and experience. All spoke English so that really helped in terms of communication. At least one of the SANU librarians has been helping the librarians at another institution in Kenya as they get started with OPALS.
Because of the distance and travel time to get to the Theology library, we were not able to get as much done there. I also knew that the shelf list cards there were in very good shape and while we couldn’t find all the disks, we could take photos of the shelf list cards and so that is what we did. What remained at the other 2 sites was not overwhelming and they would be able to get it done.
Besides the cataloging from the shelf list cards, the other thing we have done is some question answering but those are few and far between.
Becky: How many libraries are involved in this project? Where are they located? What kinds of schools are they (purpose, students, etc)?
Sharon: The Church of the Nazarene has a very comprehensive system of education around the world. There are many Bible institutes which would offer certificates or diplomas, then colleges and seminaries offering degrees. There are about 30 – 35 institutions outside of North America – in Central America, South America, Asia, Europe, Australia, etc. Some are probably not at all ready for a cloud-based system, but others are. Since the trip to Swaziland, a seminary in the Philippines and a Theological College in England have gone live.
Becky: How many books?
One of the next things I will be working on is a survey for all of these libraries so we can learn more about size, system used, training of staff, infrastructure etc.
The libraries in Swaziland might have about 12000 items total. The largest is Faculty of Theology. The librarians all took advantage of this opportunity to do some weeding.
Becky: How many volunteers worked on the cataloging?
There were a total of 20 individuals who participated in the cataloging after we returned. A few more signed up but then were not able to do any. I am really pleased at the response I got and the commitment the volunteers had for the project.
Becky: Where did the money come from?
There were some funds available through the International Board of Education and then we solicited support as we could. It was so wonderful to see how it all came together.
Becky: What problems have you encountered, and how were they overcome?
Because we made such a quick decision to go with more people and then for Swaziland January was the best time (we had been thinking March) we were barely ready to go! None of us had used OPALS except to look at it and see it demoed. When I look back and realize how smoothly the whole project went, I think the ease of OPALS really was a significant factor. The biggest problem we had was losing Wi-Fi connections from time to time.
Becky: How was the decision made to use OPALS [OPen-source Automated Library System]?
In 2014, I put out a question on the ACL Discussion list for recommendations for a strong, easy to use, not expensive library system. I had several responses. The more I learned about OPALS the better it sounded. I did not want the decision to be made solely by librarians here in the USA. A librarian visited in the summer of 2014 to help get the wireless infrastructure in place, and he sat down with the librarians, showed OPALS to them and got their feedback. They liked what they saw and that helped us feel positive about moving ahead.
Becky: What are some advantages and disadvantages of the OPALS system?
Sharon: OPALS is extremely user friendly and very straight forward. The records are MARC records so could easily be exported if necessary. There are good reports although there could always be more! Support from OPALS is excellent. They have done multiple webinars and respond very promptly.
Becky: What has been the response of the users to the new system?
Sharon: Faculty and students at SANU are excited about the system. The librarian in the UK is delighted with how OPALS works. SANU showed the system to the University of Swaziland librarians and they were very impressed.
Becky: What advice would you give to someone wanting to tackle a similar project? What do you wish you had known before you started?
Sharon: You can never be too organized! Because of the short time we were there, it was really great to have 6 librarians. I have said that I really didn’t do much and don’t know the system nearly as well as the others as they were working in it and I was busy planning for the next day! We managed to stay about a day ahead of what we wanted to be doing. Swaziland was a great place to start because the staff were trained so we didn’t have to start from scratch. There may be libraries in the future where we will have to spend a week just teaching basic library things. It was also great because it is English speaking and the collections are almost entirely in English. That will not be the same in other locations.
Becky: How can volunteers help at this point?
There is nothing more to do with the Swaziland project now. I am so thankful for everyone of the volunteers! We are contemplating where we will go next so there may be more volunteer work in the future.
Becky: Is there anything specific you would like to say to theological librarians?
Sharon: Theological librarians are often in small settings and often ‘solo librarians’. Find ways to connect with the larger community if you can. Don’t think because your library is small that you can’t automate. OPALS is an extremely reasonably priced system. (Bull, 2017)
When Sharon’s team went to Swaziland in January of 2016, 30 of the 52 higher education systems in the Church of the Nazarene had little or no computerized system for their libraries (Stocker, 2015). The OPALS system that was implemented allows for additional global libraries for the Church of the Nazarene to join whenever the infrastructure can be put in place. Since that time Mozambique, Portugal, the Philippines, Kenya, Manilla, the Asia Pacific Nazarene Theological Seminary (with students from PNG, Samoa, Australia, Philippines, Korea, Mongolia and Indonesia) and others have all begun the process of being linked to the network, with the ability to use the OPALS system and share cataloging resources.
In February 2016 Sharon and her team started testing the instructions they had prepared for volunteer catalogers. They developed a website for signing up, uploaded the files of catalog cards and instructions, and on March 21, 2016, Sharon Bull sent out a call for volunteers on the Association of Christian Librarians (ACL) listserv to help with the entry of data into the Faculty of Theology Library system. I saw that message and responded. I am not Nazarene, but as a Christian library student interested in cataloging it was a great opportunity to learn and do something of value. One year and 20 volunteers later, that work was finished. Almost 6000 items have been entered into the SANU system. You can view the new library website at http://sanu.gnec.kari.opalsinfo.net/bin/home
The librarians in Africa have been very appreciative of the resources they have been given access to. Below is a response from the NTCCA Librarian (Bull, n.d.-a)
To: Dr T. Condon
From: Moses Zigwewa.
Date: 31/06/2016.
RE-WORD OF APPRECIATION
I am very much grateful to God for the training that have received in OPALS and very appreciative to the Visiting Team for the time and energy spent in empowering us to be effective Library stewards, they have done an excellent job and am really thankful to each of them.
Before this training I had no idea as to how a digital library works. The Swaziland training has equipped me with advanced and greater skills in bar-coding, cataloguing, circulation and getting into relevant websites and creating web links for students to access information easily. Honestly this is indeed a gigantic step in a right direction. As a librarian at NTCCA I have really been empowered, am no longer the same and NTCCA library will no longer be the same.
I believe that when the system is fully implemented at NTCCA it will expand the radius of education and research as it is going to afford us access to E-Resources thereby simplifying teaching activities at NTCCA and Nazarene Theological College of Central Africa School of Extension (NTCCASE).
Yours Faithfully,
Moses.
And in a Facebook post on August 12, 2016, Sharon shared:
Today I’m sharing excerpts from a message I received from Lungile Virtue Duze at SANU. “Things are fine here at SANU and I am so happy for Noreen. We organized a mini workshop for faculty and staff where we were orienting them on OPALS. You will be surprised that it turned out to be a big thing… a launch for the system. We roped in some of the publishers such Emerald who did not only talk about their electronic databases but also motivated staff on the importance of academic research. After the presentations, everyone was excited about the system and inspired to read and publish.
I am saying this event turned out to be a big one as the VC’s representative made a key note address overlaying the Story of OPALS (how the system came about). The event was on a Wednesday 13 July, but was aired on national radio and TV up to Sunday 17 July. I had invited some of our colleagues from the other universities and they were aghast and congratulated SANU for having such an on point system.
Literature Review
My own small part in this cataloging project has inspired me to look for other ways to help theological librarians around the world, and to investigate other needs and what projects might be possible. My research led me to several articles of interest.
Sandy Ayer of Ambrose Seminary made a presentation to the World Christianity Interest Group of the ATLA in 2014 (Ayer & McMahon, 2014). There he discussed the needs of francophone African theological education. He reported that there is a shortage of French-language theological materials, in both print and e-book formats. Once more the Nazarenes have filled a need by digitizing about 90 French-language theological books from the public domain and their own denomination, but they do not seek out non-Nazarene publishers. There are also the problems of poor internet service, numerous difficulties in shipping available resources to this area, and the ever present prohibitive factor of insufficient monetary resources.
One project Ayer mentioned that could be pursued is the use of seminary curricula in a form that can be loaded into and read on a cell phone, such as course packages that have been developed in Spanish. Most Africans own cell phones, and cell service is reliable in the larger centers. Several years ago I heard a missionary from the ministry OneHundredFold, and it occurs to me that they might be able to help with this kind of need. They make Biblical teaching tools available for cell phone use (“OneHundredFold —,” n.d.).
Ayers continued his presentation with an account of a trip to the Philippines, where he conducted a library seminar on the future of libraries. He moderated a discussion held by the 26 participants in which a plan for collaboration between local libraries was a huge success. A presentation on free internet resources was also very valuable to the participants.
Another presentation at that same ATLA session was made by Melody McMahon. She had toured Catholic libraries in the Philippines, Vietnam, and China. She listed the following six challenges that most of those libraries are facing:
She reflects that, “The single most important thing that could benefit the libraries I visited is to collaborate through networking and consortia.” This appears to be a common thread running throughout the literature.
Alvaro Perez has a list similar to McMahon’s, from a Latino environment:
He also closes with a call for collaboration, not only among Latino libraries, but also for international collaboration (Pérez, 2011).
Concerning collaboration in a very different context, Penelope Hall writes about The International Council of Theological Library Associations, with suggestions for how ATLA can collaborate with that European library association, including a complete, systematically ordered, multilingual thesaurus of vocabularies, and the technical system to make it usable, in order to index theological resources across many languages (Hall, 1997).
Conclusion
This project has been very rewarding not just for SANU, but for me personally. From my interactions with Sharon I surmise that she would say the same thing about her own part in the project. International collaboration benefits all parties involved; those who are assisting and teaching are learning, growing, and being blessed just as much as those who are being assisted and trained. Collaboration, the sharing of resources and knowledge both at home and abroad, is a key ingredient. We can do this through our organizations such as ATLA and ACL, through our schools, and through our denominations.
The story behind the Swaziland project, and the research into other stories, has inspired me to seek out ways to help librarians and ministries around the world. Not long ago I was visiting with a friend who is a missionary in South Africa with East Mountain, where she is involved with discipleship and training. They have a small library there (probably about the size of a good pastor’s library), and she mentioned in passing that maybe I could come organize their books. Ideas of how to make that passing-thought dream a let’s-do-this reality have dominated my own thoughts ever since. I look forward to seeing how God uses us, and our profession, in the future!
References
Ayer, H. D. S. (Harry D. S., & McMahon, M. L. (2014). World Christianity interest group: connecting and collaborating with theological libraries overseas. American Theological Library Association Summary of Proceedings, 68, 219–227.
Bull, S. (2017, April 17). Cataloging Project for Swaziland [E-mail]. Retrieved from https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#inbox/159aa5e2b30f6e66
Bull, S. (n.d.-a). EDUF Newsletter – April 2016. Retrieved April 15, 2017, from http://us9.campaign-archive2.com/?u=70c693f3bd15cc5b5f4409078&id=5c94cd3f11&e=7c193a50fa
Bull, S. (n.d.-b). Subject Guides: OPALS Item Entry: Welcome and Information. Retrieved April 15, 2017, from http://libguides.nnu.edu/c.php?g=528068&p=3610817
Hall, P. R. (1997). The International Council of Theological Library Associations: Past Foundation, Present Form and Plans for the Future. American Theological Library Association Summary of Proceedings, 51, 243–251.
Mission: Nazarene Libraries. (n.d.). Retrieved April 15, 2017, from https://www.facebook.com/groups/GNEClibraries/
OneHundredFold —. (n.d.). Retrieved April 23, 2017, from https://100fold.it/
Pérez, A. (2011). International collaboration in theological librarianship: a Latin American approach. American Theological Library Association Summary of Proceedings, 65, 182–191.
Stocker, H. (2015, November 19). The Librarian at NTC needs your help! Retrieved April 15, 2017, from https://nazarene.ac.uk/ntc-librarian-to-sanu/
This is a screencast video I made for metadata class!
And here is the handout:
Clark Family Collection, https://digital.library.unt.edu/explore/collections/CFPC/
UNT Libraries’ Digital Collections
Metadata Schema
UNTL – University of North Texas Libraries
Input Guidelines for Descriptive Metadata – http://www.library.unt.edu/digital-projects-unit/input-guidelines-descriptive-metadata
Indexers
Digitization of Black and White Photographs – Tiff, 600ppi, Grayscale 8-bit
Downloads of images (and their citations) are available in several different sizes and resolutions directly from the website.
The OAI-PMH repository makes available for each item record:
UNT designed their own software system, utilizing:
Recommended reading:
Tarver, H., Zavalina, O., & Phillips, M. E. (2016, May). A Case Study of Metadata Creation in the University of North Texas Libraries’ Digital Collections [Paper]. Retrieved April 8, 2017, from https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc849978/m2/
For more info see Clark Family Collection and Article Summary #4 – UNT Digital Collections
I did a PowerPoint presentation on this for class last week. For another class I needed to record narration onto a PowerPoint, and while I was waiting for the slides from my group I decided to practice on this presentation. I am so excited to have figured out how to do it, and decided to post it here. I also will have to make a very short video that will go along with these slides, if I can figure out the tech I will post it as well.
Givens Clark Repository PowerPoint presentation
OCLC Works Toward Linked Data Environment (article – 2015)
Libraries are definitely slow to change, maybe it’s because we are preserving history and so we become history. Whatever the reason, the world of computers and internet and search engines has left Marc behind. This should totally be a short story… Marc working alone among a stack of books in an ancient library…. But I digress.
Library of Congress’ project to remedy this is BIBFRAME, and OCLC’s is schema.org. Schema.org helps facilitate discoverability using linked data. My understanding is that the idea is to use a structured data markup vocabulary to embed microdata tags that can be recognized by search engines into web pages. I even vaguely understand what I just wrote. The key is interoperability – using the same language (or mapping languages) in all web pages, so the search engine can figure out what the web page is about.
To make our libraries linkable is a trick, because our MARC records contain a lot more specialized information. BIBFRAME is trying to create a new model that contains the data of MARC records using linked data techniques. OCLC through schema.org is working to expand the vocabularies to accommodate library data. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.
In the meantime, I will sit in my old-fashioned library with my stacks of books, cataloging with authority records and RDA in MARC. And maybe writing that short story.
When Archivists and Digital Asset Managers Collide: Tensions and Ways Forward (article – 2016)
This was an interesting study. Anthony Cocciolo conducted his research as a participant observer while consulting in a major art museum, where he was able to observe the relationship between archivists and digital asset managers.
On the surface these two jobs appear to cover much of the same ground. But reality is they serve different but complementary functions and interests. The subjects of the author’s study were often at odds with each other, but it seems to me that they were both needed for different reasons in their organization.
The archivist manages artifacts that are no longer in use. The digital asset manager manages digital objects that still have some monetary value and use. The problems result from the confusion over how these purposes are different.
Most people (me included, until I took an archives class last summer) seem to think that if something is digitized it is preserved. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Dr. Riter used the example of finding a 75 year old box of photographs in a hot dusty attic. They are still in good shape. But finding a 75 year old computer in your hot dusty attic… who can access the files in it?
The DAM makes it easy to store, find, and use digital files in an organization. But it is not archiving those files. Unless there is a system in place to regularly check for file degradation and update files to new file formats, and save them in multiple locations, those files are not preserved. The average person does not think about those kinds of things. That is what archivists are for. The DAM is there to manage an asset that still has value.
And another cataloging assignment
Gross, T. What have we got to lose? College & Research Libraries 66(3):212-230 (May 2005)
This was an article describing research on library catalog search results. This study asked, “What proportion of records retrieved by a keyword search has a keyword only in a subject heading field and thus would not be retrieved if there were no subject headings?”
The research behind this article supports what I have been thinking all along, subject headings are important. One third of the retrievals from searches were found only in the subject headings, so if subject headings had been left out, those resources would not have been located. In some cases 100% of the hits would have been left off without subject headings. The authors left out the foreign language searches because as a group they were outliers, but the very fact that those would have skewed the results so dramatically in favor of subject headings adds to the necessity of including subject headings.
This research did not include relevance of results, but other research has shown that keyword searching produces more un-relevant hits than subject heading searching.
Clearly subject headings need to continue to be used in cataloging to improve findability of our resources. While keyword searching is here to stay, the subject headings need to be part of the keyword search. Additionally, education of the user remains important. It seems that most of the problems associated with research revolve around users not understanding how to search the system.
Gross, T. What have we got to lose? College & Research Libraries 66(3):212-230 (May 2005)
Another cataloging assignment
My incredibly limited understanding of Resource Description and Access (RDA), is that it is a new set of rules for cataloging any medium using the Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records (FRBR) model. RDA is built on the foundation of Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules 2 (AACR2), with resource description and access designed for the digital world. RDA is focused on more of a metadata structure, with relationships that provide more access points to records, so that it works more like web searching than like catalog searching. It seems to me that it is trying to mesh descriptions of many kinds of objects into one search function. It has more fields with more attributes that give more descriptive information, which is what gives it more access points. This also allows museums and archives to use it, giving access to more information from a single search (A. S. Chandel & Prasad, 2013).
Clearly AACR2 did its job of cataloging our libraries well. It has been the standard for many years, and was accepted internationally. It has as its foundation the Paris Principles from 1960. As the years passed it was revised to handle new situations and new materials, but increasingly catalogers found the AACR2 rules too specific and not easily adaptable to the new formats (Adamich, 2008).
AACR2 has very specific rules, formats, punctuation, and abbreviations. RDA is vague. It has more options, with the idea of making it more useful to the user by being able to catalog more kinds of objects into the same system. It seems to be trying to imitate the feel of a Google search. At its core the object of cataloging is to describe objects so that they can be found. Both RDA and AACR2 would say that is their goal.
Michael Gorman’s harangue against RDA has some valid points. He was advocating further revisions of AACR2 rather than an entire rework of the system; in fact he claims to have written up revisions that would accomplish everything that RDA accomplished, but at a fraction of the cost spent on implementing the new system of RDA (Gorman, 2007) (Gorman, 2016).
The Library of Congress, being one of the main backers of RDA, is pleased with the outcomes they have seen in its implementation, stating that:
The primary benefit to the Library of Congress from its implementation of RDA is that the new cataloging standard provides more flexibility in cataloging decisions; makes cataloging data easier to share internationally; permits clearer linking among related works, and is more suited to describing digital and nonprint library resources. Library of Congress management believes that the straightforward RDA instructions are one reason the Library has achieved its production goals in an era of constrained staffing and budgets (Morris & Wiggins, 2016, p. 28).
Finally, by premising the joint implementation of RDA on the demonstration of credible progress toward a new bibliographic framework, the Library of Congress and its implementation partners have embraced the linked-data model for future encoding and interchange of bibliographic data, which promises to make library data much more visible and useful on the Internet (Morris & Wiggins, 2016, p. 29).
In some ways the debate over RDA vs. AACR2 is a moot point, since RDA is now being used and will become the standard. The more I read the more I understand the need behind RDA, we do need a cataloging system that allows for the cataloging of many kinds of materials, which will yield web style search results. Linked data, metadata, and descriptions are all needed for digital objects, archival objects, and our lovely old books so they can be found by users. Could AACR2 have been updated again to accomplish this? I do not have the experience to form an opinion on that. I do know that new, shiny, and expensive seems to be current society’s preference to everything. But with shiny new technology, it is possible that a shiny new system is required.
Bibliography
Adamich, T. (2008). RDA (Resource Description and Access): The New Way to Say, “AACR2.” Knowledge Quest, 36(3), 64–69.
Chandel, A. S., & Prasad, R. V. (2013). Journey of Catalogue from Panizzi’s Principles to Resource Description and Access. DESIDOC Journal of Library & Information Technology, 33(4), 314–322.
Gorman, M. (2007). RDA: Imminent Debacle. American Libraries, 38(11), 64–65.
Gorman, M. (2016). RDA: The Emperor’s New Code. A brief Essay. Italian Journal of Library & Information Science, 7(2), 99–107. https://doi.org/10.4403/jlis.it-11565
Morris, S. R., & Wiggins, B. (2016). Implementing RDA at the Library of Congress. Italian Journal of Library & Information Science, 7(2), 199–228. https://doi.org/10.4403/jlis.it-11824
This was a cataloging assignment early in the semester.
Gorman, M. (2007). RDA: Imminent Debacle. American Libraries, 38(11), 64–65.
Michael Gorman’s article was pretty strong in its attack of RDA. I have to wonder how much of it is out of a desire to not change. As the principle author of AACR2 he has a vested interest in that, and his language is such that it would be easy to dismiss this article as jealous ravings.
Trying to look past the emotional language, I see his complaints as follows:
His obvious flaws include:
Many of Gorman’s complaints are possibly due to the fact that he was responding to an early draft of RDA. A lot of things, like confusion, format, and editorial errors get worked out as a written work goes through editing. I wish he had stuck to the actual content of RDA, then it would have been easier to make a judgement about it. This article was published in 2007, and I do not know what has changed or what RDA actually became when it was finished.
I am currently in a Metadata class, and it seems to me that AACR2 is clunky for digital items. I have spent a good bit of time looking in the catalog at work matching up vinyl records, and that is horribly clunky. I know that the goal of both is for objects to be found.
Having said all of that, I believe that as a rule the powers that be do tend to change for the sake of change, and often the new is much more complicated than the old without being appreciably better. Gorman raises many valid questions. But as technology and resources change, cataloging will have to change too.
In the end, reading this article gives me questions to ask of RDA. Does it work better than AACR2? Does it effectively catalog books (and other things) so they can be found? We are still using subject headings, where does Gorman’s concern about losing those come in? How does RDA fit internationally, has it been adopted internationally? And how have libraries changed over from AACR2 to RDA? What is the cost of switching over?
Digital image description: a review of best practices in cultural institutions (article – 2012)
With a text-based approach, image description can either be achieved with controlled vocabularies or with terms directly extracted from the natural language.
Image description comprises more than the fields in which a controlled vocabulary may be implemented. Used mainly to identify a primary subject and the broader category of an item, controlled vocabularies and taxonomies constitute a small but critical percentage of the metadata associated with any item being classified
The association with libraries, museums and governmental organizations such as NASA requires that all descriptive content for these resources be accessible to an even larger audience, which once again depends upon the stable foundation provided by professional indexing practice.
Chart on pg 12
image retrieval is more efficient when the indexing approach combines the controlled and the uncontrolled vocabularies,
On one hand, the combined use of controlled and uncontrolled vocabularies can be advantageous to improving the retrieval efficiency, as reported by Rao Muddamalle (1998), who stressed that the combination of both approaches improved by 5 percent the retrieval results from each approach examined separately, and Matusiak (2006), who stated that the two approaches should not be considered as alternatives but as complementary resources.
On the other hand, this double indexing, if adopted, also requires an increase in the indexing time.
If a picture is worth a thousand words, then… (article – 1999)
Of-ness “Look at the image, choose descriptors that reflect the objects, people and events.
About-ness “aboutness questions cannot be answered by ofness indexing because there is no overlap of question and answer. A level of interpretation must be incorporated. Reflects the relationships between the elements.
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