[11927] in Public-Access_Computer_Systems_Forum
Re: All is not golden...
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Christopher Stewart)
Thu Jan 15 20:12:39 1998
Date: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 17:23:31 -0600
From: Christopher Stewart <stewart@charlie.cns.iit.edu>
To: PACS-L@LISTSERV.UH.EDU
Reply-To: stewart@charlie.cns.iit.edu
----------------------------Original message----------------------------
Joyce Latham wrote:
> ----------------------------Original message----------------------------
> If I had a CNE I probably would not make more money. And certification
> does not guarantee that an employee will really know what they are doing.
> It helps with some concepts, but it's the doing that makes the difference
> -- and discussing it with other doers.
>
It also depends on the training, which can be very "doing" focused. My
training and exam preparation played a large part in improving my systems
administration skills, and continue to do so as I periodically update my
certifications.
> I, for one, believe librarians have very siginificant skill sets as
> librarians. They need to remember the boring stuff they didn't like --
> cataloging, indexing, classification -- those sorts of skills. They will
> becomes even more important over time. We are in an interim phase just
> before the techno-strata is defined, and that makes it difficult. As
> Micorsoft trains HS graduates to be net work techies, that strata will
> become even more defined.
I do not think librarians can afford to be so smug. Technology has had a huge
impact on reducing the
professional manpower required to implement the skills you mention above,
which are, I agree,
immeasurably important. As librarians, we value these skills, but we exist in
a vacuum of sorts in
relation to the rest of the culture, who greatly under value and misunderstand
the core work of
librarianship. Librarians and their associations have had generations to get
the word out and to educate the culture as to the value of librarianship, but
with little success (more the fault, I dare say, of the librarians than the
culture). Librarians must substantially augment their existing skills with
technical ones if librarians are to remain in charge of the profession and the
technology that, along with the information, helps fuel it. I don't think
the techno-strata will be very forgiving.
> It is ridiculous to me what library boards expect to pay for technical
> support librarians; it is often ridiculous what they expect to pay for
> librarians, period. I know. I cut my teeth on small public libraries.
> But it gave me an opportunity to learn alot of stuff I wouldn't have in a
> larger installation, where the expectation was that the technical people
> would take care of it.
Definitely. The choice to stay in the library as trained systems person is
one of the heart, not the pocketbook.
> Librarians should familiarize themselves with PCs, yes; but more
> importantly they should understand the technology. It's the concepts, the
> vision thing, how technology can be appropriately used within an
> organization, that is the real issue. And that can, and should, be taught
> in library school. It is a part of an MLS.
>
> Hire a web head and tell them what to do.
Web heads aren't cheap, and they don't understand electronic libraries unless
they have experience in
them. By experience I mean evaluating and selecting electronic resources,
database authentication,
subject guides, etc. It works best for everyone if your "web head" is thinking
critically as he or she
goes along -- like a librarian. Why not grow your own staff?
I think it is counter-productive to take technical skills lightly -- or, more
to the point, to see intermediate and advanced technical skills as so
non-librarian in nature. I agree that the thing of foremost importance is to
be able to understand how technology fits into the role of the organization,
but I would also say that delivering information technology is in itself part
of the role of the organization.
I have an MLS, as well as several technical certifications, including a CNE.
My position required a
masters in computer science and/or and MLS, with the preference being on the
MLS. To be sure,
librarianship fundamentals are important, but so is making sure the library
has the in-house technical
expertise necessary to maintain control over its technological future,
something competing units and
non-librarians are eager to take away. By technological future I mean the
ability and training to
administer and engineer networks and digital services without having to keep
looking elsewhere for help. Librarians should be cautious not to alienate
themselves from skills which are highly valued by others in the information
professions -- except, it often seems, by librarians. Like it or not, we
all need to be "technical people."
Regards,
--
Christopher Stewart
Assistant Director for Network Services
Paul V. Galvin Library
Illinois Institute of Technology
