Comments on: Your Library Will Go On… But…

By: Gary

Gary — Mon, 07 May 2012 12:25:07 +0000

Yeah, that is essentially what I meant. Not Amazon specifically, but if similar services start to catch on, over time. If the rise of the Internet has put the function of libraries into question for some policy makers, what would commercial eBook lending do (if it saw widespread use)? For some reason I see a monthly/yearly fee to easily borrow books over the cloud as a great threat; like it is directly targeting what libraries do.

Focusing on the Internet has always been a problem for me because it focuses on one demographic, specifically, those who can not afford computers or internet at home (or maybe I am wrong about who comes to the library to use the computers. I don’t know those numbers) . Book lending always seemed to have a wider appeal. If we focus on Internet access does that move the library mission from community place and assest to charity (only providing information access to those who can’t afford it from home)? If the library no longer lends books or provides reference service, what is the community incentive to come to the library? (this is really just my doomsday scenario. The relationship between a library and its community is much more complex than that. But I do worry about how we justify our existence as these technologies become ubiquitous).

By: Andy

Andy — Mon, 07 May 2012 00:52:25 +0000

I don’t see Amazon’s lending as being a threat, but I do see it as being parallel to our mission. It’s just from a business perspective. What would it mean over time? Would libraries give up the book lending business and focus on internet access? That’s where I see that road leading.

By: Gary

Gary — Thu, 03 May 2012 14:41:08 +0000

A perhaps looming iceberg whose mass is mostly hidden is Amazon’s Prime’s lending library. If Amazon is able to cut more deals or if other companies start similar services, the ability to essentially “rent” books may further erode some of the library’s primary functions (also assuming that eBooks and eReaders continue to see growth). This is all the more reason for libraries to get eBook lending right.

By: Nancy A

Nancy A — Wed, 02 May 2012 22:30:28 +0000

Library as a place is certainly open to a different understanding. If people don’t need to come to the library to access the resources then do we need libraries as a place? The issue of digital divide is never far from the heart of this issue. Are libraries the canary in coal mine? If libraries go, are we turning everything over to a society of haves and have-nots? And moving even closer to where commerce is the tail that wags the dog? If pay for access (direct or indirect) is the way to access information then who controls the information? Do we have to pay for everything as an individual consumer (music, movies, books) or is the sharing resources model still valid?

By: Oleg K.

Oleg K. — Wed, 02 May 2012 05:33:25 +0000

I think that librarians are slowly ceding their collection development responsibilities to vendors like Overdrive, Gale, and OneClickDigital. One a grand scale, the acquisitions are limited to available digital books, which is nothing compared to the size of even a medium/small library. For example, currently my system (County of Los Angeles) has a total of 9,151 unique books in ePub format on Overdrive. This is for the whole system, compared to my one relatively large branch which has something like 26,000 volumes.

But even worse is that the digital materials iceberg is also sinking the library’s interface. In the library, we arrange what our shelves and displays look like. Online, vendors create the interface our patrons see, and frankly, my sense is that it is a poor browsing experience. An extremist might ask, what is a library’s website for except as a list of databases it subscribes to?

By: Andy

Andy — Tue, 01 May 2012 13:05:19 +0000

Yeah, free Wifi is becoming a customer expectation at retail locations. It’s why people opt to go to Starbucks for study space rather than the library. Plus, they tend to be more lenient on their food and drink policy.

By: Michael

Michael — Tue, 01 May 2012 05:31:39 +0000

I think easier Internet accessible computers and ubiquitous wi-fi are digging into our patronage, too. Computer usage is down, everywhere except the chronically unemployed and homeless. And even some of them have Internet through smartphones, tablets and ereaders.