FOLKSONOMY x NETWORK LITERACY

In a society governed and defined through information, network literacy works with the latter to create accessible, comprehensive and maintained materials. By observing the relevancy of catalogue’s and their systems, the usual automatic presumptions– that is, how we participate within network literacy as an individual- become absolute and self-conscious.

Prior to the reading, I had given little thought to the specific role of linearity, tags and RSS feeds. In fact, as an active consumer of the web and the contents within it, I found myself questioning my contrasting passive acceptance of these digital practices. This fetish for folksonomy and the recognition of publications contained within these operations not only sparks my interest in the role of creating content, but also, how I consume it. The concepts that lie within folksonomy (including- but not limited to-web pages, categories, tags, XML) allow us to see the relationships, formalities and informal knowledge which is then standardised and collaborated at a real-time growth. So, how can we take full advantage of this?

Whilst there may be a human ‘lack of consistencies’, such phenomena of trending tags or third-party confirmations (for example, private Flickr groups with set themes and owner authorisation) can correct or catalogue these inconsistencies to a limited extent. However, due to automated practice of most online content, this is a very slim passage as systems prefer the combination of quantity over quality. Furthermore, this notion of ‘weaving it together’ through RSS feeds, knowledge production and publication is one explicit way of being network literate; particularly as the emphasis on consuming is just as important as contributing.

With this, by applying the theories of network literacy to my work and thoughts, it will not only materialise my audience, but also sustain my writing in future as a collaborative, questioning process. After all, wholesome knowledge is knowing and doing.

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