Libraries and Technology

The role of the librarian is evolving rapidly as technological advancements become embeded into library services and into to the lives of library clients. Modern librarians are now tasked with three key duties with regard to technology. First, they must educate themselves on the most pervasive and useful technologies (web. 2.0 functionality, mobile devices, convergent media outlets and the like) and find ways to incorporate them into the day-to-day operations of the library. Second, librarians must find ways to educate their clients on the proper and efficient use of these technologies for information gathering and sharing. Third, all libraries must now embrace structural administrative changes that allow for the full integration of technology into the library system. These changes include, but are not limited to: revised budgeting mechanisms, security, facilities management - and perhaps in a less direct way - a redefinition of the role of libraries in society.

In "Introduction to the Library and Information Professions" the authors write about a paradigm shift for library and information professionals. This shift is from a “bibliographic-centered” paradigm to a “client-centered” paradigm (Greer, Grover & Fowler, 2007). “That shift is from a preoccupation with the housekeeping (of) the information packages to a concern for the users of information” (Greer et al, 2007, p. 41). Rapidly changing information technology has quickened this shift to a point where the quality of the individual library user’s experience has become as important as the service provided. The more quickly the technology changes the more complex becomes the task of fitting the new technology with the old customs, and information professionals who are uncomfortable with the speed or complexity of change may choose to continue to do what is familiar and safe (Greer et al, 2007).

Sharon Gray Weiner writes about the reasons libraries are slow to make new technology part of the landscape. Historically libraries have been focused more on preserving the past than inventing the future, and the first introduction of technology into libraries complemented this role by making existing library operations and services run more smoothly. However, libraries are now being asked to be primary diffusers of information technology (Weiner, 2007). “Visionary leadership, an elastic organization, and receptivity among the staff to a very different vision are required to respond to large-scale change” (Weiner, 2007, p. 161). The difficulty that libraries face in the adaption of technology is that these changes are discontinuous which means an obvious break with past practice. There is no previous experience or consensus about how technological change should be handled (Weiner, 2007). “Libraries that select comfortable, traditional, but increasingly marginal roles risk becoming more marginalized and increasingly irrelevant to the central focus of information access and scholarly discourse” (Weiner, 2007, p. 162).

Weiner offers a list of reasons why people resist technological innovation:

• Protection of social status or an existing way of life
• Avoidance of job elimination
• A contradiction between the innovation and social customs and habits
• The inherent rigidity of large or bureaucratic organizations
• Personality, habit, fear of change
• The tendency of organized groups to force conformity
• Reluctance to disturb the equilibrium
• Awareness that technological innovations have affected library organizations greatly (Weiner, 2007, p. 164)

There is an abundant use of creative technologies in libraries today. Libraries featured below have realized the potential of new technologies to reach their present and future clients and to market their services. Still other libraries seem to be able to see far into the future to create libraries that little resemble the traditional bricks and mortar book repository. Below are some examples of how libraries are utilizing the latest technological advances.

Social Networking websites on the Internet are a great way to reach the younger generations and also to market libraries services and events. Examples of social networking websites include MySpace and Facebook. Many libraries and authors have pages, such as the Hennepin County Library in Minnesota.

Flickr is a photo sharing website that libraries can utilize to promote their events as well. Two examples include the Dublin City (Ireland) Public Libraries and the Vancouver Public Library. A third example concerns gaming in libraries.

YouTube - a video hosting site - is another way to reach more clients, including those that prefer watching to reading. Youtube is an effective way to reach vast audiences and can be useful in marketing and promotion of libraries. Below are two examples of how libraries are using Youtube. The first is from the Calgary Public Library:



The second is from the Denver Public Library:



Digitization of resources and collections is another creative use of technology. The intent of digitization from a library standpoint is to increase access to a collection. The Library of the Future video discusses Stanford University’s libraries digitization project. The project’s focus is to get the libraries’ collections online with the intent of increasing access to information and delivery of that information to all types of devices.



Another ambitious digitization project comes from the Library of Congress. The American Memory project “provides free and open access through the Internet to written and spoken words, sound recordings, still and moving images, prints, maps, and sheet music that document the American experience. It is a digital record of American history and creativity.”

Mobile delivery of information is the latest trend with which libraries will have to contend. Clients’ increasing reliance on smart phones, blackberries and cell phones have turned the focus of information delivery from email to handheld, wireless devices and libraries are heeding that call. Podcasts can be searched at Everyzing. ChaCha is a free reference service that you can text or call and receive answers on almost any type of device from a basic cell phone to a sophisticated smart phone.

Gaming program and tournaments have become a popular way to attract non-traditional library users to the library. Watch the video from the American Library Association highlighting a gaming tournament at the Oak Park (IL) Public Library.

A future vision of the library can be viewed at The Transformation Lab at the Aarhus (Denmark) Public Library. This library is dedicated to the concept of the library as a social space as well as a repository of books and information.



Also on the horizon is video “paper” which Harry Potter fans might recognize:



Second Life, a virtual world, creates many advantages for libraries in the future. Many organizations hold conferences on Second Life. The Evergreen Open Source ILS project held a conference in Second Life in winter of 2008. Second Life has libraries and exhibits to visit. The Reference Desk at Info Island can be a busy, boisterous social place.

As technology advances so do the needs of library patrons. No longer are libraries places where knowledge is stored and contained. Libraries have evolved into information centers. Accessible throughout the day, libraries use multiple formats to connect with their patrons. By using Web 2.0, which is a mixture of ready access technology such as email, chat, blogging, and wikis, libraries can increase patron traffic to their sites.

While the concept of Web 2.0 sounds complicated and expensive, it is in fact relatively easy and cheap. The Public Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County developed 23 Learning 2.0 Things as a way to increase staff knowledge. The self guided tutorials introduce staff to new technology weekly. The goal is to create a patron-library relationship which takes place over the web.

The Ann Arbor District Library is one such example of a thriving patron-library web relationship. Through the use of blogs and RSS feeds, AADL quickly connects the community to local hotspots, businesses and neighborhood awareness. The RSS feed for AADL is on the library’s home page. Patrons can get the latest library & community information without searching through multiple web pages. The director of AADL, Josie Parker, uses blogging as a way to remain accessible to the public. Entries include the 2008 Voice of the People award, an update on the Downtown Library Project and temporary branch closings. Patrons are able to leave blog comments or post news items to the community blog.

Email and chat reference are popular among academic and public libraries. Examples include the University of Michigan, Lansing Community College and Michigan State University. Each college has incorporated instant messaging and email reference to varying degrees. MSU uses 24 hour chat reference either by reference librarians or trained partners. LCC and UM host instant messaging reference during library hours only. Email reference is used by nearly every library—Detroit Public, Ann Arbor, Capital Area District Libraries. Reply times vary by library size and type but average twenty four hours.

Web 2.0 utilizes previously conceived concepts to enhance and increase patron use of the library and its services. By creating easy ways for patrons to use library services at the patron’s convenience, libraries will ensure their cultural status as informative, up to date and hip.

As patrons continue to rely more heavily on technology, normal business hours are becoming less common in libraries. Twenty-four hour library access has long been a request of college students, but due to budgeting, staffing, and security concerns it is rarely provided. While many colleges and universities offer some degree of 24 hour library access during exam weeks, only a handful of libraries offer semester long 24 hour library access.

As early as the 1990s, colleges and universities have been moving towards some sort of 24 hour library access. In 1997, Whitman College in Walla Walla, WA, moved towards a 24 hour library service (Albanese, 2005). Soon other colleges were following suite. In 2000, the Illinois State University library kept its main floor open 24 hours. However, budget cuts soon reduced this to 18 hours a day. In 2003, the University of Hawaii began offering 24 hour service Mondays – Thursdays. By 2005 the University of Connecticut was offering 24 hour library service. Today the Northeastern University Snell Library offers 24/7 first floor library access during the semester, providing students basic circulation, study areas, and computer services while both the University of Arizona and the University of Kentucky (William T Young Library) offer 24 hour library service Mondays – Thursdays as well as extended hours Fridays – Sundays. While this is not a complete list of colleges/universities that offer 24 hour access, it shows that the idea is growing.

However, 24 hour library access comes at a cost. Staffing, security, and building maintenance costs are often prohibitive (Curry, 2003; Steele & Walters, 2001). Most libraries that offer 24 hour service do so at a reduced level, only offering computer access, basic circulation services, and study areas. Over 50% of library directors surveyed by Foote (1999) reported that funding for extra staffing hours was the primary concern when deciding on whether or not to extend library hours. While 24 hour library access is often seen as the ideal, most colleges/universities are finding that a 24 hour study rooms or extended library hours are more feasible options. Wayne State University, MIT, and UC Davis are just a few colleges that offer 24 hour study rooms. Several colleges have found that the demand for library services is reduced dramatically after 2am (Albanese, 2005), indicating that extending hours maybe just as beneficial (while more cost efficient) as 24 hour library service (Fox, 2000).

Twenty –four hour libraries are, for the present, mostly found in the academic arena. Many, if not most, public libraries are barely scraping by and are sometimes unable to remain open even 5 days a week. All across the country, libraries are laying-off employees and even closing branches (American Libraries, 2008). At a time when the public can get anything they want, at all hours of the day, libraries are one of the few services that are not able to keep up with the public’s needs.

Even with the promise of new technologies and altered hours of operation aiding library patrons and staff, it is important to remember that technology has a cost, and the use of new technologies can open libraries up to other problems. Often times there is not enough money budgeted to libraries to provide adequate systems for even the basic computing needs of a libraries patronage. A January 2008 survey of libraries by Library Journal indicated that even though the public libraries surveyed cited that public Internet access is the second most important function of their library, “only 2% of their operating budgets to sustain or improve public access computing” (Oder, 2008).

Because such a small amount of funding is being earmarked for technology, librarians must be certain that any investments in new electronic resources or technology must be successful, or they risk spending valuable resources on irrelevant material. Albion College Stockwell-Mudd Library Technology and Reference Librarian Michelle Gerry stated that “we better be careful for what hardware and e-resources we purchase because if we’re wrong, we may not get funding for the next new thing from the administration the next time we ask. Often time, even if a new electronic resource is useful, it won’t matter if we don’t let people know its there” (Gerry, M., personal correspondence, Nov. 2nd, 2008). Librarians need to study and be conscience of the needs and uses of their patrons before they invest in new technology, and then promote it to make sure their investment doesn’t go to waste.

Other problems that new technology has recently plague libraries with have to do with the patron’s use of public Internet access. Public access computer have led to patron downloading illegal, or protected material. Peer to peer file-sharing technologies such as Napster and Kazaa have, in some cases, made libraries into free public markets for copyrighted media and inappropriate media (Rogers, 1997). This became such a problem that Congress formed a task force to crack down on illegal downloading of media at major academic libraries. Public libraries have come under fire when children have been caught viewing adult material. This has caused federal and state legislation to be passed to filter public Internet access (Rogers, 1997).


Discussion Questions:
What can libraries do to help their employees become more comfortable with information technology?

College/University libraries offer many services online (databases, catalogue searches, etc). Do academic libraries really need to be open 24/hrs?

How will librarians keep current with the newest technology?

How will libraries fund the latest technology?

What do you see in the future for technology in the library?

If library services can be offered 24/7 how does this effect staffing physical libraries?

What technology would you most like to see libraries incorporate today?

What technology would your dream library have?


References:
Albanese, A. R. (2005). The Best Thing a Library Can Be is Open. Library Journal, 130(15), 42-44.

Courtney, N. (Ed.). (2007) Library 2.0 and beyond: innovative technologies and tomorrow’s user. Westport, CT: Libraries Unlimited.

Curry, A. (2003). Opening Hours: The Contest Between Diminishing Resources and a 24/7 World. The Journal of Academic Librarianship, 29(6), 375-385.

Economic Crisis Hits Libraries Nationwide. (2008). American Libraries, 39(June/July), 26-27.

Emerging Technologies. Retrieved October 28, 2008 from http://www.webjunction.org/emerging-technologies.

Foote, M., & McManus, T. L. (1999). Hours, Safety, Security Concerns: Issues, Context, Resources, and Checklists. North Carolina Libraries, 57(Fall), 104-109.

Fox, A. (2000). The After-Five Syndrome: Library Hours and Services for the Adult Learner. Reference Librarian, 69/70, 119 - 126.

Fox, Megan K. (2008). Information anywhere. Library Journal, (Suppl. Fall 2008), 2-5.

Gaming at Oak Park Public Library. (2008, October 28). Retrieved October 29, 2008 from http://alfocus.ala.org/videos/gaming-oak-park-public-library.

Gaming Resources – Library Success: A Best Practice Wiki. Retrieved November 1,2008 from http://www.libsuccess.org/index.php?title=Gaming_Resources.

Greer, R., Grover, R., & Fowler, S. (2007). Introduction to the Library and Information Professions. Westport, Connecticut: Libraries Unlimited.

Griffey, Jason (2008). Stranger than we know. Library Journal, (Suppl. Fall 2008), 10-12.

Insight from postings to the “Shift Happens” LIS 6010 Discussion Board (Fall 2008).

Libraries and Collections. Retrieved October 29, 2008, from http://www.lib.neu.edu/libraries_and_collections/hours/

MIT Libraries. (12/13/2007). Retrieved 2008, October 29, from http://libraries.mit.edu/hayden/24study.html

Mobile Devices. Retrieved October 28, 2008 from http://www.webjunction.org/mobile-devices.

Oder, Norman. (2008) “Budget Report 2008: Treading Carefully.” Library Journal. Vol 133, No. 1, January, 15 2008.

Rogers, Michael and St. Lifer, Evan. (1997) “Internet blocking software: online savior or scourge?” Library Journal., Vol 122, No. 6, April 1, 1997. pp. 16.

Steele, P. A., & Walters, C. (2001). Extended Library Hours. Washington DC: Association of Research Libraries.

The University Library. (2008). Retrieved October 29, 2008, from http://www.lib.ucdavis.edu/ul/services/computers/wireless/ehrr.php

The University of Arizona Library. Retrieved October 29, 2008, from http://www.library.arizona.edu/about/hours/

Weiner, Sharon Gray (2003). Growing Pains. In Diane Kresh (editor), The Whole Digital Library Handbook (pp. 161-166). Chicago: American Library Association.

Young Library Hours. Retrieved October 29, 2008, from http://www.uky.edu/Libraries/libhours.php?llib_id=14

Contributors:
Jesse Jones

Ryan Madden

Sherri McConnell

Nichole Napieralski

Susan O'Brien

Jeremy Van Hof