This is not your mama’s library

It’s said when a person opens a book, he or she steps into another world, but that world or how it is read is changing as technology advances with each chapter. 
To accommodate the next generation of readers and continuing to offer the latest information, libraries are adapting their digital services. 
Pulaski County Public Library Executive Director MacKenzie Ledley said the library mission of offering the public free access to information follows the example set by Andrew Carnegie. 
“As technology has evolved, the way we access information has evolved too,” Ledley said. “To remain relevant to its purpose, libraries must follow the advancements of technology and provide people with a way to access information free of charge.”
Ledley said Indiana public library standards require libraries to provide a wireless internet connection, a certain number of public computers based on the district population size, and a website. 
“This mandate cemented the internet as a required service in Indiana’s public libraries. The legislature deemed internet access at libraries to be a priority in response to the number of households without internet connections,” she said.
In an effort to meet the challenge of offering free digital services, the Gates Foundation helped libraries establish their technologies and services. Ledley said in the late 1990s, philanthropists Bill and Melinda Gates donated $200 million to provide desktop computers to public libraries throughout the U.S. Pulaski County took advantage of their generosity and purchased computers, some of which were used up until about eight years ago. 
“The library’s digital services continue to grow exponentially in both offerings and patron use,” Ledley said. “The Pulaski County Public Library digital offerings allows the library services to be used through an internet connection anywhere in the world.” 
 It also allows for the connection that several library patrons are taking advantage of outside the library walls. In a two-week span at the library, there were 1,201 uses with 301 of those logins occurring during closed hours. 
“Over the years, we’ve maintained a significant amount of daily computer use, but the number of wireless users has grown significantly in the last five years,” Ledley said. “The availability of smartphones and mobile devices has allowed for people to utilize the library’s internet connection from outside the library at any hour of the day.” 
Libraries are no longer being used just to find the latest New York best-seller but to provide services that enhance patrons’ daily lives. 
Ledley used the example of public services being offered online. State paperwork such as BMV forms or reporting weekly unemployment can now be done online. 
The Pulaski County Public Library also offers online programs such as Freegal, OverDrive, Zinio, Hoopla, and Lynda.com or video tutorials. 
“We offer downloads and streaming video to resident cardholders through the library website,” Ledley said. “We’ve had service members request cards to use the library resources overseas and have even taken several calls from snowbirds who have needed assistance while away from home.”
As the library addresses the advancements in technology, the library board has established a three-year technology plan. Ledley said the plan outlines the goals, technology improvements, and maintenance for each year of the plan and includes updating computers, servers, wireless hubs, and even the library website. 
“Maintaining technology is very similar to maintaining a building — it’s expensive and requires continual maintenance,” she said. “We also seek ways to provide enhanced equipment through the availability of grants. Past awards have allowed us to purchase additional laptops, a SMART Board, new wireless hubs, and a Blue Socket to provide a secure wireless internet connection. The Blue Socket device will allow the library the opportunity to meet the needs of the secure, electronic polling.”
Ledley anticipates that as digital services continue to grow, so will the expenses. 
“The library board members are charged with the difficult task of finding the right fiscal balance between the community’s physical collection and digital needs,” Ledley said. “This challenge is one affecting the entire library profession. Library board members are volunteers, and at heart are community servants. In my experience, they want to provide as much as is feasible for the community, but must maintain their fiduciary responsibility for future growth and maintenance needs.”
Accessing the library online services is relatively easy and a number of programs can be accessed from the library website. 
For more information contact the library at 574-946-3432 or at www.pulaskicounty.lib.in.us.

See the full story in the Pulaski County Journal, available in print and e-edition.

Pulaski County Journal

114 W. Main Street
Winamac, IN 46996

(574) 946-6628
 

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