Libraries Prosper in Internet Age to further my discussion on reading, my mom passed along this article from the Sacramento Bee.

The rather obscure National Library Card Sign-up Month is fast approaching - and yes, people do still have library cards.
Despite the Internet explosion, people are still using libraries, and they are doing it more often than you might think. Visits to public libraries have doubled over the past decade, according to a 2002 study by the American Library Association.

Libraries, which still outnumber McDonald's restaurants, total more than 1 billion visits annually, according to the association. On average, Americans check out six books a year.

Libraries are quietly shedding their stuffy images and starting to morph into Borders, with one advantage - their books are free.

"At some points, there were predictions that the Internet was going to be the end of libraries, but we've seen the opposite," said Larra Clark, media relations manager for the American Library Association.

Coffee bars, comfortable chairs and extensive reading areas are some of the features found in large bookstores that are making their way to libraries nationwide.

"I think Borders has stolen some really good ideas from libraries, and now we're just returning the favor," said Alison Landers, deputy director of public services for the Sacramento Public Library.

The biggest draw to public libraries, Clark and Landers agree, is technology - specifically, computers with Internet access.

According to the American Library Association, 95 percent of public libraries provide public access to the Internet, and public libraries are the No. 1 place of online access for people who don't have other means of connecting to the Internet.

Landers relates the increase in library visits to the growing gap between rich and poor.

"You know the digital divide you hear about?" Landers said. "Libraries can help close that."

Several libraries across the country are getting creative with technology. The South Huntington Library in New York started circulating iPod Shuffles this year, and King County Public Library in Washington state offers downloadable audio books for MP3 players.

Local libraries have seen a surge in technology use, too. An Internet-obsessed culture has forced libraries to train staffers to field complicated questions.

"We're not seeing a decline in visits," Landers said. "The decline is in the number of questions asked from individuals, and the questions that people are asking are harder." ...

It ends with this thought



The future of public libraries, Clark said, will reside in being part community center and part technology center.

"I think trends in libraries are reflecting trends in society," Landers said. "They're using us in different ways."