Content-type: text/html Downes.ca ~ Stephen's Web ~ Revenge of the Blog People!

Stephen Downes

Knowledge, Learning, Community
American Library Association president Michael Gorman has spoken again, this time asserting that "the Blog People read what they want to read rather than what is in front of them and judge me to be wrong on the basis of what they think rather than what I actually wrote." Gorman, recall, argued that "Massive databases of digitized whole books, especially scholarly books, are expensive exercises in futility..." He now writes that he is not against digitization, but "that I do not believe this particular project will give us anything that comes anywhere near access to the world's knowledge," mostly because Google does not deliver well ordered search results. What would be better? "If a fraction of the latter were devoted to buying books and providing librarians for the library-starved children of California, the effort would be of far more use to humanity and society." Yes, indeed, let's feed the starving Californians; that would be much better. Sheesh.

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Stephen Downes Stephen Downes, Casselman, Canada
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Last Updated: Dec 23, 2024 12:15 a.m.

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