Hi Stephen et al.,

> **with apologies for ignorance**

        You should not apologize for anything . . . people in different fields
and subfields have different knowledge.

> what the heck does interoperability mean and what on
> earth is a metadata vocabulary?

        "Interoperability" is just another way to say "compatibility."
        Metadata vocabulary is just another way to say data sets (spreadsheets,
databases, etc.).

> If you are trying to create interest in the community
> may I suggest you start first by using terms with
> accepted/standard/(any) meaning?

        These are accepted and standard terms in technological circles.  Not
everyone in a museum works with 'artwork.'  There are IT (Information
Technology) departments . . . there is need for database construction
and maintanence, on-line retail activity, computer security, etc.

> Recently I've also encountered such gems as post-genome
> and post-global.Why must we learned folk try so hard to
> verbalize ourselves into oblivion?

        There is an oft-asked question.  The answer, quite simply, is
self-preservation.  If everyone can understand everything, what good is
an MA or PhD?  How could you call yourself an "expert" or "specialist"
if you can simply explain yourself once -- with no need for repetition,
clarification, further research and writing?
        As for "post-": This is not a new phenomenon in language . . .
centuries or decades ago, people developed the names for various
historical periods (Dark Ages, Middle Ages, Renaissance, etc.).  It is
obvious that a historical period of a few hundred years must be further
subdivided to make any sense of the similarities/differences -- hence,
early Medieval and late Medieval . . . proto-Renaissance, early
Renaissance, Renaissance and Late Renaissance.  So, post-genome and
post-global refer to a specific time period of social condition.

Yours truly,

Jay Heuman

=========================================================
Important Subscriber Information:

The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes).

If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).