I’ve often joked about being a Luddite, but now have to stop, being at risk for losing all professional credibility. And yet… and yet…

The assignment is to read up on Web 2.0 and Library 2.0. Social computing. There it is in a nutshell. I often used to wonder how Big Brother will accomplish his mission, and now see how easy we have made it.  We’ve handed it over, lock, stock, and barrel. Our thoughts, our loved ones, our human loved ones, our libraries, our perversions (did I say that?), our recipes family trees our friends families connections buying habits reading habits possessions tag clouds etc etc

As librarians, we fight to the end to preserve the individual’s right to privacy. Of course, as you will be quick to point out, the decision is ours, what we choose to share or not share publicly, and my right to privacy is not annulled by my participation in this massive outbreak of what I can only describe as unbridled exhibitionism. And am I participating? Oh yeah. So, do we value our right to privacy more than privacy itself?

As for the rest of it, yes I will bring the stuff to the users and speak in their languages and in their arenas. Yes to all the new web tools. Yes to social networking. Yes yes yes to all of it. And if I continue to call myself a Luddite I will have to shut my mouth and retire to my goat farm.

Think I’ll go play some Bach now.