Rich and lean representations of information for knowledge work

Abstract

Applying information systems to complex intellectual tasks requires the representation and codification of ambiguous and fragmentary forms of data. This application effects changes not only in representation of this data, but in the relationships between users and tools, techniques, or systems for data interpretation. It also affects the complex infrastructures that support this process. This article uses a package metaphor to examine the impact on one domain of knowledge work, classical scholarship, of the “computerization” of a key data source, the textual edition. The construction of one on-line textual databank, the Thesaurus Linguae Graecae (TLG), has altered the traditional relationships between text “owners” and “users” has changed the role of the text as a conduit for social and historical information, and has disrupted traditional patterns of transmitting domain expertise. A rich information resource has become lean in its electronic form. The TLG has standardized the corpus of Greek literature and eased access to a broad range of works, including rare and out-of-print materials. At the same time, its construction has decoupled often-contested textual sources from their accompanying critical notes and supplemental materials. The use of the TLG has also shifted notions of objectivity, accuracy, and requisite expertise within the community. The transmission of domain knowledge must now be coupled with the transmission of technical knowledge, a process for which no infrastructure is currently in place. These experiences parallel those of other knowledge workers. “Mechanistic” paradigms of information and knowledge cannot accommodate important components of computing packages, including the transmission of expertise and infrastructures for tool development and evaluation. Recent developments in information storage and dissemination, including gophers and ftp sites may indicate that despite technical advances that could be used to support rich representations (such as hypermedia and multimedia), leaner forms of data may prevail.