Wednesday, August 8, 2007

Blogging and Library Buildings

Modern Libraries are already into that "next generation", but I am not sure I will ever have the confidence to be there, too. Luckily, our main mission as a library is still to provide customer service and accurate and complete answers. This is true on any level, and, there are still a lot of people (more than want to admit it) that know little to none about modern technology i.e. computers, blogs, youtube, RSS feeds, etc. These people still want to "play" with computers and have a living, breathing person, help them. It's these same people who want a live person at their bank, a live person on the other end of the telephone line to help them, a live person to talk with at the grocery store.

Now as technology becomes more and more available and universally understandable, librarians and libraries do need to try to stay "one step ahead" just to be a "living, breathing" source of information. That's where I am not sure I can truly be that answer person. The Library wiki that Whiteford and Norrisville created for computer troubleshooting is absolutely wonderful. These are the kinds of things that need to be on every Reference Desk Favorites to pull down and use quickly and efficiently. Instead of cumbersome notebooks with computer troubleshooting directions and master calendars, booklists, and other such things, these information goldmines should be available (and updated) on our reference computers' favorites just like many branches have started to do with other universal necessities.

Blogs and LibraryThings and such are really useful, too. They are, however, particular to the person who creates them. They may not produce the desired results quickly enough to answer customer quieries and reading advisories. Saying that, they are fun and keep us communicating with one another everywhere in the world for a pretty modest pricetag.

I still worry that all this computer technology will keep us isolated and not talking face to face with the person sitting next to us, our neighbors next door, people we encounter daily. Yes, we "communicate" with others on Blogs, Facebooks, MySpace, etc., but we never have to leave our computers or our chairs. Never say never, but are library buildings going to be nothing but shells to house computers? I can't get the hang of "reading a book" on a handheld device. (I am feeling very old, too.)

Today and in the future, technology is changing so, so quickly. It is for the young and fearless. But, will all this knowledge, the news, the Blogs, the quick answers, the wikis, etc. keep us honest and objective, keep us fair and balanced? Will humanity "create" their own personalities from the safety of that anonymous chair? This is all too 1984, but sitting in a hotel in Washington, D.C. on a computer in the lobby of a hotel surrounded by buildings and underground shopping centers, well, that's the spooky feeling I am getting.

Librarians are honest and personable! Yeah!!! to these traits.

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