The future of Libraries!

I've always wondered what the future of libraries will be with the advent of the new technologies -- the Internet, Podcast, Wikki, MP3, iPod, Cellphones, WiFi, RFID, etc?

Will Librarians still be relevant in this age of wireless information transfer?

Will books still be relevant in this era of online publishing and so on?

Personally I do believe that books are here to stay!

Also, I believe that not everything can be scanned and put online. Some art cannot be scanned no matter the level of technology. Nothing beats having a book at hand to browse. In fact, I've discovered that lots of people still print out what they find online. When I asked most of them, "why?", they claimed that the monitors are bad for their eyes or that it was more convenient for them to read the paper copies.

Flipping through books can be exciting and fulfilling --- the touch, the pictures, the words, etc. I learn more and faster reading books than online.

Librarians are needed to teach people on how to navigate through the new information overload. Librarians are needed to index these new information and structure them for ease of use.

There are many Internet tools resources on the Internet. Librarians can help library patrons in utilizing these resources such as the location of an Internet services provider, browse the Internet to seek information, as well as information on how to cite Internet resources, Web browsers, current Internet trends such as Java script and Applets, and other miscellaneous resources such as Inter-networking ethics and policies, general shareware and public domain software. Also, Librarians can benefit from the Internet as tool for enhancing their profession such as trying to convert materials to Web format such as SGML, TEI, and HTML, Web page tools, etc.

Welcome!

I am a Librarian in one of the inner city libraries in the USA. This blog is an avenue for everyone to share their thoughts, experiences, ideas, travels, and background. I look forward to many contributors with their ideas, thoughts, experiences, travels, and background. Primarily, Librarians can learn from each other to navigate through our dynamic and changing profession, and new technologies. We will discuss how to take advantage of these tools and apply them to our profession while providing best practice customer service.