LM_NET: Library Media Networking
I still think we should toss out the old card catalog and have a
bonfire. In fact, we _have_ taken out our card catalog and the old cards
make great scratch paper. Nicholson Baker's article made me react in a
very different way. It seems obvious he doesn't know what life is like
in a lively school library. There are many kinds of librarys with many
different needs, and perhaps a rare book library might need the history
of all those generations of catalogers scrawling their notes on the
cards. But in my library, the main point is--can the students find the
materials quickly and easily? And are they being trained in the
technology they will need to navigate the College Libraries in their
future? I see no earthly reason why I would need to enshrine the
original purchase price of a novel acquired in 1969, or whether it was on
the shelf in 1974. I love our computer catalog; I'm ecstatic I will (god
willing) never file another card again; and, best of all, the students
are experts on finding what they want FAST.
Shannon Acedo
Marlborough School
Los Angeles, CA
On Tue, 6 Dec 1994, Cathy Cheely wrote:
> Before you dump your card catalog or your shelf list, I think
> you (and everyone else thinking of doing the same) should read
> an article that appeared in The New Yorker, April 4, 1994
> entitled "The trashing of America's great libraries". Until I
> read that, I felt that we should just toss out the old card
> catalog and shelf list and have a bonfire. After I read it, I
> felt COMPLETELY different. The writer, Nicholson Baker,
> explores some areas that I had never once contemplated. If at
> all possible, read it.
>
> By the way,I converted to an automated catalog in the spring of
> 90 and have been and still am a strong advocate of technology.
> --
> Catherine Cheely - ccheely@leo.vsla.edu
> Library Media Specialist,Brunswick Senior High,Lawrenceville, Va.23868
> 804 848-6287 (fax) 804 848-2796
>
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