The Public Librarian of the Last Years of the Twentieth Century

Sweeney, Richard

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Description

Title

The Public Librarian of the Last Years of the Twentieth Century

Author(s)

Sweeney, Richard

Issue Date

1983

Keyword(s)

• Libraries --Data processing
• Online data processing
• Information technology
• Library education

Abstract

This paper addresses two major questions. First, what is the schizophrenia that is afflicting the library profession in general and public librarians in particular? Second, what knowledge and skill competencies must public librarians possess to survive in the remainder of this century, particularly in utilizing information technology? In the latter part of this paper I will suggest six competency areas that should be emphasized both for public librarians and all professional librarians. Most public librarians have difficulty thinking of libraries as just one type of information technology. The general public thinks of public libraries primarily as a collection of books or a room or building where a collection of books, periodicals, manuscripts, or even possibly videocassettes are kept. Clearly, to meet their needs, people go to many other information resources than just the public library. Today, the emergence of videotex, teletex, autodial tape services, electronic banking services, electronic publishing, laser printing on demand, and many other technologies are expanding the information user's options.

Publisher

Graduate School of Library and Information Science. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Series/Report Name or Number

Clinic on Library Applications of Data Processing (20th : 1983)

ISSN

0069-4789

Type of Resource

text

Language

en

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http://hdl.handle.net/2142/1222

Copyright and License Information

Copyright owned by Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois 1983.

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