Libraries in the Digital Age

“Libraries turn page to thrive in digital age,” an article in yesterday’s The Globe and Mail, looks at Canadian public libraries’ efforts to remain relevant and user-focused in the age of quick Google searches and comfortable bookstore chains. The initiatives mentioned include:

-lobby coffee shops
-computers with Internet access
-meeting rooms/spaces for group work and collaboration
-comfortable chairs
-rock concerts
-teen nights
-newspapers from different countries
-implementing a “retail” approach emphasizing customer service
-more electronic materials in the collection (e-books, journals, databases)

These libraries must be doing something right: the article reports that the Canadian Urban Libraries Council found that circulation and patron numbers increased in public libraries in cities with more than 100,000 people between 1996 and 2005.