Chapter 7
Tracking Down Tech
Trying Your Take
on What Should Live in the Cloud
Libraries have long served as information storehouses in communities and schools, housing vast numbers of books and other publications. Libraries are also low-key entertainment and learning centers. Kids can attend a book reading session held by the library while parents browse the stacks looking for interesting reads for themselves. Libraries also house valuable collections of historical resources, offering back issues of the local newspaper, as well as data such as stock prices and census records. In 1876, librarian and scholar Melvil Dewey introduced a system for classifying and organizing all the works held in a library. The Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC), or Dewey Decimal System, uses a numbering system to identify a book’s shelf position relative to that of other books. A library user can look up a book by its title in the card catalog or computerized catalog system, and then use the listed Dewey Decimal number to find the book on the shelf. A librarian can use the number to return the book to the correct location. In the 1950s or so, libraries began preserving important records and materials by storing them on film-based media called microfilm and microfiche. Of course, the transfer process was lengthy, the materials had to be organized and indexed for later use, and the proper projection or reading equipment was required to view the stored information. Another drawback was that these film media don’t last forever. Today, the cloud and other Internet and storage technologies make it possible to digitize almost all types of materials and make them available on the cloud, either publicly or on a private cloud with restricted access. Public and private libraries throughout the United States are digitizing all sorts of information from private collections (such as famous individuals’ papers and writings donated to a university library); historically significant books, photos, and artworks; reference materials; and, of course, other searchable materials that lend themselves to database storage. Archiving these materials generally involves scanning pages to digitize them and entering metadata into a database to describe the stored materials, so users can search the digital records to find the desired content. Computers: Understanding Technology, Fifth Edition © Paradigm Publishing, Inc.
As you complete the Scavenger Hunt Worksheet on the next page, think about these questions: • Have you used the Dewey Decimal System or microfilm or microfiche? If so, what do you think of that method for storing and accessing media? • What do you think the typical college library of the future will look like?
Tracking Down Tech Computers: Understanding Technology, Fifth Edition Trying Your Take on What… © Paradigm Publishing, Inc. Chapter 7
Page 2
Scavenger Hunt Worksheet Trying Your Take on What Should Live in the Cloud Go to your campus library or a public library. Take some time to familiarize yourself with the digital resources already available, such as a computerized classification system that allows you to look up books. Next, identify materials in the library that should be digitized in the future. In the grid below, record at least three materials that you think should live in the cloud. Bonus points will be awarded for recording four or five materials. Submit the completed worksheet to your instructor as directed. Student Name: Date: Library Name and Location: Materials That Should
Reason(s) for Digitizing Materials and Moving Them to the
Live in the Cloud
Cloud
Tracking Down Tech Computers: Understanding Technology, Fifth Edition Trying Your Take on What… © Paradigm Publishing, Inc. Chapter 7
Page 3
Rubric Trying Your Take on What Should Live in the Cloud Following is a suggested grading rubric. Feel free to customize the rubric to meet your standards and expectations. Chapter 7 Tracking Down Tech: Trying Your Take on What Should Live in the Cloud Student Name: Points Legend 0 = Did not meet the standard/expectation 1 = Met the standard/expectation 2 = Exceeded the standard/expectation Item
0
1
2
Comments
Recorded at least three items Fully documented the date, time, and library location Provided adequate reason(s) for digitizing materials and moving them to the cloud Bonus Points: Provided more than three items (1 for each additional item, maximum 2 points) Total
Out of 8 Maximum Points
Tracking Down Tech Computers: Understanding Technology, Fifth Edition Trying Your Take on What… © Paradigm Publishing, Inc. Chapter 7
Page 4
