Thing #15 Web 2.0 & Library 2.0

"In Web 2.0, the Web becomes the center of a new digital lifestyle that changes our culture and touches every aspect of our lives. The Web moves from simply being sites and search engines to a shared network space that drives work, research, education, entertainment and social activities—essentially everything people do."--This quote from Tom Storey in the OCLC newsletter both challenges me and scares me. I like the connectivity, but I think we're moving way too fast to make some down-to-earth decisions about what is best for education. We are letting young people drive how we approach teaching & learning and I'm not sure they are experienced enough to know what is best. So....I think we should adapt these new technologies as they are proven to really be teaching something worth learning. There is still a need to study the past and learn from past mistakes. There is a need for old-fashioned values and stability. Somehow, we've got to update and upgrade without crashing the existing system.

A link from Tom Storey's article brought up this quote by Rick Anderson, "No profession can survive if it throws its core principles and values overboard in response to every shift in the zeitgeist. However, it can be equally disastrous when a profession fails to acknowledge and adapt to radical, fundamental change in the marketplace it serves." This is kind of what I was trying to say in paragraph 1 above. I think we need to change, have to change, will change--but I hope it happens because librarians are aware of the needs of their communities.

Well, I said that Tom Storey both challenged and scared me--that was before I read Dr. Wendy Shultz's predictions of Library 3.0 and Library 4.0 further into that newsletter! 3D libraries and knowledge spas....I will probably be retired by then!

One last quote here, from Christopher Harris, SLJ May '06, "As previously mentioned, school libraries need to extend services beyond the four walls of the media center. One thing I see for the digitally re-shifted library is moving into nontraditional educational spaces. In my organization, we are creating libraries for two educational centers to support career and technical and alternative education programs....We are looking to create something akin to an information commons, which will feature a print and audio fiction collection and primarily digital reference and nonfiction resources." This idea of print/audio fiction and digital reference and nonfiction has definitely crossed my mind during this last year. I personally do not like to read fiction on a computer screen, or an iPhone, or whatever. I like a book. And, in some cases, I still want a book for nonfiction if I plan to read the whole book. But for just looking something up, digital is great.