3 ms·

The low average quality of online information does not undermine the parent’s point that the internet substantially reduces the marginal value of (physical) lib

by sjy 6y ago

The low average quality of online information does not undermine the parent’s point that the internet substantially reduces the marginal value of (physical) libraries. Free online resources like Wikipedia provide more comprehensive, current and accessible reference material than small local libraries, and non-free academic research databases provide more accessible, and arguably more comprehensive and current, reference material than any single physical library. As the parent recognised, there are still many books that haven’t been digitised, but it is not fair to compare the set of freely available online resources to the set of all copyrighted works you could eventually get your hands on via an inter-library loan. The fact that libraries need to pay for these books, and readers need to return them after a short time, makes them much less “accessible” than online alternatives.

LargoLasskhyfv 6y ago
Where I live we have a good public central library with a very broad selection, which also is offering electronic media. If you happen to be downtown you can get your stuff there, and then casually drop that into one of the many (much smaller) branches in the suburbs. Furthermore you can extend your loan easily and online if you need to (where the standard loan time is one month). I can live with that. Though haven't used it since March for obvious reasons. I think it depends from where and when you look at it. While for someone living "out there" the online stuff is an enrichment, for someone used to live metropolitan or at least some university town, it's only so so and not really overwhelming. The same is true for (good) book stores dealing with dead wood. The haptics are simply different. You can stroll along there and find something interesting widening your horizon by random chance/serendipity. The recommendations from sites like Amazon or Goodreads don't offer that, even if they are trying to emulate that. Not the same, more like tunnel vision, and if something like "surprise me!" is offered, it's different from walking into some rarely or never visited part, quickly scanning a few pages and "seeing" how it's like. The same applies to reading "on-screen", no matter which device, size, and display technology. The haptics are mostly WORSE. Not having experienced the good parts of "dead wood" it may be excused, because not knowing it any better. Nonetheless there were and still are many good parts about "dead wood", and the ecosystem surrounding that. Just not everywhere. /endrant

by sjy 6y ago

LargoLasskhyfv 6y ago

Where I live we have a good public central library with a very broad selection, which also is offering electronic media. If you happen to be downtown you can get your stuff there, and then casually drop that into one of the many (much smaller) branches in the suburbs. Furthermore you can extend your loan easily and online if you need to (where the standard loan time is one month). I can live with that. Though haven't used it since March for obvious reasons. I think it depends from where and when you look at it. While for someone living "out there" the online stuff is an enrichment, for someone used to live metropolitan or at least some university town, it's only so so and not really overwhelming. The same is true for (good) book stores dealing with dead wood. The haptics are simply different. You can stroll along there and find something interesting widening your horizon by random chance/serendipity. The recommendations from sites like Amazon or Goodreads don't offer that, even if they are trying to emulate that. Not the same, more like tunnel vision, and if something like "surprise me!" is offered, it's different from walking into some rarely or never visited part, quickly scanning a few pages and "seeing" how it's like. The same applies to reading "on-screen", no matter which device, size, and display technology. The haptics are mostly WORSE. Not having experienced the good parts of "dead wood" it may be excused, because not knowing it any better. Nonetheless there were and still are many good parts about "dead wood", and the ecosystem surrounding that. Just not everywhere. /endrant