The future of libraries

I’ve been reading some ideas about the future of libraries in the OCLC newsletter (no. 2, 2006). At the risk of stating nothing new, a number of observations can be made.

Given that both libraries and the Web exist to provide people with information, the expansion and development of the Web obviously has significance for the materials and services provided by libraries. The Web has made many types of information much more accessible than before, especially the topical, esoteric and obscure. This renders the library obsolete as a repository for certain types of information, especially where currency and cost are issues, e.g. obscure serials needed for a very limited audience.

The Web also affects the nature of information publishing and distribution. Many forms of information are much more readily and cheaply distributed via the Web, e.g. think RSS feeds. In some cases, this has made traditional print publishing no longer worthwhile. In other cases, it has made possible the distribution of material that was not previously economically possible. There is also the ‘democratisation’ aspect; cheap technologies like blogging make it possible for many more people to distribute their ideas, albeit without the moderation and quality controls of traditional publishing. Obviously that has both plusses and minuses. The Web has also led to information being packaged differently to suit the distribution medium. That’s often just a point of difference, neither a gain nor a loss. A strong attraction of web-based materials is the ability to use them in a wider range of ways by adapting them or drawing elements from them, as Web 2.0 tools clearly demonstrate (within the limitations of copyright, of course, but that’s a topic for a whole discussion on its own).

Could the Web displace traditional library materials altogether? Probably not in my view. For some areas of study and enquiry, books will remain entirely suitable and attractive to meet users’ needs, cost-effective, easily accessible (if you can visit the library), and simple and convenient to use. Libraries make them affordable by sharing their use. For example, in our library, books on the visual arts remain attractive, suitable and popular and are likely to remain so for a long time to come. Just as TV did not displace radio, nor radio displace newspapers, the Web probably won’t entirely displace existing media. There’ll simply be an adjustment process and the various media will co-exist, each one in the roles for which it is best suited and economic compared to the alternatives. Against this, if we can escape from traditional ideas about how information should be packaged and found, the Web may reach further than we initially expect. While they are always likely to be with us, due to their relatively low cost, convenience and attractiveness, books may become much more limited in their future roles. They may become much more special, more like works of art than information sources. One attraction of a library without books would be the elimination of the problem of losses and damage to the library collection, an often serious problem undermining the service libraries now provide.

What of librarians in this changing landscape? With far fewer books and maybe no serials do they still have a role? It comes back to the fundamental questions; what are librarians, what do they do? The most useful librarians have always been more than mere organisers and custodians of information materials. They have sought to inform and guide their clients, to impart skills and to apply their own knowledge and skills to the recovery of relevant information to meet their clients’ needs. These are not simple, everyday skills, and librarians should not underestimate their value. (The NSW pay claim a few years ago formally determined that we have many skills comparable to professionals such as engineers or geologists.) In the new landscape of information, our information skills will still be needed, but they will be a different set. In a very complex information technology environment, there is likely to be an even greater need for skilled, knowledgeable guides to assist information users, suggest sources and possibilities for information use. This demands highly trained specialists, not just leaving things to chance, if information users are to make the most of the possibilities. So, as I see it, librarians will need to acquire a substantially new set of skills, but they will still be needed, as experts in information. They will also need to adapt to the Web as a means of delivering their services. In a busy and diverse online world, the old model of a physical library the client must visit, won’t suffice.