[WEB4LIB] Technology at "Millennium Library" (Cerritos, CA)

[Richard Wiggins]

Hmmm, it's easy for folks on this list, who are aware of and deploying many
of the same technology options, to feel like one library is getting a lot of
credit for deploying off-the-shelf technologies.

Even your local McDonald's deploys this kind of technology.  The workers
communicate with each other using radio headsets even though they are within
30 feet of one another.  Competition forces McDonald's to try continuously
to deliver the goods faster than the rivals do.

I suspect the fast food metaphor won't resonate with librarians, and I can't
imagine the reference librarians that I know talking to each other
constantly over radio head sets.  Still I think a library that's made a
concerted effort at using a whole shelf-full of off-the-shelf technologies
so they can deliver the goods more efficiently is something newsworthy.

/rich



gary wrote:

> 
> "A Futuristic Library" 
> Source: eWeek 
> 
> A look at the "Millennium Library", the new public library in
Cerritos, 
> California. The building was dedicated on March 16, 2002. 
> 
> >From the article, "Imagine a library where you can walk in with
your
> laptop, plug 
> in to an unobtrusive network jack, and access both the library's resources
> and 
> the Internet through a common portal. If the network doesn't yield what
> you're 
> looking for, a librarian wearing a headset and carrying a personal digital 
> assistant can find a particular book or get the answer in seconds." 
> 

____________________________________________________
Richard Wiggins
Writing, Speaking, and Consulting on Internet Topics
rich at richardwiggins.com       www.richardwiggins.com