RDA, collaboration and Web 2.0
Posted by Brian Kelly on January 21st, 2009
Since 2005, I’ve been part of the international effort to create Resource Description and Access (RDA) – a set of cataloguing rules that can be applied to any type of resource, physical or digital. January is named for Janus, the Roman god of doorways, beginnings and endings, which prompted me to consider how technology has changed our collaborative working practices.
Despite the image of cataloguers as shy, retiring types in the backroom, this work has generated a lot of (sometimes heated) discussion. The development process has become far more open as information can be shared easily via a Web site and email discussion lists. In contrast, the text of the previous set of rules, AACR2, was only seen by most cataloguers once it was published in print.
Time and cost restraints limit the number of face-to-face meetings, so the CILIP/BL Committee on RDA uses email between meetings. Each formal UK response was compiled from these emails, but messages might cover several issues and subject lines might not match message content. Now we use a wiki – we still have the challenge of incorporating differing views into our responses but are spared having to trawl through multiple emails.
Outreach activities can connect with a wider audience. Presentations at events are made available via Web sites and services such as SlideShare. Articles in the professional literature (e.g. my article ‘RDA: a cataloguing code for the 21st century‘ in CILIP Update) are increasingly available in digital as well as print formats.
Making the draft text openly available has also demonstrated that cataloguers are happy to experiment with technology. When the latest draft was issued in PDF format, Bernard Eversberg was able to create a searchable version on the Web just two days after release.
Technology is also influencing publication decisions: RDA will initially be published as an online resource. Potentially we could have comprehensive and concise versions, or versions targetted at cataloguers of specific materials (serials, music, legal, etc.) – even MyRDA. The text could be incorporated into the cataloguing modules of library management systems. It’s going to be interesting to see how this develops.