Filtering

[Robert Leo Joyal]

On Fri, 25 Apr 1997, Burt, David wrote:

> Robert Joyal wrote:

> access-wise it's much, much closer to a broadcast medium.  Notice also,
> that the type of access I'm describing, view a webpage, really isn't
> 2-way, it's basically one-way.

How is it a broadcast medium? People do not turn on the TV, and use a 
search engine to find information, or the program they wish to view. And 
since when do I have the ability to post my own sit-com on network 
television?

> This assumes that the Internet is one single thing, like a single book,
> which it clearly isn't.   

The computer that one uses to access the Internet is "one single thing". 

> It exists in thousands of locations, has
> thousand of different publishers.  It's a bad analogy to imply that a
> whole medium is like a single work.  Do you think of selecting the
> medium of television, or radio, or magazines?  Of course not.

I have yet to see a viewing station in the library where one could view 
the entire medium of television, radio, or magazines. If the library did 
choose to put a public access TV in the reference room, I think they 
would be in fact selecting the entire medium.

> Then so is using an approval plan.  What about buying a full-text
> InfoTrac?  Aren't you letting IAC select magazines for you then?

In both of these cases, librarians are given plenty of information
about what is being made available. Approval plans are not arbitrary, and 
the selection criteria are not hidden from librarians, as they are 
presently in the case of filtering software. As far as IAC and other 
magazine services are concerned, the library can choose between a number 
of full-text services based on the magazines offered, a choice which is 
not given to libraries in the market for filtering software.


Please define the word "appropriate."
> See your library's own mission statement and  collection policies.

I did, and the question still stands.


Robert Joyal