Monday, August 6, 2007

Wk. 6: Thing 15: Future of Libraries

Of the articles I read, I thought "To a temporary place in time..." by Wendy Shultz and "Into a new world of librarianship" by Michael Stephens were the most interesting and relevant.

I liked how Wendy described libraries as staying true to past traditions but flexible enough to adapt to changing trends and needs. She said, "Libraries are not just collections of documents and books, they are conversations, they are convocations of people, ideas and artifacts in dynamic exchange." Then later she continues, "But the avalanche of material available will put a premium on service, on tailoring information to needs, and on developing participatory relationships with customers." As librarians, we not only point the way to specific resources that will help, but we also share with them our knowledge of how things are organized, or how the publishing business works, or give general advice based on our experiences. With technology, often we have to start with more rudimentary tools for customers not familiar with the basics. But the more we learn about new technologies, the more we we will be able to pull out the most useful tools for all of our customers and for communicating with fellow staff.

Michael's article focused on similar themes. "Librarian 2.0, then, is the 'strategy' guide for helping users find information, gather knowledge and create content." I liked his writing style and his practical outlook on libraries.

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