As I've pointed out in the past - I read a lot of blogs. I comment very infrequently ( I know I should do more ) and seldom trackback unless the urge to comment is so overwhelming that self-restraint eludes me and a flash of inspiration compels me to say something. Perhaps it was the asparagus last night? I don't know.
Regardless, I came across David's post, Not a Destination, today and I had faith in the possibility ( no matter how remote ) that I could somehow expand and add value to his concept. In his post he talks about how the "web as a platform" concept applies to libraries.
Before web 2.0, people came to the library to do stuff at the library - they came in to check out books, read magazines, do research, etc. Even with computer use and the "old web," they still came to the library and probably thought they were doing stuff at the library. The library was a destination - a place to visit.But with the advent of web 2.0 and especially with the concept of web as platform, this has changed. Now, people come to the library to access the web... and then go somewhere else.David says that they come to the library to use the computers to play Runescape, access their Facebook accounts or watch YouTube. But I have to ask myself if this is really the defining concept of the "web as a platform" that libraries really need to address? Before I go any further I should point out that I know David, I read his blog and I think he has a lot of great things to say. This isn't a rant - it's more of an exploration into areas that I think libraries need to address in order to win back people that are migrating to social sites or using google to find whatever it happens to be on any given day.
So what is it?
The "web as a platform" concept, in my opinion, is something larger than merely providing access to the Internet as a whole. It's kind of funny that the concept isn't addressed as "Internet as a platform" when in reality that's what it is. But conceptually it does make sense.
Perhaps it's the similarity to Al Gore's "Information Superhighway" that implies the grand expressway to mountains of voluminous information as opposed to the perception of World Wide Web's interconnectedness that leads us to use the terminology we do. Then again, there's really no need to quibble over terminology.
The true benefit of the "web as a platform" is in the data and the degree to which the holders of that data are willing to share. If you haven't been living under a rock then you know that there is a virtual cornucopia of data holders that have decided to allow access to their data. One of the blogs I read is Programmable Web. I've been reading it for quite some time and have seen the numbers of providers' APIs ( methods with which you can access data ) consistently increase.
Put into non-technical terms, APIs from various providers allow a programmer to access certain parts of a system ( a website for example ) and perform various actions on the data that the system possesses. A fine example of this is a program that fetches the last 50 photographs uploaded to Flickr. Flickr defines the manner in which a programmer must query the system and exposes that method. In other words, there may be things you would like to be able to do but it may not be possible unless the provider makes it possible. It should be noted that some providers limit who may use their API and in many cases there are actions that require the use of an account. Some examples of the "web as a platform" are what have been referred to as mash-ups. Simply put, mash-ups are a way of gathering various, disparate datasets and mashing them together in a way that the data becomes usable to someone, somehow. For example, someone decided to take some crime data, google maps and a video feed to produce America's Deadliest Cities on Google Maps. Another mash-up, OpenMass, uses APIs from Follow the Money, Google Search and Yahoo search to follow the Massachusetts Legislature. Another example of the "web as a platform" is the multitude of varying types of "badges" that can be found littering blogs everywhere these days. Flickr provides one, MyBlogLog has one and a undefined number of other sources has one that they would be more than happy to provide. It functions on the same principle. A program designed to seek out and gather some data from some other place on the Internet does so and brings it back to your place on the Internet.
And that matters to libraries why?
Libraries are in a very special position to leverage the "web as a platform" because they have intimate knowledge about a number of disciplines, are experts at cataloging and organizing information and have access to even better portals of trustworthy data. While Google's desire is to organize and deliver the world's information, that doesn't necessarily mean any given search result is valid and trustworthy. As my own children utilize Google for virtually every search they do for school projects, I seldom see them question the source or click beyond the first ten results. Librarians, either by virtue of their nature or education, are taught to question informational resources. What if the library could provide search results that were free of bias, were more valid in the context of the search or included information that would normally be excluded but somehow related?
I know that's kind of vague, but I'll admit I'm kind of trolling for a bit of feedback to better flesh this out. However, let me use an example . . . John Doe has a pretty simple question. He's come to the library to simply find a book ( or any good information ) about organic gardening. Of course, if John uses the OPAC he's going to be pointed in the direction of whatever the library happens to have in the catalog. Falling back on our mash-up examples, what's keeping a library from aggregating any number of other sources to provide meaningful, trustworthy and valid information for John? The library could be utilizing the "web as a platform" to point John to other resources in addition to the library's holdings:
In closing . . . Although providing access to the Internet is critical, the "web as a platform" is a much bigger concept that libraries could use to provide meaningful information to their patrons. There is information, quite literally, at their fingertips that could be used to enhance and expand upon that which resides within the confines of the library walls. Libraries are in a unique position that could allow them to apply their knowledge to searches beyond their own holdings. The extent that the "web as a platform" is utilized by libraries is limited only to their imagination and the breadth of the Internet.
The "web as a platform" concept, in my opinion, is something larger than merely providing access to the Internet as a whole. It's kind of funny that the concept isn't addressed as "Internet as a platform" when in reality that's what it is. But conceptually it does make sense.
Perhaps it's the similarity to Al Gore's "Information Superhighway" that implies the grand expressway to mountains of voluminous information as opposed to the perception of World Wide Web's interconnectedness that leads us to use the terminology we do. Then again, there's really no need to quibble over terminology.
The true benefit of the "web as a platform" is in the data and the degree to which the holders of that data are willing to share. If you haven't been living under a rock then you know that there is a virtual cornucopia of data holders that have decided to allow access to their data. One of the blogs I read is Programmable Web. I've been reading it for quite some time and have seen the numbers of providers' APIs ( methods with which you can access data ) consistently increase.
Put into non-technical terms, APIs from various providers allow a programmer to access certain parts of a system ( a website for example ) and perform various actions on the data that the system possesses. A fine example of this is a program that fetches the last 50 photographs uploaded to Flickr. Flickr defines the manner in which a programmer must query the system and exposes that method. In other words, there may be things you would like to be able to do but it may not be possible unless the provider makes it possible. It should be noted that some providers limit who may use their API and in many cases there are actions that require the use of an account. Some examples of the "web as a platform" are what have been referred to as mash-ups. Simply put, mash-ups are a way of gathering various, disparate datasets and mashing them together in a way that the data becomes usable to someone, somehow. For example, someone decided to take some crime data, google maps and a video feed to produce America's Deadliest Cities on Google Maps. Another mash-up, OpenMass, uses APIs from Follow the Money, Google Search and Yahoo search to follow the Massachusetts Legislature. Another example of the "web as a platform" is the multitude of varying types of "badges" that can be found littering blogs everywhere these days. Flickr provides one, MyBlogLog has one and a undefined number of other sources has one that they would be more than happy to provide. It functions on the same principle. A program designed to seek out and gather some data from some other place on the Internet does so and brings it back to your place on the Internet.
And that matters to libraries why?
Libraries are in a very special position to leverage the "web as a platform" because they have intimate knowledge about a number of disciplines, are experts at cataloging and organizing information and have access to even better portals of trustworthy data. While Google's desire is to organize and deliver the world's information, that doesn't necessarily mean any given search result is valid and trustworthy. As my own children utilize Google for virtually every search they do for school projects, I seldom see them question the source or click beyond the first ten results. Librarians, either by virtue of their nature or education, are taught to question informational resources. What if the library could provide search results that were free of bias, were more valid in the context of the search or included information that would normally be excluded but somehow related?
I know that's kind of vague, but I'll admit I'm kind of trolling for a bit of feedback to better flesh this out. However, let me use an example . . . John Doe has a pretty simple question. He's come to the library to simply find a book ( or any good information ) about organic gardening. Of course, if John uses the OPAC he's going to be pointed in the direction of whatever the library happens to have in the catalog. Falling back on our mash-up examples, what's keeping a library from aggregating any number of other sources to provide meaningful, trustworthy and valid information for John? The library could be utilizing the "web as a platform" to point John to other resources in addition to the library's holdings:
- Mapping - Online maps to point out organic gardeners or organic gardening stores.
- Organizations and Meetups - Local or otherwise, people who are into the organic gardening thing.
- Books - Books they could buy if they wanted that option.
- Video - Online video about how to garden organically.
- Blogs - Blogs about organic gardening.
- Podcasts - Podcasts related to organic gardening.
- Forums - Forums related to organic gardening.
- Photos - Photos somehow related to organic gardening.
- News - Local, focused news about organic gardening.
- Plus even more - the possibilities are only limited to the number of potential data sources.
In closing . . . Although providing access to the Internet is critical, the "web as a platform" is a much bigger concept that libraries could use to provide meaningful information to their patrons. There is information, quite literally, at their fingertips that could be used to enhance and expand upon that which resides within the confines of the library walls. Libraries are in a unique position that could allow them to apply their knowledge to searches beyond their own holdings. The extent that the "web as a platform" is utilized by libraries is limited only to their imagination and the breadth of the Internet.
No, you're right on - I was just trying to find a metaphor really, and was struck by our current customers and PC usage.
But... your thoughts are great. How would those web as platform ideas merge into, say, a redesign at tscpl? That'd be pretty cool.
Keep thinking - and share those good thoughts!