How Do We Library That?: Difference between revisions

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Libraries are complex social infrastructures. It's difficult to describe them without speaking in the generic plural "libraries", or specific singular "a library/the library"; as if they were all the same. Universalisms won't help in understanding what is particular about libraries and collections of texts, or why they have value to their readers.  
Libraries are complex social infrastructures. It's difficult to describe them without speaking in the generic plural "libraries", or specific singular "a library/the library"; as if they were all the same. Universalisms won't help in understanding what is particular about libraries and collections of texts, or why they have value to their readers.  


Public libraries function more than simply as access points to knowledge. They facilitate many social actions; including reading together, annotating, organising and structuring. As public libraries vanish, shadow and [https://placesjournal.org/article/fugitive-libraries/?cn-reloaded=1 fugitive libraries] appear in their wake. The structure and shape of what we may call libraries, books, or text radically changes, yet we lack an adequate vocabulary to describe them without falling back on generics.
Public libraries function more than simply as access points to knowledge. They facilitate many social actions; including reading together, annotating, organising and structuring. As public libraries vanish, shadow and [https://placesjournal.org/article/fugitive-libraries/?cn-reloaded=1 fugitive libraries] appear in their wake. The structure and shape of what we may call libraries, books, or text has radically changed yet we lack an adequate vocabulary to describe them without falling back on generics.


== Special Issue 19 ==
== Special Issue 19 ==
In this Special Issue, we will consider how new texts are generated from what exists already. While working with what is there, we will consider the word "library" as a verb; a set of actions that sustains the collection and distribution of texts. Along the way, we will question indexical attitudes that lean towards universalisms and search for proposals for how we "library" our particular collection.
Rather than looking only at what a library ''stores'', we will also discover what it ''produces''. We will consider collections as not only comprised of things, but also people and actions. In other words, we will attempt to collectively and individually answer the question "How do we library that?".
How can we understand a library-in-the-making, and make it understandable to others? What are points and ways of access, and where do readers cross over? How can we understand its materiality and textuality?
How can we understand a library-in-the-making, and make it understandable to others? What are points and ways of access, and where do readers cross over? How can we understand its materiality and textuality?
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* Library as network
* Library as network
* Book as program
* Book as program
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In a 2019 interview, researcher and architect Dubravka Sekulić asks, "what is useful knowledge for people to understand what surrounds them? Or for example, what can help to understand the politics of knowledge distribution". It is clear that what we need is to understand "how to offer people tools that allow them to interpret the position in which they are".


We will discover libraries as:
We will discover libraries as:
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* sites of learning
* sites of learning
* social spaces of text
* social spaces of text
 
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We will begin with searching for proposals around how we "do" libraries together.
We will question indices and indexical attitudes that point toward universalisms, and discover in the process a library-in-the-making.
 
Rather than looking only at what a library ''stores'', we will also discover what it ''produces''. We will consider collections as not only comprised of things, but also people and actions. In other words, we will attempt to collectively and individually answer the question "How do we library that?".


== Schedule ==
== Schedule ==

Revision as of 16:36, 15 September 2022

Context

Libraries are complex social infrastructures. It's difficult to describe them without speaking in the generic plural "libraries", or specific singular "a library/the library"; as if they were all the same. Universalisms won't help in understanding what is particular about libraries and collections of texts, or why they have value to their readers.

Public libraries function more than simply as access points to knowledge. They facilitate many social actions; including reading together, annotating, organising and structuring. As public libraries vanish, shadow and fugitive libraries appear in their wake. The structure and shape of what we may call libraries, books, or text has radically changed yet we lack an adequate vocabulary to describe them without falling back on generics.

Special Issue 19

In this Special Issue, we will consider how new texts are generated from what exists already. While working with what is there, we will consider the word "library" as a verb; a set of actions that sustains the collection and distribution of texts. Along the way, we will question indexical attitudes that lean towards universalisms and search for proposals for how we "library" our particular collection.

Rather than looking only at what a library stores, we will also discover what it produces. We will consider collections as not only comprised of things, but also people and actions. In other words, we will attempt to collectively and individually answer the question "How do we library that?".

How can we understand a library-in-the-making, and make it understandable to others? What are points and ways of access, and where do readers cross over? How can we understand its materiality and textuality?

Schedule

One: Tasks of the Contingent Librarian

Summary: Contingent librarianship - an ever-growing set of actions

Monday, September 19th, 2022

11:00-17:30 Introduction to the Special Issue (with Simon)

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To introduce ourselves we will use cards from Tasks of the Contingent Librarian:

  • 52 cards on the table (e.g. bootlegging, indexing, scanning, reading, technologising the word, &c)
  • Choose a card that matches your curiosities and/or interests
  • Exchange a card with someone else, describing how you relate to the card
  • Exchange a card, relate that relation to someone else
  • Make a new card, what information does it need?

Tuesday, September 20th, 2022

11:00-17:30 Prototyping with Manetta & Joseph

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Wednesday September 21st, 2022

11:00-17:30 Introduction to Methods with Steve

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Two: Print Screen

Summary: Plain text & annotation, from markup to markdown

Monday, September 26th, 2022

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Tuesday, September 27th, 2022

11:00-17:30 Prototyping with Manetta & Joseph

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Wednesday September 28th, 2022

11:00-17:30 Methods with Steve

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Three: Text, TBC

Monday, October 3rd, 2022

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Tuesday, October 4th, 2022

11:00-17:30 Prototyping with Manetta & Joseph

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Wednesday October 5th, 2022

11:00-17:30 Methods with Steve

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Four: Scribes Getting Personal ☞

Monday, October 10th, 2022

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Tuesday, October 11th, 2022

11:00-17:30 Prototyping with Manetta & Joseph

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Wednesday October 12th, 2022

11:00-17:30 Methods with Steve

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Five: Do e-books dream of electronic spreadsheets?

Monday, October 17th, 2022

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Tuesday, October 18th, 2022

11:00-17:30 Prototyping with Manetta & Joseph

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Wednesday October 19th, 2022

11:00-17:30 Methods with Steve

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🍁🍁🍁

Autumn Vacation

Six: Binding Along the Spine

Monday, October 31st, 2022

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Tuesday, November 1st, 2022

11:00-17:30 Prototyping with Manetta & Joseph

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Wednesday November 2nd, 2022

11:00-17:30 Methods with Steve

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Seven: A Textile, A Framework

Monday, November 7th, 2022

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Tuesday, November 8th, 2022

11:00-17:30 Prototyping with Manetta & Joseph

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Wednesday November 9th, 2022

11:00-17:30 Methods with Steve

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Eight: Paper Machines

Monday, November 14th, 2022

References:

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Tuesday, November 15th, 2022

11:00-17:30 Prototyping with Manetta & Joseph

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Wednesday November 16th, 2022

11:00-17:30 Methods with Steve

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Nine: Readable, Writeable, Executable

Monday, November 21st, 2022

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Tuesday, November 22nd, 2022

11:00-17:30 Prototyping with Manetta & Joseph

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Wednesday November 23rd, 2022

11:00-17:30 Methods with Steve

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Ten

Monday, November 28th, 2022

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Tuesday, November 29th, 2022

11:00-17:30 Prototyping with Manetta & Joseph

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Wednesday November 30th, 2022

11:00-17:30 Methods with Steve

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Eleven

Monday, December 5th, 2022

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Tuesday, December 6th, 2022

11:00-17:30 Prototyping with Manetta & Joseph

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Wednesday December 7th, 2022

11:00-17:30 Methods with Steve

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Twelve

Monday, December 12th, 2022

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Tuesday, December 13th, 2022

11:00-17:30 Prototyping with Manetta & Joseph

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Wednesday December 14th, 2022

11:00-17:30 Methods with Steve

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