Comments on: Balancing technology in library service

By: Cynthia

Cynthia — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 17:12:46 +0000

Excellent post Karen! I agree 100% that librarians are early adopters of technology and that is terrific. Yet there are still many librarians who fear new technologies and claim it hurts customer service. In my workplace, several librarians have complained that covering a Meebo queue is too much when on desk. I say, you answer the phone, you can answer Meebo. I also say that with the phone, if you are not available, the patron doesn’t know until all the ringing stops, the message is done, etc. With Meebo, a quick I’ll be back at 12:30 lets the patron know availability right away–an improvement in customer service.

Still I do believe that some of the dependence on technology is a problem. When the internet goes down, we have no catalog. This is where the old school librarians shine–they know Dewey, I do not. They know our collection. I know only parts of it. They know read alikes without Novellist. I am still working on mastering Novelist (please stop changing the interface…thanks!).

I worry less about what people think about librarians than most librarians–I think that a bad public image is so much better than no public image. What I worry more about is the number of new services that provide information–generally for a fee–that we can provide for free. They have marketing budgets (think KGB), and we do not. In these difficult economic times, people need to be reminded of the services the library provides. Sadly, it is exactly at these times that we have no money to get the word out.

By: Frontline Librarian

Frontline Librarian — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:34:23 +0000

Great comments! I think one of the most challenging things about managing libraries right now is the job of blending diverse library staff into a cohesive team. Some are more schooled in traditional library services, others are chomping at the library 2.0 bit. Both have skills we need and both need to be challenged to stretch outside of their comfort zone. Only with the best of the traditional and the best of the new, only as we ourselves bridge the digital divide will we be able to serve our diverse communities do the same.

By: lemasney

lemasney — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 04:33:46 +0000

Karen, a great post. It’s so funny to me to think that people still believe that libraries are dying. It’s far more accurate to say that libraries are changing, adapting, surviving… beautifully. No one seems to know more about what’s going on in social networks, online databases, the hidden web, the shallow web, and mobile technologies. I’d say 90% of my contacts on Google Wave (the NBT!) are librarians. In my personal experience, librarians are amongst the most interested in training, forward and critical tech thinking, and searching the tech horizon. I was recently at a local museum and remarked to my wife that I wished that the museum took the same forward thinking approach to technology that my local libraries do. Great piece here — and thanks.

By: Karen

Karen — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 22:41:15 +0000

Lisa, Thanks for commenting! It reminded me that I hadn’t signed my post! The forum was great!

By: From the librarygarden: Balancing technology in library service « Phx Friends of UA SIRLS

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 21:39:35 +0000

[...] librarian can be fun and wants to share that with the world….Read entire excellent post here: http://librarygarden.net/2009/11/02/balancing-technology-in-library-service/ Posted in Thinking Long Term. Tags: CE, Public Libraries, Technology. Leave a Comment [...]

By: Lisa Coats

Lisa Coats — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 15:06:11 +0000

Thanks for this post, whoever you are . Let me take this opportunity to ‘publicly’ thank all the co-sponsors of the Adult Services Forum. At the end of the day, things were so hectic that as a member of the Reference Section I mistakenly forgot to thank everyone involved. So, a belated “Thank you” to the IT Section, the Administration & Management Section, the Reader’s Advisory Roundtable, NJLA’s Programming Committee, and the NJ State Library.