[Publib] CNN on Libraries, Librarianship and Libraries 2.0

Fri Sep 4 13:39:37 EDT 2009

I guess I am not nearly as offended by this article as some out there.
Of course it is overly simplistic. It was written for the public at
large not librarians and I believe that it was meant to be one sided.
Most articles put online these days are purposely inflammatory because
every comment posted adds to the pages hit count, which in turn means
more ad revenue. They want us to come back again and again to debate
about it. Those of you calling others to posts comments are exactly what
the news sites want - more traffic.

Still, on the whole, he did not say that libraries at outmoded. He said
that they are going through change and that books are going away. This
last statement is utterly false. The first part certainly seems to have
some grains of truth in it. I don't think any of you can argue that
things haven't changed in the last decade. I would like to hear from
anyone who still does their job exactly as they did it ten years ago. 

As far as books go, I agree that the paper based book is not ready to go
by the wayside just yet, but there is a shift coming. The current model
the publishing industry utilizes is not very efficient. Let's look at
the steps. Once a publisher chooses to bring a book to print they need
to have the book printed. To do this they make their best guess as to
how many copies they can sell. Once the books are done they need to be
warehoused. Then they need to be shipped. If they do not sell they need
to be shipped back or sold off at dramatically reduced prices - I think
we have all seen the bargain tables at Barnes and Noble and other book
retailers. This process is incredibly inefficient and not very green. 

Now compare this to downloading books on to a reading device. The book
file goes on to a server and is downloaded on demand from the user. The
publisher is paying for server space and bandwidth. So in the long term
I cannot see how this distribution model isn't going to be appealing to
publishers that are already cash strapped. Yes, I have simplified the
process but I think we are all bright enough to get the idea.

Here is the catch. People like having books in their hand, they like to
have a tangible thing to hold. I believe that over time this need to
have a physical connection will diminish, but it will be a slow process.
I think for the present libraries are going to remain a place where
patrons come to get "stuff." At the same time it would be incredibly
short sighted for us to rely solely on old business models. Our job is
to bring information to our users and hopefully instill in them a
certain amount of joy from the knowledge they gain from us. Instead of
being protective of the "way we have always done it," we need to be
forward thinking and look at how technology can help us in our goals. We
should embrace anything that makes us more effective in achieving our
goal of helping our patrons. 

Libraries that have given up on the book are just as foolish as those
that try to put their heads in the sand and pretend that all is well,
and if they keep doing the same thing over and over they will remain a
viable part of our communities. As in most things the middle ground
seems to be the right path. It is possible for us to adapt without
giving up our core beliefs, we just need to remember that our core
beliefs are predicated on ideals and philosophy not on any specific
technology, whether it be the still venerable book or the latest in tech
gadgetry.         

These are my thoughts and opinions and are not meant to reflect the view
of the library or my coworkers.  

Brian Kopetsky, MLS

Assistant Circulation Supervisor

Appleton Public Library

From: publib-bounces at webjunction.org
[mailto:publib-bounces at webjunction.org] On Behalf Of Watson, Jamie
Sent: Friday, September 04, 2009 11:36 AM
To: Robert Balliot; gary at resourceshelf.com
Cc: publib at webjunction.org
Subject: RE: [Publib] CNN on Libraries, Librarianship and Libraries 2.0

THANK YOU! I mentioned to someone it's like it was written with a
stereotype generator.

Jamie Watson

Assistant Materials Manager

1221-A Brass Mill Road

Belcamp, MD 21017

Phone: 410-273-5600 x. 2276

Fax: 410-273-5600

watson at hcplonline.info

________________________________

From: publib-bounces at webjunction.org
[mailto:publib-bounces at webjunction.org] On Behalf Of Robert Balliot
Sent: Friday, September 04, 2009 9:40 AM
To: gary at resourceshelf.com
Cc: publib at webjunction.org
Subject: Re: [Publib] CNN on Libraries, Librarianship and Libraries 2.0

CNN's article  The future of libraries, with or without books
<http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/09/04/future.library.technology/index.html
>   is incredibly simplistic

and biased. 

R. Balliot

http://oceanstatelibrarian.com <http://oceanstatelibrarian.com/> 

On Fri, Sep 4, 2009 at 9:26 AM, gary price <gary at freepint.com> wrote:

CNN is running a lengthy post today about the current state/future of
libraries and librarianship including a section titled Library 2.0.
We've posted highlights and a link to the full text on ResourceShelf.

See:
http://bit.ly/12kFbt

-- 
Gary D. Price, MLIS
Librarian
Director of Online Information Resources, Ask.com
Editor, ResourceShelf and DocuTicker
Gary Price Library Research and Internet Consulting

Visit ResourceShelf and Docuticker
http://www.resourceshelf.com <http://www.resourceshelf.com/> 
http://www.docuticker.com <http://www.docuticker.com/> 

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