I agree with you about books and the tactility of them (for us). Not sure
it will be the same in the future except fiction, poems, and other
passtime reading out in the shade of a hammock on a sunny summer's
afternoon, late at night, etc. For work and research information, and for
collections of special maaterial, I don't think future folks are going to
have the time to physically go to a library, search, and read books,
fische and microfilm, etc. Most of these types of materials will be
available online and in a digital format. Same for all magazines.
Alphanumerics, pictures, ads, et al will be available at a distance. As
an instructor or researcher or both, we will tell our digital agents
(Knowbots) to go out and search for ?????, or to always keep tract of
?????, and they will. We'll be able to assign such tasks before lunch and
come back to every pertinent fact on ???? that has been published. And
we'll always be up to the minute, luxury we certainly don't have now.
Don't worry. It's going to be a wonderful world, at least in terms of
our access to information. Not sure about the rest of it. 7 careers in
a lifetime sounds a bit werrying.
Bill Orr
orrwill@mail.auburn.edu
On Fri, 28 Jun 1996, Alice Smithson <asmithso@eagle.esd189.wednet.edu> wrote:
> Here is a question for those of you with an opinion: What is the library
> of the future going to look like? In what ways will it adapt given the
> push of technology? I don't believe it will replace books. As we have
> discussed, books just have an important feel to them. That feeling is part
> of the experience of reading. But in what other ways is a library going to
> change? I am seriously considering investing my time, money and energy
> into obtaining my MLS, but I am wondering what you all see what my
> challenges might be?
>
> TIA
>
> alice in snohomish