Scanning the library universe, I came across an interview with David Lee King on the website degreetutor.com. The Future of Librarians Interview is an interesting read. When King was asked why libraries are still important?, he said the following:
"We are still one of the few social places one can gather, tell stories, and create stories. People will always be attracted to that type of space. And, of course, we have free stuff".
King made an interesting point. What really stands out in his answer is the comment about libraries being "social places". Much has been on the library radar about the new social web part of our lives such as Flickr, Youtube, Second Life, etc. etc.
Blinging it with Social LifeIt is difficult to keep up with this new surge in social software or new and exciting applications that make your online social experience easier.. Bringing everyone up to speed can be a challenge. Larger library systems have attempted to provide staff with the opportunity to learn about Library 2.0 via self-paced online tutorials. It is beneficial and I highly recommend that everyone take the time to spend a few weeks to learn about blogging, wiki's and MySpace, etc. etc. I would not be here right now writing this post had it not been for those free library tutorials!
