Monday, December 21, 2015

Mashcat: Catalogers and Developers Working Together



If you are interested in the intersection of library catalog data and library computer systems, then the Mashcat movement is for you. To quote their website, “’Mashcat’ was originally an event in the UK in 2012 which was aimed at bringing together people working on the IT systems side of libraries with those working in cataloguing and metadata. Three years later, Mashcat is a loose group of metadata specialists, cataloguers, developers and anyone else with an interest in how metadata in and around libraries can be created, manipulated, used and re-used by computers and software. The aim is to work together and bridge the communications gap that has sometimes gotten in the way of building the best tools we possibly can to manage library data.”

Most of the time, Mashcat exists mainly as a product of social media, with the hashtag #mashcat. There is also a monthly (approximately) Twitter chat.

The first ever North American Mashcat event will be held on January 13, 2016 (timed to coincide with ALA Midwinter).  Registration is full, but there is a waiting list. In the mean time, you can read the planned events for the day and join me in hoping presentation materials will be made available after the fact.

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