Kind of a Big Deal – What it’s like to be a famous librarian (2015)

https://medium.com/message/king-of-the-dipshits-139658a95e0e#.pbxkjp61t

by Tomte • 9 years ago

56 13 9 years ago

ffef2• 9 years ago

TLDR: OP owns librarian.net and describes what a master librarian does.

Jaruzel2• 9 years ago

Sorry, this isn't Reddit, so don't do this. We don't need TLDRs - We would all mostly prefer to actually read the articles, believe it or not.

ffef2• 9 years ago

Some people think otherwise.

jdboyd• 9 years ago

When I saw the title on HN, I wondered if it would be about Jessamyn West, and it was. It was cool to see her pop up here. I don't recall why I started following her web site, but she has raised my awareness of the importance of librarians and I recommend it.

pronoiac• 9 years ago

Hah! I also guessed it would be about Jessamyn, who I started following because of her (now mostly past-tense) work with Metafilter.

karlkatzke• 9 years ago

I had the same reaction! I've known* her since she was an early contributor to and then the first paid employee at Metafilter.com.

* - via electronic means only

B1FF_PSUVM• 9 years ago

Gore Vidal, never short on snark, remarked about his own craft that speaking of a famous writer would be like speaking of a famous ceramicist.

AndrewKemendo• 9 years ago

I find the librarian profession absolutely fascinating, especially because of the distinction between how they see themselves (rightly) and how the general public sees them. They have integrated mathematics, logistics, anthropology and literary theory into one profession, but I think most assume they simply stock books all day.

I think it would come as a shock to most people that professional librarians must* have a Masters degree [1].

[1]https://lockedinthelibrary.wordpress.com/2006/10/12/why-does...

theoh• 9 years ago

I can't share your rosy picture of the profession. The default librarian is still the natural enemy of intelligent, creative nonconformists, surely? Having no subject expertise but knowing roughly where to find a mediocre non-answer to any question in a small library is such a depressing achievement. Sorry for the negativity, but I don't think the type I'm describing is a fantasy. It takes a certain mindset to be a "default librarian", and of course the subject of the linked article is quite different.

Also: http://lj.libraryjournal.com/blogs/annoyedlibrarian/2009/10/...

"There are plenty of very smart, passionate, and dedicated librarians out there, but there are also plenty who aren’t at all bright or competent. Anyone who’s worked in a library knows this. This has always been the case, because the MLS has always been a relatively easy degree to get."

gydfi2• 9 years ago

I'm sure that an "intelligent, creative non-conformist" (a category into which you perhaps imagine you fall?) has better things to do than make enemies with librarians.

gydfi2• 9 years ago

On the other hand I know a lot of Masters-qualified librarians who simply stock books all day.

The need for a Masters to do this job is perhaps more of a sad commentary on the university system's vast overproduction of humanities graduates.

blakesterz• 9 years ago

Nice to see the positive comments for librarians! I have my MLS and have been in libraries for about 15 years now. I'm actually a full time sysadmin now, but I've worked as a librarian in the past, somehow ended up in systems. Jessamyn is also an old friend of mine, fun to see her show up here.

Jaruzel2• 9 years ago

I have been married to a qualified Librarian for almost 20 years, and like many, I had a very blinkered view of what a Librarian actually is.

What most people think is a Librarian, i.e. the person shelving books, and checking out your selection at the Uni or Local library, tend to be pre-qualified library assistants. The actual Librarian is normally off somewhere actually running the Library as a working business, so not only do they have to be constantly well read, they also need fairly good business acumen as well.

Working in Libraries, is only the tip of the ice-berg. My partner has worked in the Corporate field for many years, which is VERY different compared to working in a Library, and is now one of the most senior Corporate Librarians in the country. I have watched her career over the past two decades, and it's been really diverse. She currently heads up a Global team of Librarians who provide and maintain a wide range of information services to Lawyers for a top tier law firm.

This sort of Information department exists in many medium to large organisations, and is critical their success, and in this day and age, it has hardly anything to do with books at all; Information is Information, no matter what the medium, and if you want it curated and managed, you need a Librarian.

Kind of a Big Deal – What it’s like to be a famous librarian (2015)

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