Reading Report 4

The article starts off by stating that students rarely go to the library or use it’ resources because of Google, yet students don’t realize that the information that they find on Google may not be accurate or that the libraries databases do a better job of gathering quality factual information.  Because of this, some librarians are trying to find databases that have a similar structure to Google, so it will be easier for students to use, however, if students took the time to learn how to use the databases, their searches would be more effective.   Students can learn how to use the databases with a program at some libraries called information literacy initiative, which sounds similar to lib 103.  To help encourage students to learn to use the databases, some professors are requiring students to use certain databases and include how they found the information in their papers.

                I thought the article made a good point.  Students need to learn to use the databases that the school libraries offer rather than Google because the information on them is so much more valuable and in-depth than Google.  If it wasn’t and better, then libraries wouldn’t spend the thousands of dollars that they do on them.  I also think that a class like lib 103 should be added to the list of basic studies because it teaches you so much valuable information about databases and how to use the library effectively.  It was also cool that they compared the problem of Google to dieting, because it made the article more interesting and easier to read.  Therefore, I really liked the article and thought that it made a lot of good points.

Reading Report 3

Reading 1

This article talks about how the author thinks that librarians will be the next pop-culture wave, meaning that there will be TV shows on channels like TLC and such, along with YouTube videos and other forms of multi-media.  It uses bolded examples to show why the author thinks that librarians will be the next big thing, with reasons like “Librarians know things, and librarians get in fights.”(1)  I thought that the article was interesting and made some really good points.  All it takes is a few good quality YouTube videos and a couple million hits on them, or really good movie to make something “the next big thing”.  Therefore, I really liked the article and thought it made a good point about how librarians could be the next big thing and how easy it is to start a pop culture fad.

Reading 2

                The second article talks about the “libraries of the future” and what people imagine they will look and be like.  It then beings to talk about how libraries aren’t becoming obsolete, in fact they are predicted to be bigger and more used than ever due to expanding technology.  It then talks about how libraries going to be more electronic centered and will have different areas all over the library where they focus on certain things, like the kid and adult sections in the library, but with more subcategories.  The article also had quotes from different people talking about what they thought the library of the future would be like, and one child said that it would be similar in size to a shopping mall.  I thought the article was very interesting, and I could definitely picture libraries in the future looking like what the article described them to be like.  I thought it was a good idea that libraries have writing contests for kids to enter because I think that it’s a good way to keep them entertained and strengthen their writing skills.  Therefore, I enjoyed the article and thought that it made a lot of good points.

Holmes, Linda. "Why The Next Big Pop-Culture Wave After Cupcakes Might Be Libraries : Monkey See : NPR." NPR : National Public Radio : News & Analysis, World, US, Music & Arts : NPR. 20 July 2010. Web. 07 Oct. 2010. <http://www.npr.org/blogs/monkeysee/2010/07/20/128651136/why-the-next-big-pop-culture-wave-after-cupcakes-might-be-libraries>.