The bad news ... even 25 years after its invention, not everything is available on the Internet; The good news ... 33 reasons why libraries with physical books still matter

What people do at libraries and library websites : 

(Pew Internet’s survey explored in depth what people do at libraries)

• 33 reasons why books, libraries and librarians are still extremely important, by Will Sherman (quoted at Cites & Insights):

1. Not everything is available on the internet

2. Digital libraries are not the internet

3. The internet isn’t free

4. The internet complements libraries, but it doesn’t replace them

5. School libraries and librarians improve student test scores

6. Digitization doesn’t mean destruction

7. In fact, digitization means survival

8. Digitization is going to take a while. A long while.

9. Libraries aren’t just books

10. Mobile devices aren’t the end of books, or libraries

11. The hype might really just be hype

12. Library attendance isn’t falling—it’s just more virtual now

13. Like businesses, digital libraries still need human staffing

14. We just can’t count on physical libraries disappearing

15. Google Book Search “don’t work”

16. Physical libraries can adapt to cultural change

17. Physical libraries are adapting to cultural change

18. Eliminating libraries would cut short an important process of cultural evolution

19. The internet isn’t DIY

20. Wisdom of crowds is untrustworthy, because of the tipping point

21. Librarians are the irreplaceable counterparts to web moderators

22. Unlike moderators, librarians must straddle the line between libraries and the internet

23. The internet is a mess

24. The internet is subject to manipulation

25. Libraries’ collections employ a well-formulated system of citation

26. It can be hard to isolate concise information on the internet

27. Libraries can preserve the book experience

28. Libraries are stable while the web is transient

29. Libraries can be surprisingly helpful for news collections and archives

30. Not everyone has access to the internet

31. Not everyone can afford books

32. Libraries are a stopgap to anti-intellectualism

33. Old books are valuable

Conclusion

Society is not ready to abandon the library, and it probably won’t ever be. Libraries can adapt to social and technological changes, but they can’t be replaced. While libraries are distinct from the internet, librarians are the most suited professionals to guide scholars and citizens toward a better understanding of how to find valuable information online. Indeed, a lot of information is online. But a lot is still on paper. Instead of regarding libraries as obsolete, state and federal governments should increase funding for improved staffing and technology. Rather than lope blindly through the digital age, guided only by the corporate interests of web economics, society should foster a culture of guides and guideposts. Today, more than ever, libraries and librarians are extremely important for the preservation and improvement of our culture."

See also:

• HOW TO KEEP A LIBRARY OF (PHYSICAL) BOOKS, Meditations on strategy and life, Ryan Holiday 

Extract:

Below are some tips on keeping and maintaining your own library. I hope they help:

-First, you have to read a lot.  

-Buy, buy buy. I took some heat for criticizing checking books out from the library a while back.   

-In other words, RESIST THE KINDLE.  

-Organize, organize, organize. 

-Become a resource for others.  

-Refer back to them!  

-The point of owning the books is to use them.  

-Books are no substitute for human contact, but it is still beneficial, I think, to be in the physical company of the greats.  

-Don’t be afraid to quit books that suck.  

-On that note, don’t collect for the sake of collecting.  

-Don’t loan.  

-It’s all about the IKEA shelves.  

-Collect the unusual.  

-Go through other people’s libraries. 

-Having a library keeps the information fresh in your head. continue reading

• Did you know that not everything is available online? Library and Archives Canada Blog
• Things You Should Know @ Guide To Using the Internet for Academic Research : Not everything is available on the Internet; Research on the Internet will take time; Information on the Internet is not stable; Not everything on the Internet is accurate, true, current, or reliable.
• On Why Libraries Still Matter by Reid Goldsborough infotoday.com 
• Why Everything Isn't Available Online and Free 
• Top 10 Reasons Why Libraries are still Important? 

1. Not Everything is Available on the Internet
2. Digital Libraries are not the Internet
3. The Internet isn’t Free
4. The Internet Compliments Libraries, but Doesn’t Replace Them
5. School Libraries and Librarians Improve Student Test Scores
6. Libraries Aren’t Just Books
7. Mobile Devices are not the End of Books or Libraries
8. Library Attendance isn’t Falling It’s Just More Virtual
9. Physical Libraries are Adapting to Cultural Change
10. Eliminating Libraries would Cut Short an Important Process of Cultural Evolution

New on the shelf: Are Libraries Obsolete?

Are Libraries Obsolete?: An Argument for Relevance in the Digital Age Mark Y. Herring

About the Book
The digital age has transformed information access in ways that few ever dreamed. But the afterclap of our digital wonders has left libraries reeling as they are no longer the chief contender in information delivery.

The author gives both sides--the web aficionados, some of them unhinged, and the traditional librarians, some blinkered--a fair hearing but misconceptions abound. Internet be-all and end-all enthusiasts are no more useful than librarians who urge fellow professionals to be all things to all people. The American Library Association, wildly democratic at its best and worst, appears schizophrenic on the issue, unhelpfully. "My effort here," says the author, "is to talk about the elephant in the room."

Are libraries obsolete? No! concludes the author (also). The book explores how libraries and librarians must and certainly can continue to be relevant, vibrant and enduring.

Contents: Everything is still not on the Internet -- Searching the Web -- Quality control, or lack thereof -- Rotting from within? -- En masse : mass digitization -- Copyright -- Ebooks über alles? -- Depth and ubiquity -- Reading and literacy -- Privacy -- Piracy -- You are here -- Are libraries obsolete after all? : two scenarios -- Epilogue: reviving the spirit of Andrew

On the same shelf:

• How a Loss of Libraries Reflects Society
• Developing Humanities Collections in the Digital Age: Exploring Humanities Faculty Engagement with Electronic and Print Resources, by Sarah Buck Kachaluba, Jessica Evans Brady, and Jessica Critten 
• Who Says Libraries Are Going Extinct? 
• Why you should support your local library (infographic) -- The infographic from StateStats list reasons why public libraries are more important than even in local communities. The visual is backed with figures main

Library users do have their say everywhere in a flat world

• Plan for book-less library in Newport scrapped after residents rally / Save Newport Library FB page
• Supporters declare their right to libraries -- In the spirit of our forefathers, supporters lined up to sign a “Declaration for the Right to Libraries” Saturday in Redford Township
• Kerala University promises favourable decision

Even as the Kerala University authorities had sought police help on Sunday to remove 11 students who were on a 'reading' protest at the Kariavattom campus library, on Monday they vowed their support to the students' demand for extended working hours of the library and said that the demand would be considered sympathetically.

• Community group must come forward to run Cockerton Library or it will close in 2016, councillor warns Northern Echo @ thenorthernecho.co.uk
• Students sit on hunger strike,demand facilities in library - Hindustan Times
• TAMPA Tribune,  — University of South Florida commits to restoring library hours, administrators said Thursday they will find the money to restore overnight hours at the Tampa campus’ main library, leading students to declare victory and cancel another planned protest -- info courtesy: Madhava Rao Adepu
• Hindustan Times, Students protest mismanagement of Punjabi University library, Alleging mismanagement of the Bhai Kahn Singh Nabha Library in Punjabi University, students on Thursday staged a protest in front of the library under the banner of Students Federation of India (SFI), and restricted entry to the building -- info courtesy: Madhava Rao Adepu
•  Library users to have their say - Southwark Council
•  Libraries campaigners to have their day in court - Get Surrey 
• Two Kinds of Revolution | Peer to Peer Review,  By Wayne Bivens-Tatum, Library Journal: the cost-driven revolution and the user-driven revolution
• Library fan hit books, became a librarian, Houston Chronicle
• Op-Ed: Let's Have a Dialogue on Library Changes,Mount Vernon Patch
• Students react to upcoming library renovations The Albion College Pleiad Online
• Long Beach Public Library introducing software to help improve service and manage resources, Signal Tribune  
• District library policy stirs heated debate,Davisclipper --FARMINGTON — Sensitivities are heightened regarding books in school libraries after a suit over a book in an elementary school library cost the district $15,000 to settle last year.
• What Do Libraries Call Users, and What Do Library Users Think of Themselves in relation to Libraries?
  by Bohyun (Library Hat).-- Do library users think of themselves as library “patrons?”

• How Does One Get Banned From Every Public Library in the World? John Metcalfe, The Atlantic Cities  -- "A VERY RUDE LIBRARY PATRON, IN WISCONSIN: A man in Racine has the dubious honor of becoming what's likely history's first person to be banned from public libraries – all of them. Tyree Carter was bailed out of jail only after signing papers in which he agreed to "stay out of all the libraries on the face of the earth," reports the Journal Times."   
• Library patron upset over parking - News - Coquitlam Now
• demanding patrons - The Merry Librarian

Launch of IFLA Trend Report in Singapore, Aug 19, 2013

Trend Report @ World Library & Information Congress (Session 93: Plenary session):

• Trend 1: New technologies will both expand and limit who has access to information

Questions posed by the IFLA Trend Report include:

1. When information is so easy to share – can anyone really own it?
2. “You don't have permission to access that”: Will your Internet stop at the border?
3. The world's information at your fingertips – but what can you do with it?

• Trend 2: Online Education will democratise and disrupt global learning

Questions worth considering:

1. If online education is free, then how much is it really worth?
2. If we’re learning together but studying alone – will online education change the face of learning forever?
3. Will you ever need to remember anything ever again?

• Trend 3: the boundaries of privacy and data protection will be redefined

Questions worth considering:

1.  What are the resulting impacts on privacy, and protection of our personal information?
2. Who’s profiting from your personal information?
3. Does your government know more about you than you do?
4. Who’s to be trusted more: your government or your search engine? Or neither?

• Trend 4: Hyper-connected societies will listen to and empower new voices and groups

Questions worth considering:

1. What impact will hyper-connected societies have on traditional political parties?

• Trend 5: The global information economy will be transformed by new technologies

Questions worth considering:

1. When your phone, your car and your wristwatch know where you are at all times – who runs your life?
2. Ymmärrätkö minua? Will automated translation lead to greater multi-cultural understanding?
3. Will individuals and businesses be able to be economically active from anywhere in the world?