cni-directories: Re: Information overload
Re: Information overload
Roy Tennant (rtennant@LIBRARY.BERKELEY.EDU)
Wed, 22 Jan 1992 17:41:48 PST
Date: Wed, 22 Jan 1992 17:41:48 PST
From: Roy Tennant <rtennant@LIBRARY.BERKELEY.EDU>
Subject: Re: Information overload
>Separating the wheat from the chaff is getting more
>difficult. It has often been said that we need more quality and a little less
>quantity, but the competitive pressures to advertise and publish cuts against
>this wish. Not sure that we can stem the flood, but we certainly can provide
>ways to further sift and highlight quality work and innovation that should be
>further examined. Certainly, discussion lists (like this one) help.
I could not agree more. That is what our Library Technology Watch Program
here at UC Berkeley is all about. We publish a monthly current awareness
publication, of *selected* citations from library, computing, and information
technology journals (including those in electronic form) on various
technologies of importance to libraries. Called "Current Cites," it includes
annotations written by our staff member who is most knowledgeable in
the field. Current Cites is published both electronically and in print and
is made available to the network community through the PACS-L discussion
as well as direct electronic mail.
The Tech Watch program also gives staff workshops and training sessions
that strive to reduce the fire-hose of information to one of the garden
variety. We write brief "cheat sheets," reports, and newsletters to help
keep our staff informed. In all of our activities the focus is on reducing
the complex to the essential, and in either translating technical jargon or
explaining it.
As the creator and coordinator of the program I am a biased source, but
others have indicated that the program has been quite beneficial to our
organization. It was born of the very frustration that Chuck referred to
in his note, as well as others who have used words such as "technostress."
We cannot all be experts in everything, so let's organize a structure to
allow individuals to become expert in some limited area and then share
the essential information about that area with the rest of us. In other
words, chaff sifters.
If anyone is interested in more information, I can be contacted by one
of the methods below.
Roy Tennant
Public Service Automated Systems Coordinator
The Library, 130 Doe, University of California
Berkeley, CA 94720
Voice: (415) 643-5565 Fax: (415) 643-7891
Internet: rtennant@library.berkeley.edu
BITNET: RTENNANT@UCBLIBRA
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