Will Libraries Become Obsolete?

One of my son's (high school) parent teacher interviews was in the school's library Thursday night. His school opened in the fall of 2007. The current enrolment at his school is about 1,130. Back in the day when I was in school, one would imagine that this would dictate a very large school library. In today's world? Not.

The room itself was not that much larger than the size of a typical classroom. Two of the outside walls were lined with bookshelves; there were a handful of bookshelves (which were no taller than me - shorter in some cases) within that 'L' shaped alcove. There were tables. And computers. That was it!

From where we sat, there was a small bookcase which housed a few (no more than five) sets of encyclopedias. My eyes were drawn to those reference materials (which were the mainstay of my youth) and my heart sank at the realization that these books are obsolete before they are even complete. They always have been. But back in the day, it was the best that we had ...

Dormant memories resurfaced as I reflected on research projects of my youth. A Grade 5 project on Martin Luther King Jr. came vividly to mind. Never once did I think that I would look back longingly at my the memory of those arduous periods spent in the school library overwhelmed with the enormity of the project and my ability to find the reference materials that I required.

On reflection, the purpose of the research was probably no different than it would be in today's world. To utilize the reference materials at hand, find what was pertinant to your research, read and absorb what you learn and rewrite it in your own words to reflect your understanding. I suppose whether you find that information in the form of a reference book or the Internet, the learning process is still the same.

Yet there is something tangible about reading something in a book. You touch it. You experience the written word on a physical piece of paper verses the multitude of pixels that create an image on a computer screen.

From a budgeting standpoint, I fully understand the economics behind a sparse school library. The cost of start-up and maintaining a current supply of reference/reading materials must be astronomical. Not to mention the fact that once a book is checked out, no one else has access to it until it is returned. There are definite limitations to a library's resources. Whereas, information on the Internet is available 24/7 and multiple people can access the same resource.

What will today's generation remember? Google searches are the norm. I suppose the challenge may be to determine the reliability of the information that they find. Quality verses quantity. There is certainly no shortage of information out there ...

Easy access to the Internet and the ability to find up-to-the-moment information at our fingertips is making the need for libraries an antiquated idea. Yet ... just as the invention of the television didn't make the radio become obsolete; nor interstate highways negate the need for the railroad ... libraries, books and the written word will always have their place.

As I continue to fret and stew about my uncompleted family history project, I begin to wonder if this (in part) is part of my frustration. Our history is incomplete, moving and ever-changing. How do I attempt to take a 'snapshot' of a moving piece of work? Should I print it off and bind it? Should I keep an on-line publication current? Should I do both?

I am leaning towards a printed and bound hard copy of our family's story. Something for my children to hold in their hands and appreciate more as time goes by. A snapshot of our history is better than a moving piece of work that never ends, never gets written or printed.

A book is something to have and to hold. Forever. The Internet has its perks ... but the need for the written word will never become obsolete.