Until We're All Robots

Libraries used to mainly be all about books. I think we may be able to agree that at some point in the future before the sun goes supernova they may -- while still containing books -- be mainly about digital information in its many forms.

I don't mean to be all YOU WILL BE ASSIMILATED about this, because honestly, it may take decades, many of you may move on before this happens.

No, you are not the only one thinking "haven't I seen that image before someplace?" But I think many of us can agree, the awkward in-between years are where we are now. Robert Frost described his mixed feelings about the world as a "lovers quarrel" and I think I could be described as having a lovers quarrel with librarianship. Put another way I've seen the best minds of my profession destroyed by tech support and spam. My publisher pal told me "sometimes I want to break up with technology..."

We know a lot. We know where to find a lot more. We are entering a playing field where our users may know more than we do, about a lot of things. You all remember the guys from the reference desk who were experts on something or other and would still come and ask questions. If you worked it right you'd often learn as much as you taught but the library was a good place for guys like that. The analog is that guy at the reference desk dangling an ipod or a disk on key or needing to hop on email to print plane tickets or IM to tell his wife he'll be late..... plus he's frustrated and doesn't know why he can't get on a computer NOW.

Hybrid sounds sort of sexy and efficient at the same time, don't you think? We can't, we just can't, be all things to all people. What is in our toolkit, then?

• Clear outlines: "What we are trying to do for you"
• Clear guidelines: "What is and is not our problem. What is and is not our responsibility" rememebr when the health care people started telling you that you had rights? technologically, in as many formats and languages as necessary. Some things are your problem, some things, we fix and tell you when it will be fixed
• Clear understanding of the partnership "We learn as you learn."

In the US, nutrition guidelines went from teaching people how to eat more to telling them to eat less. Similarly in our public libraries, we see ourselves in the "may you live in interesting times" type of situation where we need to learn how to limit access to our resources, not promote them. anecdote: Outreach quandary at my library.... Let's see where this can take us...

To many people, the interface IS the software.

• What are we trying to do? Provide access to a lot of quality information simply and compactly
• Problems and responsibilities. Interfaces are hard, some of this requires user education, some needs vendor advocacy
• How we work together. Continually trying to improve interfaces, user testing

Remember the search/find distinction and know whether you are creating a tool for users or a tool for librarians. if you want my business/patronage, ask for it by making your tools genuinely easy to use. jamesian geniune options. if we know why these products are better to use but CAN'T MAKE THEM LOOK THAT WAY we need to be prepared to intermediate

• What are we trying to do? Provide access and understand the laws.
• Problems and responsibilities. Understanding confusing laws, avoiding overpolicing and chilling effects.
• How we work together. Informing patrons and ourselves about the changing face of information and how libraries get in the middle. Moving from ownership models to subscription models

We don't have to choose sides, but just reading the warnings on the side of the box and failing to put those through your own filter is a side as well. dealing with a lay population who only know about these rules and policies by watching tv, or reading MPAA/RIAA press releases in the media, copyright infringement IS theft? Don't be timid

What has Gonzales been doing? Going across the country to tell high school and college kids they will go to jail for downloading music? Any public institution has to think carefully about going against the wishes of the government for PR reasons among others. Conflict in USAPA vs. the 1st Amendment needs to be carefully considered, for example. Other laws: REALID Why, you ask, is this a technology issue?

• What are we trying to do? Protect your privacy and act lawfully.
• Problems and responsibilities. Nothing is happening except talk... we think. Legislation is pending. We have a plan and we will do what we say.
• How we work together. How we do it in Vermont. How we do it nationwide.

Current events can be hard to keep up with but learning what will affect libraries is important. This can be a top-down process. [come to my talk tomorrow]

anecdote about new job, seeing pictures of myself on the intarweb but not being able to get to librarian.net This is a professional problem, even if it is not [yet] your problem.

• What are we trying to do? Provide access and obey the law.
• Problems and responsibilities. We maintain software, or eschew it and stay abreast of legislation. We explain it, try to make it unobtrusive, you try not to break what we have.
• How we work together. We have a policy that is public record. Even in a filtering environment, choices can be made to err on the side of caution or... not.

Collection development is serious work and choosing a filter should be thought of as a type of pre-weeding and given close scrutiny accordingly. If you must filter, tell your patrons, explain the process, explain their rights and your responsibilities. examples: tell adults they can get the filters turned off, have copies of the supreme court decision, explain what your filter does and does not block, have an explanation of why you chose it. consider an open source filter that you can more accurately monitor.

We're learning a new "expert balance" with our colleagues and patrons.

Large consortiums and bundled take-it-or-leave-it software, confusing technology and increasingly complex user needs are going to make Our jobs will get tougher before they get easier.

Easy interfaces on the Internet raise the bar for everyone.we all know about information searching behavior where people ask their friends

Librarianship is becoming a profession for people who at least like technology [and love challenges] more than ever before.

This talk lives at: http://librarian.net/talks/nhlablogs

Questions or Comments?

Jessamyn West is a community tech mentor for AmeriCorps working with the Kimball Library in Randolph Vermont. She runs the weblog librarian.net and is an American Library Association At Large Councilor. She thinks computers are fun. IM her at iamthebestartist.

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