Comments on: Laptops vs. the Digital Divide http://heatherjkline.wordpress.com/2007/10/10/laptops-vs-the-digital-divide/ My career journey through volunteering, continuing education, and job searching Tue, 23 Dec 2008 16:15:44 +0000 http://wordpress.com/ hourly 1 By: karindalziel http://heatherjkline.wordpress.com/2007/10/10/laptops-vs-the-digital-divide/#comment-149 karindalziel Thu, 11 Oct 2007 14:33:25 +0000 http://heatherjkline.wordpress.com/2007/10/10/laptops-vs-the-digital-divide/#comment-149 Brian and I are both planning to get an XO laptop when they come out- We're just Linux geeks with an intense curiosity. I am mostly curious about the Linux based operating system, which is quite remarkable- designed for kids, designed for learning, and totally unlike Windows. It's not like any Linux I've ever seen. I agree with Karen about the current state of electronic journals, but the sad thing is it doesn't have to be that way. How wonderful would it be to pull up a whole issue of a journal, rather than having to navigate through a clunky interface to reach an article by article view. But the way databases work is, they chunk the information into bite sized, easily searchable bits. I have tried to keep up with professional journals through Ebsco, and it's annoying. I can get an email sent when a new issue is out, but I can't really navigate the issue, I can only look at articles. For some journals, that's not a big deal, but for others, it's a huge difference. The problem here, as I see it, isn't the format- electronic is as good as anything, if you don't mind reading and annotating on a screen. The problem is the piecing out of information at the sake of continuity. One thing I love about open access journals is they manage to maintain the flow of a journal AND be available electronically, which is a huge advantage for me, because I like having all my notes in my computer where I can search them. Unfortunately, I don't see the big databases changing anytime soon, and most small literary journals have sold their soul- so to speak- they no longer own the digitized content and have no say how it is distributed. It's not their fault- they're pressured into becoming financially viable and the database companies have the resources to keep them afloat. Brian and I are both planning to get an XO laptop when they come out- We’re just Linux geeks with an intense curiosity. I am mostly curious about the Linux based operating system, which is quite remarkable- designed for kids, designed for learning, and totally unlike Windows. It’s not like any Linux I’ve ever seen.

I agree with Karen about the current state of electronic journals, but the sad thing is it doesn’t have to be that way. How wonderful would it be to pull up a whole issue of a journal, rather than having to navigate through a clunky interface to reach an article by article view. But the way databases work is, they chunk the information into bite sized, easily searchable bits.

I have tried to keep up with professional journals through Ebsco, and it’s annoying. I can get an email sent when a new issue is out, but I can’t really navigate the issue, I can only look at articles. For some journals, that’s not a big deal, but for others, it’s a huge difference.

The problem here, as I see it, isn’t the format- electronic is as good as anything, if you don’t mind reading and annotating on a screen. The problem is the piecing out of information at the sake of continuity. One thing I love about open access journals is they manage to maintain the flow of a journal AND be available electronically, which is a huge advantage for me, because I like having all my notes in my computer where I can search them.

Unfortunately, I don’t see the big databases changing anytime soon, and most small literary journals have sold their soul- so to speak- they no longer own the digitized content and have no say how it is distributed. It’s not their fault- they’re pressured into becoming financially viable and the database companies have the resources to keep them afloat.

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