This is an aside from class postings, but I just came across this
article about the Ridgefield Public Library in Ridgefield, Connecticut. Apparently they're in the planning stages of a building a new library, and have some angry opposition. Some community members don't understand why new facilities are being built when the day of the book is over.
“Give everybody a tablet, and get rid of the stacks. You’re done,” he
said. “...It’s ADA compliant.”
Virtual libraries are already being set up, and are the future, Mr.
Miller said.
“The classics, anything that’s over 100 years old, you can get from
Google for free,” he said. “Anything written in the last 25 years,
people have digitized it and are selling digital copies.”
While it's an interesting perspective in what the role of a library is in a community, it's frustrating that people continue to make large political statements without understanding the dynamic day-to-day realities, here an understanding of the dynamic between
e-book publishers and libraries would be greatly beneficial to this discussion. I know this level of selective awareness is not new in our world, but it gets me every time.
