3 ms·
This is a fascinating read, but I'm not sure what the answer is to "why libraries now" as opposed to "how can we make sure libraries are still relevant?" I don'
by kevinalexbrown 15y ago
This is a fascinating read, but I'm not sure what the answer is to "why libraries now" as opposed to "how can we make sure libraries are still relevant?" I don't quite know the answer, and I admit to being queasy about letting them go. After all, libraries were such a democratizing power, even if their quality did rapidly fall off as one went from big city to small city to town. A great deal of attention was paid to making sure libraries aren't a footnote in history, but I think it's worth asking why we don't want that.
(As an aside, I almost didn't follow the link because I assumed it was about undocumented Java libraries or some such thing)
- enobrev 15y agoIt seems to me that the libraries of the world should be at the front lines of the public internet. A mix of Wikipedia, the EFF and Project Gutenberg. Ensuring human information is correct, well referenced, publicly accessible and protected in the interest of the public. Basically, what they've always been, but in digitized form. The libraries - as a tax-supported public servant - should be internet savvy enough to be top advisor to government on how to move forward in the best interest of the public in regards to the Internet and the media held therein. The largely one-sided tug-of-war that is copyright and the internet shows that the public needs a larger and louder representative when it comes to our media. "The library" should be front and center of these discussions making sure the decisions hold the public needs in high regard. With all these things in place, not only would libraries remain relevant, but they would thrive, remaining the important part in human history they've always been.
- RyanMcGreal 15y ago> A mix of Wikipedia, the EFF and Project Gutenberg. Don't forget http://archive.org http://archive.org.