Whew! I finally made it to the last post for MLA’s Web 2.0 course. It really has been a learning experience to actually play with some of the tools I’d heard about but not really used. This post is a little different in that I’ll be commenting on several posts about privacy–a topic that is especially appropriate given the news in Wired and the Washington Post about the FBI’s attempt to gain user information from the Internet Archive using a National Security Letter. The librarian blog posts about privacy are actually older posts but very much related. Jessamyn West’s blog librarian.net discusses the subject in several posts. One discusses the organization StopBadware and how it keeps Internet users informed about the badware out there that could compromise users’ privacy. I personally found out about this organization through a Google search that marked the site I was looking for as risky in some way. It was a legitimate site but must have been compromised in some way. It’s pretty scary to think that people or organizations can trace my web travels without me having any idea what’s happening. She also mentions security risks with RFID tags that are improperly deployed. Librarians really have to think through any privacy issues that could come up BEFORE introducing RFID or any new technology in the library. I agree with her that libraries should consider privacy and security as essential components of designing technology for library services.
The Annoyed Librarian makes the case that the right to publish anonymously is protected by the First Amendment. Having this provision allows the people to voice dissent without fear of retaliation. I gather from the post that Annoyed Librarian has caught a lot of flack for using a pseudonym. While I don’t agree with everything that Annoyed Librarian posts, I don’t have a problem with the pseudonym and the decision not to reveal his/her real name. And I respect the right to voice one’s opinions even if I happen to disagree.
WONDERLUST 