When I read and watched the information on Burell’s site about diigo I was instantly in love with it. I am the type of person who loves her books, magazines and various other resources and I keep them all if they are of any importance to me. This love comes with a number of problems, however. For instance, I just had to invest in two large bookshelves to go along with the four I already have that are packed with materials to handle the overflow of recent acquisitions of my hobbies, studies and curiosities. This takes up quite a bit of physical room, of course.
When I saw the diigo site I immediately imagined the wonders of endless storage and organization which has nothing to do with critical analysis of Wal-Mart instructions. Amazing. But…
I wonder if I decide to use a program such as this that it won’t be similar to what happens when some women invest in a bigger purse: Their inital smaller pursed was crammed, yes, but it forced them to decide what was really pertinent to haul around all day long. The new bigger purse provides so much extra space now, though! Who cares if I put in three extra lipsticks, an extra shirt, a magazine and some greasy snacks while I’m at it? Before you know it I’ve got a toaster tucked under my arm just because I feel that I might need it someday and heck, it fits!
It reminds me of Plato’s inital argument against writing because it had adverse effects on memory; could a site like diigo have adverse effects on my organizational skills or my ability to scrutinize sources and information before I collect and save them? Will the things I collect on this site have any real usefullness really, or will they just be things I’ll hang onto just because I can?
Mariana,
I think you write very well: I enjoy reading your writing. You made several good points: you can never have enough bookshelves or purses. I agree that Diigo is an amazing resource. But, unlike books, it may be easier to manage. As new information is available we might want to consider reorganizing our files with more relevant information. I don’t know about you but I am overwhelmed with information: passwords, usernames, wikis, HTML, etc. I guess we just need to be persistant and patient with acquiring these new skills.
I have to agree that I like your writing style too! I love the “before you know it you have a toaster under your arm,” line; it’s so funny and a great visual image:) I also completely see what you’re saying about Diigo. I saw it as having some real advantages too, but even in the couple of days I have had it, I’ve found myself adding bookmarks more freely than I might if I didn’t have as much space to do so. I also wonder if, like new things, the novelty of it will wear off for me in a few months and I won’t even use it anymore, defeating its purpose.