Is RSS Like a Librarian?
I’m participating in RSS Winterfest today, an RSS conference that’s a conference call and a Webcast. I’m in a room with Dave Winer (who was one of the speakers), Jim Moore, and Rick Heller as we’re “at” this conference. A few minutes ago, someone said that “RSS is a smart librarian.” Dave, Jim, and I were surprised at the remark and I didn’t like the idea of RSS being another form of what I do. Dave and Jim defended the profession of librarianship and vocalized that the analogy wasn’t appropriate. Dave said it was more like a “dumb programmer.”
That being finished, I began wondering about the person’s concept of a librarian. How is RSS like a librarian? Is it because librarians share content with their clients? Is it because information professionals give clients what they need before they know they need it? It seems like a different image from the “keeper/guardian of a collection” that permeates many people’s minds.
January 22nd, 2004 at 7:15 pm
Maybe the person alluded to a libarian who knows your tastes? Set up a good feed and every time you visit you’ll have a few articles you’ll probably enjoy.