Volume 45, Number 1 - January/February 2021
EDITORIALFrontLines Page 4 Blaming the user interface when the source lacks the content you're searching for is fruitless. By Marydee Ojala DEPARTMENTSPage 8 Search Engine Update By Greg R. Notess Page 28 Conference Corral SLA Drives Forward; Librarians Lean Into Entrepreneurship FEATURESPage 9 Fashion design is a very visual activity. Fashion Institute of Technology librarians Miyo Sandlin and Joseph Anderson decided to explore how they could make archival fashion collections more accessible and fun. Their augmented reality project, The FITting Room, lets people try on historical pieces of clothing, giving them a sense of the culture and mores of the time. By Miyo Sandlin, Joseph Anderson Page 14 Traditional and Alternative Data Combine for the New Normal As decisions in many areas become "data-driven," new sources of data as alternatives to traditional data are popping up. Alternative data derives from external, high-frequency, real-time, and third-party sources. Originally used by financial analysts, alternative data now helps businesses, governments, schools, and other organizations respond quickly to changing circumstances. By Laura Gordon-Murnane Page 21 Influencers Challenge the Expertise of Information Professionals Influencers, a new breed of experts (sometimes self-proclaimed experts), first showed up as bloggers but are now visible on other social media, such as TikTok, Twitter, Instagram, Imgur, YouTube, and Pinterest. They have the ability to sway public opinion, creating trends and shaping attitudes to an extent that librarians haven't reached. Nancy Herther wants to know what this says about the future of knowledge. By Nancy K. Herther Page 25 Controlled digital lending (CDL) has been controversial for some years, but the pandemic, with its shelter-in-place mandates, tested CDL's utility and notoriety. The notion of circulating digital materials, particularly books, similarly to printed materials drew the ire of major publishers, while the Internet Archive took on the mission of pushing the legality of CDL under the aegis of empowering libraries. By Marydee Ojala COLUMNSInternet Express Page 30 Tools for Successful Video Creation and Editing in Libraries As COVID-19 continues to keep most libraries shuttered, technology has enabled library services to remain accessible to the public. Carly Lamphere looks at the resources available for video creation, including social media perennials such as Facebook Live, Instagram, and YouTube, as well as the best options for producing the highest-quality sound, video, and editing—even if you're doing all via your smartphone. By Carly Lamphere InfoLit Land Page 33 The Tail Wags the Dog: Taking Back Control of Our Searches Information literacy librarian and teacher Bill Badke laments that search engine algorithms are taking away the control experienced researchers have long implemented to obtain the very best search results, not the ones search engines' personalization and monetization efforts guide them to. By William Badke The Dollar Sign Page 36 Critical Thinking in Business Research As with other research areas, business researchers should practice critical thinking when evaluating information sources and search results. Beware conspiracy theories, misleading press releases, and spurious corporate websites. Bring critical thinking skills to search strategies and financial data. By Marydee Ojala Technology and Power Page 39 Machine Learning for Libraries and Archives Machine learning, a subset of AI, is used in libraries to expedite archival processing, extract content, and generate and expand metadata. Bohyun Kim also advises paying attention to training data and ground truth. By Bohyun Kim Metrics Mashup Page 42 Evolution of Bibliometrics and Recognizing Gender Bias in Research Impact Based on attending several bibliometrics symposia over the past several years, Elaine Lasda has been pleased with the growth of the event, both in number of attendees and range of content. By Elaine M. Lasda Hard Copy Page 45 Recommended Reading on Business Librarianship, Reference Services, Copyright Instruction, and Information Technology By Jennifer A. Bartlett Online Spotlight Page 48 Amaze Them With Library Science Do information professionals practice magic? Mary Ellen Bates thinks so. It's our ability to see the possibilities of information. She recommends waving our magic wands over information acquisition, retrieval, management, and tools. By Mary Ellen Bates |
