Being Necessary

George may be the last person to hear about del.icio.us tags. I may be the third last. I know what they are, read about them, but haven't test driven them...I approve in principal. Not good enough. I need to use them so I understand what it means when someone on the LITA-L mailing list says they are trying out such tags added to the OPAC. I have a sense this is terrific.

But that's not what I want to comment on.

I hear the same concerns about patron confidentiality that George remarks on in his post. I hear you, I am one with you, I have a library degree too. BUT, I wonder who appointed us spokespeople for the masses? I am not aware that any library has some kind of check box on a library card application that says: "would you be willing to give up some amount of personal data so that we may send you personalized information about our collection?"

We're collectively all fired up about protecting patron confidentiality but my guess is we've not asked patrons about their wishes. Let's not design services for mythical people. Let's ask real people. It may turn out that Community A prefers that no personal information inform an OPAC search. It's all good...you asked your community. But perhaps Community B is comfortable providing a little more information in order to get personalized recommendations. Or perhaps it depends on the individual and you can't make a blanket policy that fits everyone in your community. But let's be very clear who informs our policies. It would be good if it wasn't a bunch of belly button lint collecting professionals.