Thing 11 - tagging and Del.icio,us

Del.icio.us at a minimum is a great way to make favorites available anytime and anywhere. I don't know how many times I've heard, "I've lost all my favorites"... or, "all my favorites are on another computer"... This is a very frustrating situation for users. Del.icio.us certainly addresses this issue.

But what I find most interesting about sites like Del.icio.us, or Amazon for that matter, and functions such as tagging is the unique social data they generate. I know that I have specifically used this type of data as a part of my buying decision process. I find it helpful to know that many people have purchased/tried out a product (that it's popular). Combine this with a high favorable review, and one can get an understanding of top performing products rather than having to rely on just the manufacturer's information.

On a social level, it's just plain interesting that we now have this capability to instantly capture and continually update this type of information - and it's all public! I think that this data has significant implications for many disciplines. For example, marketing can not ignore this new avenue for buyers to find out about products. Information professionals must consider the availability of this data along with the traditional methods used for accessing information. As librarians, we must continually review our approach to assisting our patrons and take advantage of these new tools where they fit - as can be seen in the examples for this Thing. As always, it's there are a great deal of new ideas to consider. But if we don't, we will become obsolete.