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I spent many hours in and benefitted much from physical libraries in the 1970s. But let’s not forget how limited libraries were then: research libraries were us

I spent many hours in and benefitted much from physical libraries in the 1970s. But let’s not forget how limited libraries were then: research libraries were usually accessible only to people with the proper affiliations or qualifications, and many kept most of their materials in closed stacks; public libraries could be browsed only by people in the same physical location; and in any case you had no chance of stumbling upon a book if it had been checked out, lost, or stolen. Later, when I no longer had a university affiliation and was not living in an English-speaking country, I missed those libraries terribly. The arrival of the Internet felt like an intellectual reawakening to me; I am especially grateful now for the efforts of the Internet Archive. Other than out of nostalgia, I have no desire to use physical libraries again.

wrp 3y ago
The pre-Internet library situation in the USA was better than most of the world, so needs to be considered separately. American state university libraries were open to the public and (usually?) had open stacks. The accessibility of these facilities has become increasingly restricted over the past 25 years. At my school, stacks are still open but get fewer new volumes, and most reference tools are electronic and require a school ID to access. Internationally, access to information has vastly improved. I remember when visiting scholars from 3rd world countries would spend most of their free time photocopying things from the library to take back home.
- jhbadger 3y ago
  In the 1990s (and presumably before, but that was before my time in academia) researchers used to get postcards from researchers in developing countries asking for copies of their articles to be sent to them by (snail!) mail. And we'd do it!
Gigachad 3y ago
These days, books are almost the least important service of a library. They mostly exist as a free social space, events for kids, computer access for the disadvantaged, printers for the average person who no longer owns one. A library I used to leave near even had a room with a digital piano and another with a 3D printer. Giving free access to things that many can't afford is a great public service.

wrp 3y ago

The pre-Internet library situation in the USA was better than most of the world, so needs to be considered separately. American state university libraries were open to the public and (usually?) had open stacks. The accessibility of these facilities has become increasingly restricted over the past 25 years. At my school, stacks are still open but get fewer new volumes, and most reference tools are electronic and require a school ID to access. Internationally, access to information has vastly improved. I remember when visiting scholars from 3rd world countries would spend most of their free time photocopying things from the library to take back home.

jhbadger 3y ago
In the 1990s (and presumably before, but that was before my time in academia) researchers used to get postcards from researchers in developing countries asking for copies of their articles to be sent to them by (snail!) mail. And we'd do it!

Gigachad 3y ago

These days, books are almost the least important service of a library. They mostly exist as a free social space, events for kids, computer access for the disadvantaged, printers for the average person who no longer owns one. A library I used to leave near even had a room with a digital piano and another with a 3D printer. Giving free access to things that many can't afford is a great public service.