Authority
Passing by Tim Bray’s place, I find out that Wikipedia is considering putting out print books to help defray expenses.
Well, isn’t that going to put librarians in a big ol’ tizzy. Because books are good. Books are authoritative. Scruffy little Wikipedia shouldn’t be making claims to authority by publishing books.
The fact of print publishing is a quality heuristic in librarianship. We all know what I think of heuristics. So I’m going to sit back and watch the fun, as the print-vs.-online heuristic gets just that little bit leakier.
Coincidentally, I’m co-authoring a proposal at the moment for a small reference book in an area where… let’s just say I’m not authoritative. An enthusiast, yes, certainly. But that’s a long way from authority. And yet I expect to be in print in a year or two.
Heuristics leak.