HOMEPAGE
Being Virtual
By Marydee Ojala • Editor |
Language is a funny thing. When I first
learned about online searching, it was taught as commanding
the system to find what we needed to find. Not
wanted, needed. Searchers were in charge, controlling
the process. The onus of a successful research result
was on us. It was serious business and we were properly
intimidated. We worried about search strategy construction,
syntax, order of operators, and index terminology.
We performed searches as conscientiously as doctors
performed surgery.
The language has changed. I now hear about destination
sites. Should I take my camera? Am I answering questions
or going on vacation? Does Chemical Abstracts qualify
as a destination? How about LexisNexis? Search is described
as an experience. Should I worry about proper attire
when involved in this experience? And why does it sound
so passive? It's not the Jimi Hendrix Experience, is
it? Human indexing has devolved into automated taxonomy
building. Is that why event codes in PROMT are a vanishing
species? Could people, albeit more expensive, ever
surpass computers' perceptions of context?
Nicholas Negroponte wrote a book titled Being
Digital in 1995, with theories and conclusions
drawn from his work at MIT's Media Labs. ONLINE's
columnist Walt Crawford countered in 1999 with Being
Analog, his book about the state of libraries
in a digital world. No one has yet written a book
called Being Virtual, or at least that's what
the Library of Congress' catalog told me, but that
seems to be the way forward for some observers.
Digital libraries, 24/7 reference, Web conferencing,
and e-mail have removed from our professional lives
the necessity to ever meet anyone face to face. I have
to wonder if this is a good thing. I recognize that
the virtual world has its attractions, particularly
when it comes to "always on" reference services and
virtual training. Where I question total virtuality
is the conference world.
Personal interactions during conferences are the
unorchestrated, unscripted, and unplanned encounters
that enhance the overall conference experience. No
matter how carefully a virtual conference is staged,
whether it uses conferencing software or even streaming
video, attendees are unlikely to catch the raised eyebrow
or shoulder shrug of a fellow attendee. The focus of
virtual conferences is on the speakers. This is only
part of conference learning, however. Hallway conversations,
reactions of listeners, and impromptu meetings happen
in the physical world; they are almost impossible to
create virtually. Despite my predilection towards technology
and keeping in touch via my computer, I don't think
I'd like to live a totally virtual life. Particularly
when it comes to conferences, you're likely to see
me live and in person at events such as Web Search
University and Internet Librarian. I hope to see you
live and in person at these destinations as well.
 Marydee
Ojala [marydee@xmission.com] is
the editor of ONLINE. Comments? E-mail letters
to the editor to marydee@xmission.com. |
