Dr. J. Richard Madaus “Technology, Popular Culture and Libraries: the Hurrieder We Go, the Behinder we Get.” Executive Director of the College Center for Library Automation CCLA-www..cclaflorida.org

 

He opened with the quote, “We are who we are not because of our talents and skills but by the choices we choose to make.” Albus Dumbledore

 

Dr. Madaus shared a number of examples of mobile devices and the capacity for storage of information. He referenced studies identifying impacts to all types of libraries. He asked if the reality is the far future or moments from yesterday and that if libraries ignore the user’s needs they will not use the libraries. Their culture is good enough – people don’t care about the authenticity but the information answers the questions is good enough.

 

Recognizing how people live is not about how we grew up but what they are doing. Libraries need to move away from the illusion of site bound librarianship. The challenges is can libraries move fast enough without no additional resources because we are not going to change popular culture. Libraries can add value. Digital Immigrants use the equipment for tasks and Digital Natives use the technology to connect.

 

§    Access

§    Assistance

§    Instruction

§    Collection Building

§    Information no longer Site Bound

§    The more available the more that is expected to be available

§    Why do we think our users want information in the containers we provide

§    Provide services to users we will never see

§    Collaboration is the long term key for libraries to survive

§    Packaging content in multiple ways and multiple access points

 

 

“It is not the strongest of the species that survives nor is it the most intelligent but those who are most responsive to change.”

Charles Darwin

 

Recommended Sources:

http://catalogablog.blogspot.com/

Santa Fe Public Library Blog http://santafelibrary.blogspot.com/

Pew Internet and American Life Project

Statistics 2001-01 M. Kyrillidou and M. Young (200) www.arl.org Research is moving away from the print

 

–Notes from Greta Chapman, RCPL