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Sometimes people who first hear about my library seem rather shocked -- and while I tend not to believe in binary classification schemes the reactions do tend to fall neatly into one of two categories; those that 'get it' and those that 'don't get it'.
Dealing with the later group first, their comments tend to be along the lines of:
- have you really read them all?
- surely you should go through some kind of 'thinning/weeding/culling" process to keep only the ones you need?
- you'll never read them again will you?
- how wide spread are the topics?
- Do you have both fiction and non-fiction in your collection?
- WoW... that's so neat... it must be wonderful to be able to go back and visit long time friends
- Neat... you can go on learning from them forever.
Basically, this group sees books as disposable items... like newspapers I guess (I don't know, the thinking is truly foreign to me).
The other group never raises these questions....
Their comments tend to be along the lines of:
It is this last group that are kindred souls.... to me I learn more from a book when I revisit it... I have had time to cogitate (days, weeks, months, years or even in some cases decades) later I will bring different insights to a re-read... and will learn much, much more than I ever could have been capable of the first time through. Such is the nature of learning where everything is tangled with everything else and the tapestry just keeps getting richer over time.
Sometimes I don't go back for a full re-read, but just to pick up information that I'm sure will be there.... to help me "today" I frequently use resources that I picked upto 35 years ago (with some of these having much older publication dates of course).
I'm going to use this topic to capture books I've pulled from my shelf 'today' - (using the opportunity to capture the book details in my on-line book 'card catalogue' that I keep on the Ning Social Network.
For the books in this list, I may have pulled it off the shelf to check a single fact, get a single quotation, read a paragraph or a chapter or in rare instances to read the whole thing again (or for the first time straight through rather than selective jumping back and forth -until I feel I've gotten all the nourishment that it offers - that I sometime do when I first get a book) but they all have one thing in common - They are for me Old Friends with whom I have renewed aquaintences.
Trapped in the Net: The Unanticpated Consequences of Computerization
What I'm reading - great idea for a Tangle.
I guess teh difference between a Tangle and a blog is that a Tangle can keep on going. Blog posts have a hit, then die off.
Yeah, books are my friends too.... I find it very hard to let go of them...
Some ppl who've come to my house have commented that its outstanding feature is that there are books everywhere!
And in truth, there are
Some Time ago when I took over most of my wife's pantry for my overflow... she just lost it.... but now the kids are moved out and I have their old game's room to myself and the 13 bookshelves here are full (as are the ones in my den) the Pantry is looking pretty needed again.... I wonder if she'll be any easier on me this time round?
hahaha Don't bank on it!
Me thinks you need a garage for your books!
Swinger (an old friend) and I have always dreamt of owning our own 'libraries' one day.... you know, like those found in castles etc
re Garage... yes I've got two big cabinets there for books I don't think I'll be looking at anytime soon....
Testing a concordance facilty;
Trapped in the Net: The Unanticipated Consequences of Computerization
able action air aircraft almost although army battle between business capabilities case central change chapter combat command communications complex computer computerized control costs data development direct down during effects electronic environment equipment even far few financial first forces future global human increasingly individual industry information instead integrated large less machine management markets may means military modern networks new now often operations operators organization own part performance pilots possible power problems process program rather real required set skills small social software states still structure systems task technical technology time trading traditional united use users war weapons without work workers world years
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs):
large technical systems, air traffic system, attrition warfare, computer trading, computerized networks, secondary instruments, air traffic control centers, computerized trading, program trading, cognitive integration, glass cockpits, smart weapons
Trial of a possible format for a "My Library" Private Tangle:
dhcsoul's Rating: 
Status: Finished Reading
Tagged: net, web, computerization, computers and civilization, electronic data processing - social aspects, computer networks.
Amazon Statistically Improbable phrases:
large technical systems, air traffic system, attrition warfare, computer trading, computerized networks, secondary instruments, air traffic control centers, computerized trading, program trading, cognitive integration, glass cockpits, smart weapons
Small Things Considered: Why There Is No Perfect Design
Emotional Design: Why we love (or hate) everyday things
High Integrity Software: The SPARK Approach to Safety and Security
Ning: Systems Bookshelf
Prisons We Choose To Live Inside
That sounds interesting.... what is it about?
Did you follow the link? The following comment is inclued there
"In these five lectures (originally broadcast by the Canadian Broadcast Corporation as part of the CBC Massey Lectures Series) Lessig addresses the question of personal freedom and individual responsibility in a world increasingly prone to political rhetoric, mass emotions and inherited stuctures of unquestionable belief. "
- 0 -
I've got it down off my shelf again because I've been thinking about US and Canadian Politics and where we sit in this world... and mostly about the stories she tells where one person makes a difference. One of her stories is about Akhnaten an Egyptian ruler who threw out the priests and adopted a religion based on love and a single god (his reign only lasted a few years but Freud suggested that Moses got the idea of monotheism from the then supressed religion of Akhnaten)..
Lessig closes her book with the statements:
" Very likely, when Akhnaten was a little boy, he said to himself, what can one person do against this awful, heavy powerful, repressive regime, with its priests and its frightening gods - what is the point of even trying?
By using our freedoms, I do not mean just joining demonstrations, political parties, and so on and so forth, which is only part of the democratic process, but examining ideas, from whatever source they come, to see how they may usefully contibute to our lives and to the societies we live in."
As I think about the question of using the web as a Third Place of Learning, I'm really thinking about how to use the possibility of new communities to contribute to the overall good of societies.
Whoops - you came pretty close to getting me in full '"up on the soapbox" speech mode there...
oops..... it never occured to me that following the link would provide the explanation I was looking for
That's interesting! I'll have to get my hands (and eyes) on it
Every year the CBC invites a distinquished Authority to communicate the results of original study or research on important subjects of contemporary interest in five radio broadcasts . The series has been going on since 1961 ... the lectures are then published by Anansi Press... I think I have about 15 of them on my shelf... I'll have to get all entered into my computer record (so far I've only got 4 listed... you can find them by going to the link above and it will show the "tags" I've used for the book... in this case:
Tagged: CBC, individuality, responsibility, social groups, HM (loc), Massey Lectures.
Clicking on "Massey Lectures" will bring up all the books I've put in so far that are part of this series (4 of about 15)... similarly clicking on "HM (loc)" will bring up all the books I've entered so far that are in the Library of Congress classification HM (10 so far) ...
So far I've got about 360 (or less than 10%) of the books in my library posted on this 'electronic card catalogue"
re: oops..... it never occured to me that following the link would provide the explanation I was looking for
No worries, If you hadn't asked I wouldn't have been able to get up on my soapbox 
and I enjoyed that!
There's also a link availble there to take you to Amazon.com where you can get more info (including reviews etc) on the book.
Cool! Thanks Bric!
And you're welcome to get on that soap box anytime (except re the definition of slippers)
sigh that seems a high price to pay even for a friend
Ohhh!!
But not another word of Slippers from me ... cause for good friends anything is possible.
hehehehe Woo hoo!!!
(mind you, I wouldn't end a friendship due to a disagreement on slippers..... I would however, remind you at every opportunity that I'm right)
But boy will I be ready to pounce on the next big thing...
hahahaha Will do!!
Nite nite!
Human Values and the Design of Computer Technology
Ning: Systems Bookshelf
Masters of the Wired World: cyberspace speaks out
Ning: Eclectic Reader Bookshelf
Freebase: Book Entry (nb Freebase is still in alpha....it will have to move to beta before this link is actionalble to non alpha testers)
Train of Thoughts: designing the effective web experience
Ning: Eclectic Reader Bookshelf
Freebase: Book Entry (nb Freebase is still in alpha....it will have to move to beta before this link is actionalble to non alpha testers)
Wow, that's worth a read.
If I can find the time I'm going to add a review to the Book Review Group for this one - I'd forgotten I had it on my shelf but its turning out to be worth re-reading in its entirety!
