Thing 2. What is Library 2.0?

I'm going to subtitle this post as "Freewheeling about Library 2.0" as it is very much a stream.

I see libraries as places of connections. They connect us to the information. They connect us to government. They connect us to our communities. They connect us to the world. This connectedness fits right in with Library 2.0 and Web 2.0. I know at my local small public library the Internet computers are in constant use. The library is a place you can go create your online presence and connect. You don't have to have access at home. I also know that our library's wireless hotspot averaged more than one connection per day in 2007. So a library is a place to come and connect, even if you do have other options for access. My wife likes to remind me that libraries are the great equalizer. I know it is hard for smaller libraries to keep up in this 2.0 world. You have to pick and choose, or you'll get buried trying to keep up with all the different Web 2.0 tools. I see a lot of libraries making a blog as a portal for their online presence. I think that's a great choice. It makes the site much more dynamic, and not just a brochure for the library.

Library 2.0 goes beyond just the new Web 2.0 tools though. Its about finding out what the whole range of patrons are looking for today, and looking ahead to tomorrow. Its about finding ways to bring new people into the library. Plainview has a Teen Advisory Committee made up entirely of teens. They do fundraising for teen programs and come up with ideas for teen events. Open computer nights, DDR and Guitar Hero, Dungeons&Dragons classes, and a Family Wii Bowling night are just a few of the ways they are bringing in new people to the library. This keeps the library in both the minds of the current taxpayers(parents) and the future taxpayers(the teens). It makes the library a destination, a fun place, and an interesting place, plus exposes them to all the other services the library offers as well.

I look at Library 2.0 as an evolution. Its really the same things that libraries have always needed to do. Give people access to information in a way that is useful for them. The challenge is that last part. How long have sites like Amazon, Barnes&Noble, and Epinions.com been giving us recommendations based on other purchases, and letting us review items for other customers. The biggest problem I see in the 2.0 world is privacy. Libraries have historically been a strong protector of privacy, but to implement services like the above, you have to collect personally identifiable information and create a history. If we look at current public opinon, it seems that the majority of Internet users are not concerned(See the Pew Internet Life study titled Digital Footprints for information about that). Maybe we don't need to be quite so concerned about it either, we can allow users to choose how they want to connect to the library. We just need to give them the options. In the end its all about connecting the library and the user, whether in cyberspace or meatspace. I think Library 2.0 encompasses both.