Library 2.0: A prophecy of doom?

NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! AAAAAAGGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

WHY?????? WHY??????? WHY????????????? WHY????????????????

As you can see, I'm currently in the midst of an epic meltdown/collapse. If I weren't at work right now, I'd be having an even bigger hissy fit, believe that. Nevertheless, p2p will never give up. I shall try my best to finish this post and pick myself up by the bootstraps. Actually, I really need this. Bloggin' is an ideal solution to distract my worried soul.

So anyhoo, p2p read two articles, "Away from Icebergs" and "Into a New World of Librarianship." The former was the only essay worth commenting about. Rick Anderson, the author of Away from Icebergs, essentially tells us a futuristic, magical tale of gloom and bedlam. The crux of Anderson's argument is that there are several obstacles potentially threatening a library's success. He decides to focus on three major obstacles (he calls them icebergs for metaphorical effect, I suppose).

1) The "just in case collection": Anderson does not believe in a library collection, in the traditional sense. We shouldn't amass a comphrensive collection of materials, just for the sake of doing so. When circulation numbers go down, the new materials will be unused, merely collecting dust. I can already see this trend at SPL. We seem to be way more selective in what we choose to purchase.

2) Reliance on User Education: In this point, Anderson wants to somehow improve library services as so every patron would fully understand it, with hardly any instruction provided to them. Sure, I would agree with providing efficient and more fluid methods to help out patrons, but there is an eventual line I do not want to cross. Libraries are institutions of academia, and should not completely "dumb" down. If you want to go to a place where everything is reduced to the lowest common denominator, I suggest you visit a frat house or rodeo.

3) The "Come to us" model of library service: As a final nail in the coffin, Anderson says we must adapt to keep people interested in visiting the library. In today's complex world, a library is just one of many options we can occupy our time with. With the internet, TV and other various technolgies, patrons can find the same services that a local library provides. It's as if he was thinking of SPL when he described this dilemma. Our organization can definitely receive a major upgrade with technology. Researching more about Ebooks comes to mind. Or how about the ability to accept credit and debit cards for crying out loud!