Turning into a personal blog

The way the Internet works these days is such that I can start using this as a personal blog while maintaining the cataloging part of it in an integral fashion. Meaning I can start being unprofessional on my professional blog, because anyone searching for the professional aspects will be led right to them, away from the new chatty bits.

Exciting Updates on RDA

I've taken a few webinars on RDA, both a free one through ALA called RDA Toolkit: What's New Since August and a paid series, Using RDA: Moving into the Metadata Future.  This includes

RDA: Designated for Current and Future Environments and  New Models of Metadata.  There is a third session in that trilogy called RDA Vocabularies in the Semantic Web, which I'll link to when I've taken it.

The greatest part is that on one level this all sounds like total gobbledy gook to me but on another level I really get it, and it's exciting.  

The worst part is that RDA Toolkit is designed for use in a web environment, not a text environment, and so if I want to learn more about it, I have to pay $195 to get a one-user subscription.  The text version is $150, I think.  But it isn't meant to be used and interacted with as text.

There are so many things going on and I'll try to explain as best as I can.

• RDA is being translated while it's being developed, and is open to any other translations anyone wants to do.  It's being conceived in a semantic web vocabulary and uses more of a digital way of thinking than AACR2 does.  

• RDA is meant to be used with an XML encoding schema (instead of MARC).  

• RDA is making MARC go away. So all the questions about RDA and MARC are being answered with roundabout responses because it's like trying to attach street car lines to carriage ruts.  It's two different technologies/languages/philosophies.  The developers would rather you NOT use MARC please thank you very much.  

• Now is the time to learn XML.  Not because XML is replacing MARC.  But because the first encoding schema will be XML, and the next will be some technology we don't know about yet.  People will develop RDA Wizard tools like MARC Magician or any program where you just pop in AACR2 info into MARC tags.  But knowing XML will help us learn whatever is coming next!

• If you attend one of these workshops, please stop asking questions about RDA and MARC.  Asking about RDA and AACR2 doesn't help much either: it's time to move on.

• RDA will change the way we think about information, as we have changed the way that computers interact with information.  It's a very warm relationship, computers and RDA and people.  I'm psyched.

Cataloging Tattoos using different schema: Bibliographic Description

This is a work in progress: check back for updates.

I'm going to try 3 schemas: AACR2 with MARC21, RDA/FRBR, CCO/VRA and CDWA.
Let's start with a bibliographic description.  I know, it's not a book.

Title and Statement of Responsibility: We're going to use a descriptive phrase instead of the 'title' of the tattooed image.  I'll use my own tattoo(s) as examples.

• [Navaho sun symbol] [realia] / Suzanne M. DeGrasse

I tattooed it myself so the subject and s.o.r. are the same.  Let's pretend I didn't.

• [Navaho sun symbol] [realia] / Dude Withaneedle.

Edition Statement: Well, sometimes people have work re-done/re-inked, or altered.  This particular one started out as a dot and underwent many revisions.  So I'd estimate this as edition 6.  "They" say you don't need edition statements with realia but I think it's useful with this, don't you?

• 6th ed

Material specific details:  This 'edition' was finalized in (approx.) 1988.  It is 10 cm by 10 cm. The medium is skin.  Human skin.  The ink I used was black calligraphy ink.  The implement was a sewing needle.  

• 1988 (Rochester, NY: Dude's Tattoo Blunderland)
• Black Calligraphy ink on human skin
• Hmmm. I'm not sure if I need to put the method (needle) in here or the size or wait until the physical description.  

Publication, Distribution: nope.
Physical Description: 

• 10 mm x 10 mm
• image is of one central dot surrounded by a circle.  8 2 to 3 mm lines extend out from the circle in each compass direction: N,S, E, W, NW, SW, NE, SE
• image is oriented so that it can be viewed from any angle
• located on inner left ankle directly on top of ankle joint (yeah, oww)
• black ink inserted subcutaneously with a 5 cm sewing needle

It might be nice if someone drew me a picture of what I described so I can see if I did it accurately.  You can use Word and just attach or email it.  If anyone (ANYONE) does I will then take a photo and we can see the similarities to the real thing!

Notes: Ahh, notes. The sad little realm of the MARC21 realia cataloger.  Oh 500, how we love you. Here we cram the important stuff like:

• Dude Withaneedle (1969-)
• Suzanne M DeGrasse (1970-)
• Original design was a simple dot.  Further renderings included a larger dot; a dot with a circle around it; an eyeball; and a compass rose.  When subject saw the Navaho sand carvings in Albuqueque NM in 1997 she recognized her design as that of a Navaho sun symbol.

What else might we put in here?