Public Library Exclusively For Digital Media Proposed

CowboyRobot writes "In San Antonio, a judge and a precinct commissioner are proposing (PDF) a plan to create a library called BiblioTech that offers electronic media exclusively, offering patrons only e-readers and digital materials. 'BiblioTech intends to start with 100 e-readers that can be loaned out, 50 pre-loaded e-readers for children, 50 computer stations, 25 laptops and 25 tablets, with additional accommodations planned for the visually impaired.' But the economics have yet to be ironed out. 'A typical library branch might circulate 10,000 titles a month... To do that electronically would be cost-prohibitive — most libraries can't afford to supply that many patrons with e-reading devices at one time. And expecting library visitors to bring their own devices may be expecting too much.'"

Comments

how many people can't afford a kindle?

[alen]

i only ask because i ride the train with people less well off than me and i see them with iphones and all other kinds of toys

Re:how many people can't afford a kindle?

[khb]

Probably a lot of people can't. However, it seems rather daft to me to go "paperless" for libraries. My local library system has a fairly extensive ebook collection, has experimented with loaning readers (albeit only for the toddler set) and still has a large supply of traditional paper.

Adding ebook titles as funding permits, and perhaps having a "nook corner" for borrowing kindles, nook or whatever (perhaps corporate sponsored, a chance for them to get demo units in the hands of the public who might not be early adopters ;>) seems to me to a much sounder strategy especially given the DRM and relatively high costs of ebooks (artificially so) to libraries.

Also, as much as an Apple store is a wonderful design for *selling* things, it's far from clear to me that it's really a good environment for the things we have come to expect from libraries (children's reading circles? book clubs? study areas??). Indeed, it's the polar opposite of what I expect from a library.

And yes, I have iDevices aplenty, as well as a BN Nook, and a large room full of books and more in boxes. So I'm neither a luddite nor such a techophile that I can't appreciate the worth of a well bound dead tree.

Re:how many people can't afford a kindle?

[ukemike]

A better question might be, "How many people aren't interested in using any e-reader?"

Public Exclusively Library?

[Black Parrot]

One of us must be drunk.

Fascinating Idea; BIG issues to overcome

[mcspoo]

The big issues involve licensing for eBooks and the fact that publishers seem to engage in punitive pricing with Libraries. Example: One publisher declares that an ebook can only be checked out 27 times, then the license for that expires. Multiple publishers REFUSE to sell ebooks for Library use. Libraries are treated like pirates by many publishers.

Now, different companies are trying different models. Kansas libraries spearheaded a massive campaign to control their own ebooks licensing, and they succeeded with an unprecedented project of contacting hundreds of Publishers and finagling acceptable licenses for public usage. Will the San Antonio folks be doing this? Do they expect 3M, Sirsi, or Polaris to do this?

A tertiary issue is the license themselves. Typically in libraries, you cannot use a library owned computer to capture or transfer the license to an ereader device. This is because in the case of "USB required devices or items", the license exists on the COMPUTER itself. Downloading a license to a public computer currently violates all applicable copyright law for ebooks/eaudio materials because it makes the license available to all (or the license is lost when a computer reboots and doesn't save anything at all between sessions.)

Intriguing idea, but the article doesn't include any comprehension of the issues involved in this. Just because it sounds "cool", doesn't mean it's doable.

Re:maybe their times have passed?

[mcspoo]

Haven't been to a public library lately, have you?

Libraries have moved FAR FAR beyond the staid old stereotype of "shh"ing school marms in reading glasses. I have worked in Libraries for over 20 years now, and I can tell you that we are busier now than we have EVER been. eBooks haven't been a negative to us, but the treatment of libraries by publishers has been a negative to ebook users. I'm really happy that someone is looking as far forward as this article, but I'd love to know more about how they expect it to work.

and negative viewpoints yours are normally the result of someone who hasn't used their public library in a long time. You can either ask Google and get a thousand answers, or you can ask a Librarian and get the right answer.

One of My Favorite Internet Rants

[ios and web coder]

The Internet Is Shit.

As someone who uses (and relies upon) the Internet regularly, I don't share this person's views, but they make some extremely good points.

Many of these same points could be applied to eBooks vs. paper books.

I wonder if those Texans know

[Jawnn]

...that biblioteque means "library"... in French!

Cue 'Terms of Use' lawsuits

[gstoddart]

I'm sorry, but do they think the people who created that content are going to allow it?

I applaud someone for trying to do this, but I predict it would almost immediately lead to lawsuits by people claiming their EULA forbids this.

These are the same people who think photocopiers should be banned, and if more than one person watches a movie they should get paid more.

Re:That whole concept seems silly.

[xclr8r]

1. Story time, Kids are occupied with the librarian while you are not the direct focus of your child.
2. Meet new people, have your kids meet new people and interact with an adult other than their teacher or you. It's actually nice for a kid to see that not all adults want something out of them (teacher - homework, parent - chores)
3. Librarians keep up on the latest books and some of the classics that you or your child might be interested in. Monthly selections on all sorts of books and media that you might not think to look for but there it is displayed for you to peruse.
4. Book clubs for adults - these can be enlightening and fun if you get the right mix of people and similar interest in titles. Not everything can be translated over text on book forums/amazon reviews.

Re:It's unclear why anyone would go this route

[SternisheFan]

My library in Long Island, N.Y., not only does ebook - ereader- laptop lending, they pay to have the Freegal music download service (the entire Sony catalog) for their patrons. I download 3 drm-free tracks every week to add to my collection. A giant selection of cd/dvd discs to borrow, internet access, books and ebooks, what isn't at my branch gets sent from other libraries within 3 days. Modern libraries aren't just paper books anymore.