The Shape of the 21st Century Library, by Howard Besser (1996): Notes, Quotes & What-Not, Part 3 (Remote Resources, Key Challenge Areas)

Implications of Library Focus on Remote Resources

• Shift of emphasis in collection development:  From acquisition to access 

• “Just-in-case”: Ready for a potential need 

“Just-in-time”: Responding to an actual need 

Shift in librarians’ role

Caretaker of physical collections

Conduit to collections housed elsewhere

Challenge Areas for Libraries in an Online Age

• Flat-fee vs. pay-per use:
• Web-based delivery systems

•  Impact on end user

• Best-seller phenomenon
• Mass-distributed information cheap and available
• Small audience information smaller and harder to find

Consolidation of electronic information providers

• Corporter mergers, buyouts, consolidations
• Decreasing number of independent information providers

Inside Higher Ed

Privacy

• Tracing and selling reading habits.  
• (From the Wall Street Journal, "Your Ebook is Reading You". 
• "It's no secret that Amazon and other digital book retailers track and store consumer information detailing what books are purchased and read. Kindle users sign an agreement granting the company permission to store information from the device—including the last page you've read, plus your bookmarks, highlights, notes and annotations—in its data servers."
• Library's traditional privacy stand and pay-per-view information

Access:  free access in a pay-per-view era.  (Access 2012)

Cultural and economic diversity

• More or less diversity?
• Best-seller phenomenon = least common denominator information
• Affordability of information to less affluent

Related  posts:
Part 2  (11/232012)
Part 1  (11/20/2012)