Wednesday, October 13, 2004

More on google and librarians why you can't find it on Google, a few ideas. Andrea looks at Cantfindongoogle.com a list of failed searches. When people ask me, as they often do "how do librarians stay relevant in the age of Google" I tell them that Google is a very powerful tool that very few people know how to use well. I've been reading Tara's Web Search Garage lately and even I'm learning more about how to massage information out of Google. Sometimes it's as simple as explaining to the patron that if you're looking for LTD Consortium, it's going to be pretty important to use both words. Or maybe telling the patron who is trying to find the Boston Museum of Fine Arts that the key word to include in her search is "Boston." This is second knowledge to me, and many of us, but it's not to my patrons. Google is so fast and so useful that I've taken to remembering some web pages just by the search terms that I can use to find them, since I can never remember their URLs. I'm also pretty good at ballparking whether some information that I need either can or can NOT be found in Google before I waste a lot of time looking. That's powerful stuff, and a useful skillset, so it's good to remember that some people don't have that mojo, either because they haven't learned, don't care, or give up too easily. [librarian.net : a library weblog] 3:43:35 PM    comment []

Gary Price on the value of modern librarians Gary Price interviewed in Library Link. He's been asked so much about Google and librarians, he's got a good answer handy. LL: How can librarians stay ahead of the perception that everything people need is two clicks away on Google? GP: Google and other web engines are fine for certain types of searching. However, it's not the best choice in some situations. The challenge for us is not only telling people about what Google and other web engines can offer but also showing them what's not available. Likewise, we can demonstrate how to be a better web search engine searcher. This is valuable info for many people. Why? With the help and knowledge of a good information professional we can help to save the time of our users. This is a commodity everybody wants to have more of. [librarian.net : a library weblog] 3:43:02 PM    comment []

© Copyright 2004 Johan Ragetli.

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