Thing #2 - Web 2.0 / Library 2.0

Chris: I think that people in the 40 and over demographic, who are the backbone of our economy, have a hard time coping with the fact that technology moves so fast. Technology is supposed to help produce the same amount of goods at a cheaper cost. Unfortunatley, some people are not fast enough to understand how new technology can make their businesses more efficient and profitable. Making them unable to compete with companies that understand how to use that technology to produce the same amount at a lower cost.


I think that Web 2.0 and Library 2.0 are futile attempts to group new technologies together in hopes of easing the fears of that demographic. At what point do we stop grouping new innovations in Web/Lib 2.0 and start 3.0 or 2.1? The major question about Web 2.0 is what is Web 2.0 . New things are discovered everyday in regards to the Web so trying to group those things takes away time that can be spent on actual production and profits. As a library employee, I want to focus on technologies that have a direct effect on my patrons. Even though the large majority of Kindles are used by people that would go to and use a library, I dont think it is that important of a technology to where school libraries need to focus on it right now. I think that as the technology becomes cheaper to own and easier to understand, it will become something that needs more attention paid to it by all libraries. With textbooks and reference materials, the cost to have that available in Kindle format to all that use it would outweigh the demand for it; and I think patrons that use the library would understand that. So creating a webpage that explains Kindles and their uses, along with links to sites where Kindle users can have access to that information is more beneficial to those people than trying to become a Kindle-equipped library overnight.



The way to efficiently use new technology is not to try and understand everything that comes out; but to understand what technologies solve the problems that we need fixed.