(no subject)
I love the serendipity of browsing libraries. The smell of the books, the exciting discovery of a literary treasure that was previously unknown, the quietness. Libraries have always seemed like Christmas to me, because all the books are free. Sure, you have to return the book, but still, it's pretty exciting to me.
Paper books are slowly becoming obsolete and everything is E-this or i-THAT, which is quick and convenient for people who really want E or I and can afford the technology. I'm a librarian. They shove this crap down our throats daily. E-books are helpful, sure, but I do hope people still read paper books. E-resource formats become obsolete quickly and there's no freaking serendipity. It won't be the same, ever. Your content provider can delete stuff, censor whatever it wants, or just turn your service off and this sucks. They certainly don't use a controlled vocabulary description, which makes things easy to find (Hi Google). When I buy that book, barring any catastrophe, I know I have it until I die, or sell it to the used book store.
I was browsing the stacks of the Free Library branch at Fox Chase and happened upon a copy of 2001: A Space Odyssey. I've seen the movie, and although it's stunning and deep, it always puts me to sleep. I think it's the soundtrack. Anyway, I'm reading the book and it is absolutely beautiful.
Paper books are slowly becoming obsolete and everything is E-this or i-THAT, which is quick and convenient for people who really want E or I and can afford the technology. I'm a librarian. They shove this crap down our throats daily. E-books are helpful, sure, but I do hope people still read paper books. E-resource formats become obsolete quickly and there's no freaking serendipity. It won't be the same, ever. Your content provider can delete stuff, censor whatever it wants, or just turn your service off and this sucks. They certainly don't use a controlled vocabulary description, which makes things easy to find (Hi Google). When I buy that book, barring any catastrophe, I know I have it until I die, or sell it to the used book store.
I was browsing the stacks of the Free Library branch at Fox Chase and happened upon a copy of 2001: A Space Odyssey. I've seen the movie, and although it's stunning and deep, it always puts me to sleep. I think it's the soundtrack. Anyway, I'm reading the book and it is absolutely beautiful.