Week 6, Thing 15: Web 2.0 and Library 2.0

I read "Away from Icebergs." Nice article. The author makes the important point that as we've moved away from print-only resources, libraries need to do a better job of adapting the way they serve customers. The notiont of the "just in case" collection going the way of the dodo is readily apparent. Speaking from the experience of sitting on the Adult Print committee, we often ask ourselves if we need to purchase an item, or whether the information that item provides is already available on line.
I agree with his point that we need to increase our ability to educate the public in using these resources. Of course, we need to educate ourselves first, I believe.
And finally, his notion of the "come to us" policy of the library is useful. Customers "come to us" for a variety of reasons, many of which didn't factor into a library setting just ten years ago. So it's important that we know why a customer would want to still "come to us."

I also read "Into a New World of Librarianship." All in all, I agree with the author's basic theme that libraries need to step into the quickly flowing stream of technology in order to better serve patrons. Simply buying more computers isn't enough. Librarians need to know how to use the tools available to them so that they can in turn better serve the customer, and if that includes Instant Messaging, Mash-ups, blogs, etc., so be it.