In short
I work in information management, a dynamic job that keeps me constantly learning, relearning and teaching. This allows me to lecture at the University of Barcelona, where I teach library and information science and where I'm involved in a series of research projects.
I'm the author of various papers on digital information handling and related topics. Helped by special technological aids, I'm interested in user experience and in personal information management.
Among the numerous hobbies I enjoy, worth mentioning is my devotion for hiking, photography, travelling and music: I'm an occasional composer, arranger and performer of contemporary music.
In progress
Writing
So what is HTML5 exactly?
In the end of 2009, the W3C stopped working on the development of XHTML 2 and increased resources on HTML5 instead. Since then, there has been certain confusion and heated debates about the proper markup language for future web development. In order to shed some light on this issue, I'm writing for ThinkEPI a think piece that will try to answer the major questions.
 HTML5 is the new edition of the web's lingua franca. Teaching
Writing well for the web
In November, ready for winter, I will teach a course on effective writing for the web at the Polytechnic University of Valencia. Good writing practices will demonstrate how important it is to help people find what they want and to communicate clearly.
When people browse the web, they generally want to grab the information and use it quickly. They're looking for an answer or need to complete a task, so they want to read only what's necessary; they are too busy to read much.
 Polytechnic University of Valencia Recent papers
Articles
Jorge Franganillo. «Implicaciones éticas de la minería de datos». Anuario ThinkEPI: análisis de tendencias en información y documentación, 2010, p. 320-324.  
Abstract. Data mining is the process of analyzing large data sets to find previously undiscovered patterns and predict future actions. Data mining has many useful applications, but also has a merely exploratory approach that makes questionable the validity of certain deductions. Using personal information for predictive purposes has a direct impact on the lives of people and therefore requires acting in a framework of liability. A code of ethics is necessary.
Jorge Franganillo. «Gestión de información personal: elementos, actividades e integración». El profesional de la información, vol. 18, no. 4, July-August 2009, p. 399-406.
Abstract. Personal information management (PIM) studies how people should organize and use the information they get to solve everyday needs, in order to take full advantage of personal resources (time, money, energy, attention) and thereby increase productivity and improve their quality of life. This paper presents the components and activities where PIM is articulated and describes how to promote the integration of personal information that is generally scattered in different forms, applications and devices.
Jorge Franganillo. «Contenido responsable en la Internet colaborativa». Anuario ThinkEPI: análisis de tendencias en información y documentación, 2009, p. 59-63.
Abstract. The easiness with which any contribution can be published on the collaborative Web favours the spreading of inappropriate or offensive content, emerged from anonimity. User-generated material posted on forums and other participatory spaces must be moderated, without confusing control with censorship. The lack of control over content causes harmful consequences and it's not a technical limitation, but a negligence that can be penalized by law, in spite of some legal vacuum.
Jorge Franganillo. «Ni libros vencedores ni libros vencidos». Anuario ThinkEPI: análisis de tendencias en información y documentación, 2009, p. 30-33.
Abstract. Some alarming voices insist that ebooks will displace print books, despite electronic gadgets can't surpass, or even equal, those qualities that make paper books ideal for prolonged reading. In the future, paper will still be a better material for some tasks, so it seems reasonable to think we will keep on using it.
Jorge Franganillo. «La industria editorial frente al libro electrónico». El profesional de la información, vol. 17, no. 4, July-August 2008, p. 416-417.
Abstract. Books, reading and the publishing industry are experiencing changes motivated by technological advancement. The content has been separated from the material and, therefore, the publishing industry has had to alter its logistic structure, based of physical distribution until recently. Print on demand and online bookstores are now meeting new needs: they have increased the possibilities of visibility and circulation of editorial production, and they have suppressed geographic and physical barriers.
Opinion
Jorge Franganillo. «La ansiedad informativa». Uno, 5 April 2010, p. 14.
Jorge Franganillo. «Sobre el boca-oreja en la web». Uno, 8 December 2009, p. 21.
Abstract. Consumers are becoming increasingly skeptical of marketing promises: more and more people avoid buying anything unless they first read others' opinion on the Internet. Advertising makeup is no longer effective: consumers no longer listen to the company, but they listen to each other. Companies are affected by this situation, so they have to rethink their communication strategy to control their online identity and reputation.
Jorge Franganillo. «Convivir con el libro digital». Uno, 14 October 2009, p. 15.
Jorge Franganillo. «La vida digitalizada: lo que hacemos queda registrado». Uno, 13 July 2009, p. 20.
Jorge Franganillo. «La carrera por la atención». Uno, 27 May 2009, p. 9.
Abstract. Information processing has been a critical element in all forms of social development but the current conditions of life, sharply technological, mean that the fact of creating, processing and transmitting information is today a source of productivity and power. Nowadays, people work in an environment of information competition: much of the information circulating is delivered in order to gain visibility. But attention is a precious and scarce commodity because everyone directs their attention according to personal priorities.
Jorge Franganillo. «Llibres de tota mena: nous formats de lectura». Última Hora Menorca, 22 April 2008, p. 15.
Reviews
Jorge Franganillo. «La filosofia de la conversa i l'economia del segle XXI». Item: revista de biblioteconomia i documentació, no. 52, January-June 2010, p. 149-150.
All papers
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News
The social web and libraries
June 2010
Within the frame of the 2nd Public Library Summer School, I've given a practical workshop on participation technology trends in libraries. Including some examples that projected into the participants' concrete reality, we have discussed how social participation technologies can be used to effectively disseminate library products and services.
The philosophy of conversation
June 2010
 | Alberto Ortiz de Zárate's handbook Manual de uso del blog en la empresa explains how companies can use the blog to establish and maintain conversations with their customers. I have reviewed this work in the issue number 52 of Item. Despite its title, the book is not just about blogs, but also about how the philosophy of conversation, of which blogs are a part, is shaping the economy of the 21st century. |
EPI and ThinkEPI meeting
May 2009
A dinner meeting of El profesional de la información and the ThinkEPI group took place last 19th May and gathered a score of people, since we were all in Barcelona on the occasion of the 11th Catalan Documentation Conference.
This meeting was held at a time when El profesional de la información has an excellent health, and we were about to see the new Anuario ThinkEPI, whose 2010 edition brings interesting new features.
 An image of the meeting, during which we discussed various plans and projects. Gone hiking
April 2010
It's spring, time for nature and mountain. It's time to leave the chrysalis and take flight. This year's rainy condition explains the exceptionally green scenery, so I propose to delve into it.
Here are some pictures of the circular trail I took through the Torrent de la Cabana, which I strongly recommend. To the south, this time at the Garraf Natural Park, I recommend the route I made from Olivella to Sitges.
Too much information
April 2010
Information overabundance makes information more harmful than beneficial because we can not handle the myriad impulses we receive every day. On the causes and consequences of information overload I've written the think piece «La ansiedad informativa» for Uno.
 Exposure to a wealth of information to the extent of overload reduces our ability to solve problems. The importance of online reputation
December 2009
Consumers are becoming increasingly skeptical of marketing promises: more and more people avoid buying anything unless they first read others' opinion on the Internet. Advertising makeup is no longer effective: consumers no longer listen to the company, but they listen to each other. Companies are affected by this situation, so they have to rethink their communication strategy to control their online identity and reputation. About this new scenario I've written the think piece «Sobre el boca-oreja en la web» for Uno.
 Online reputation is a critical concern and companies wonder how to handle it. The other books
November 2009
Formats such as audiobooks or ebooks have redefined the concept of book, which is no longer just a work composed by a set of bound sheets. On this subject I've given an informative talk on new reading formats at the Biblioteca Lloreda, in Badalona. This activity has shown the existing alternatives to traditional books and it has posed a reflection on the evolution of reading practices.
 The new reading formats mean a cultural rebirth only comparable with the invention of the printing press. Writing well for the web
October 2009
Web sites need efficient navigation and a functional design to become useful. But that's not enough: people don't come to web sites for the joy of navigating nor just to admire the design. They come for content. They want to get an answer, to complete a task. So writing good web content is critical: it's the best showcase.
With this conviction, the Official Catalan Association of Librarians and Documentalists has planned a course on writing for the web that I've tought 29th October and 5th November. On this subject, the University of Barcelona Corporate Training Unit also planned a course that I've given 8th October.
The death of books: a false debate
November 2008
With the advent of e-books, some apocalyptic voices are predicting the death of print books, even though electronic gadgets can't equal the qualities that make paper books more suitable for long reading texts. Motivated by this contradiction, I've written a think piece for Uno entitled «Convivir con el libro digital», that tries to demistify the recurrent and unnecesary debate about the death of print books.
Personal information management
August 2009
 | Number 4 of El profesional de la información is focused on personal information management. It includes the article «Gestión de información personal: elementos, actividades e integración» that I've written about the activities people perform in order to capture and store information for later use and repeated reuse, usually to complete personal tasks. |
What technology knows about us
July 2009
In everyday life, increasingly digital, we are unwittingly feeding many databases with data about our habits. From the digital trail we leave everywhere, data mining can be used to uncover behavior patterns and anticipate our actions. On the consequences of this controversial process, which is capable of predicting and manipulating people's behavior, I've written two think pieces: «La vida digitalizada: lo que hacemos queda registrado» for Uno, and «Implicaciones éticas de la minería de datos» for ThinkEPI.
Attention is the new currency
May 2009
The oversupply of information channels and messages has limited the audiences' attention, which has become a scarce resource to manage. On this attention economy I've written a think piece for Uno entitled «La carrera por la atención».
 In an information-saturated environment, attention is the real source of wealth. |
