[WEB4LIB] RE: Yahoo-OCLC toolbar

[K.G. Schneider]

Very interesting! I used it to look up In Cold Blood and Breakfast at
Tiffany's. I used my zip code (94306). I think it's very nifty. I now don't
work anywhere near the innards of an ILS; in that respect, I'm just a
Liberry User. Here are my comments. 

First, the videos showed up first. Maybe this is right from circ data,
videos being so popular, but it still surprised me. 

Second, I now see the world through FRBR-ized (or at least FRBRish) glasses,
given that I attended a workshop Friday, but I was dissatisfied to get all
those different entities for the same intellectual thingy. That's the
clickety-click that really bugged me. 

Third, I had trouble identifying the right edition, or at least not the
wrong edition. I didn't want large print, and yet that showed up before any
regular editions. 

Fourth, "Cold Blood" showed up before "In Cold Blood." ?

Fifth, I don't want English, I want American... oh wait, they MEAN American.
;)  "English book" was a little confusing. 

Sixth, and significantly, I know my local library carries In Cold Blood, but
the most likely item (or at least the first reasonable item) didn't show it
having holdings. And yet I didn't have this problem with Breakfast at
Tiffany's. 

I wouldn't use it, based on this experience, because I don't trust it. I'll
start with my local catalog and go from there. Still, in the realm of hot
new cool tools, kinda fun. Though if users believe this is a trustworthy
resource, but it's not leading people to YOUR local catalog, beware, beware.
"Yahoo says it's not there!" Go ahead and talk yourself blue in the face
about how your catalog works... it won't matter. You don't have a billboard
on 101 South, or commercials on national TV. 

Bon (burp) appetit,

Karen G. Schneider
kgs at bluehighways.com