No Such Thing as a Free Lunch : Labor in Open Source Systems Implementations
This post is adapted from a presentation I gave at the Amigos Library Technology Roadmap conference earlier this month. I supervise the library systems unit at a public R1 university … Continue reading
Specters of Ludd – A Review of Gavin Mueller’s “Breaking Things at Work”
A specter is haunting technological society—the specter of Luddism. Granted, as is so often the case with hauntings, reactions to this specter are divided: there are some who are frightened, … Continue reading
Mergers, acquisitions, and my tinfoil hat
[nb: this is by your long-lost second blogger, who relocated to a large state university two years ago, rather than by the usual fellow who’s been keeping this boat afloat … Continue reading
The problem isn’t the robots…it’s the bosses
Let us begin with two stories: Sam is nervous. Having applied for a job, Sam is now waiting to be interviewed for the position. Fidgeting slightly in the waiting room … Continue reading
The Robots are Coming! – A Review of Rise of the Robots by Martin Ford
Armies of metallic soldiers attacking fleeing humans, monotone machines refusing to open air lock doors, malfunctioning androids on murderous rampages – popular culture has done much to disseminate anxiety inducing … Continue reading
Google learns the Alphabet
“You still have to learn the ABC. The ABC says: They will get you down.” – Bertolt Brecht The way to spell “Google” has changed, and now the way to … Continue reading
Guest Post: NYC Nurses
Pirates, the following is a brief article from friend of the library GrungyBerns, a nurse here in New York City. Nurses at hospitals in the city have been deep in … Continue reading
Reference Desk: LIS Employment Resources
Pirates. I’ve been back to work for a few weeks now. Which, fuck capitalism, but I got a kitty to feed. Anyway, over the course of my five months unemployed … Continue reading
#GivingTuesday
Let’s see. Yesterday was Cyber Monday, and I’m not quite sure what that meant, but none of y’all submitted naughty comments, so. Before that was Sunday, and I don’t even … Continue reading
Emma, Utah, You, and Me
Pirates! One of your faithful librarian got laid off last Thursday, so you will probably be hearing more from me, as I try to fill the hours and days of … Continue reading
All Hitherto Existing Social Media – a review of Christian Fuchs’s “Social Medial: a Critical Introduction””
Legion are the books and articles describing the social media that has come before. Yet the tracts focusing on Friendster, LiveJournal, or MySpace now appear as throwbacks, nostalgically immortalizing the … Continue reading
Not all Apples are Biodegradable
Buried within the excited announcement of a new model of a popular device is the dirge for the generation of devices that have just been made obsolete. Granted, there is … Continue reading
Introducing the Tiebrary
Hey, pirates, did you know you will shortly be able to borrow a tie from the library? You heard that right! From friend of the Shipwreck Lauren, of Urban Librarians … Continue reading
World’s Oldest Procession
Short notice, bookish types, but if you’re not doing anything this evening & are within shouting distance of Brooklyn, you should definitely join friend of the Shipwreck Melissa Gira Grant … Continue reading
And the Bandwidth Plays On…Reconfiguring the Internet on the Titanic
Almost all historians agree on the following fact: Internet access on the Titanic was terrible. Really, it was just horrible. It was nearly impossible to get a wireless signal, the … Continue reading
Further Thoughts on the Current Art Market
I had one of those serendipitous New York City occurrences last summer [it’s been several months since I started this post, that originally said “yesterday”]. A woman sat down next … Continue reading
Picking the Right Target…but Missing the Mythical Mark
Myths provide a useful way for explaining complex concepts without needing to present a mountain of research. Most myths succeed – or fail – by playing upon a mixture of … Continue reading
Does Your Smartphone Sync with Your Values? Behold: The Fairphone!
The speed of innovation and the speed of ethics do not run parallel. Technological change races forward at such velocity that we rarely have time to wonder if these technical … Continue reading
Advertising Our Ethics – Facebook does the right thing for the wrong reason
There is something about the anonymity – or near anonymity – of the Internet that can bring out the opposite of the best in people. When a bunch of people … Continue reading
Capitalism vs. the Internet – A review of Digital Disconnect by Robert McChesney
For many people the Internet seems to hold nothing but promise. This envisioned promise varies from one bunch to the next, yet across groups there seems to exist a certain … Continue reading
What a Tragedy! The Appleonian Drama of Tim Cook and our Dionysian Distraction
There’s something theatrical about seeing fabulously wealthy CEOs pulled before a government panel and grilled about tax avoidance. Granted, the “grilling” is frequently more befitting a bunch of chums gathered … Continue reading
So, Did You Hear the One about the Yahoo and the Tumblr?
People appreciate a good diversion. The humdrum routine of day-to-day life can be so dull, so alienating and stultifying that people yearn for a good laugh. To wrench these guffaws … Continue reading
Do Robots Play Solitaire When the Boss Isn’t Looking?
Robots! What is your reaction to that word? Does it conjure up images of bumbling sci-fi sidekicks or heartless dystopian killing machines? Logical humanoid companions, servile slaves, or the thing … Continue reading
Free Cooper Union
Students at Cooper Union here in NYC have been occupying their president’s office for the past two days, in response to their school’s announcement a couple weeks ago that incoming … Continue reading
“Freedom” and “Technology” are not the same word (two shared letters does not a synonym make)
The increasing availability of ever-more-impressive technology proves an opportunity for many people, from a vast range of ideological perspectives, to contemplate what these new machines will mean for society. Thusly … Continue reading
Hiding in the Pew[s] – technology, class, and libraries in the new Pew study
Evidently, Americans really like their libraries. Even more than we thought just a few weeks ago! While most librarians (even some of the more depressed ones) knew this, it is … Continue reading
To Save Everything Click Here — by Evgeny Morozov — A Book Review
The modern day evangelicals of technology rarely miss an opportunity to proclaim the ways in which a new device or app will solve all of our problems. Such people stand … Continue reading
Ethics and Buying a Smartphone (with help from Simone and Simon)
Many people have at least a passing concern for where the things they use and consume come from. Was your shirt sewn in a sweatshop? Was your coffee purchased from … Continue reading
Neil Postman’s 6 Questions (+1 from me)
Keeping apace with changes in technology can drive a person mad, especially as the speed of technological shifts seems to be increasing constantly. Indeed that state-of-art piece of shiny tech … Continue reading
A Non-Radical Argument Against Student Debt
One of my demands, when asked about demands, is for universal free higher education and the forgiveness of existing student debt. This is one of those places where I think … Continue reading
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