- Email: [email protected]
Being Analog: Creating Tomorrow's Libraries,
Tools of the Serials Trade
Teresa Malinowski, Column Editor
TOOLS OF THE SERIALS TRADE Teresa Malinowski, Column Editor with contributions from L. Hunter Kevil, Pat Bril, and Valerie Bross
Being Analog: Creating TomorrowÕs Libraries, by Walt Crawford. Chicago and London: American Library Association, 1999. 247 p. $35.00 ISBN 0-8389-0754-7 L. Hunter Kevil
Malinowski is Serials Coordinator and Head of Collection and Processing Services, California State University, Fullerton, CA 92834-4150; e-mail: [email protected].
Ð TOOLS OF THE SERIALS TRADE Ð
This book continues and in part rehashes Future Libraries: Dreams, Madness, & Reality, which Walt Crawford co-authored with Michael Gorman.1 In both books Crawford attacks the Òdigital pipedreamsÓ of the Òall-digital brigadeÓ and their Òsimplistic visions.Ó He sees the root problem as the Òcomputer as God: people falling so in love with technology that they fail to recognize plausible limits.Ó ÒSome politicians and campus ofÞcials still move to dilute or deny funding for libraries because they have been told books are disappearingÓ (p. 191). Countering this threat is a prime motivation for this book. Being Analog appears intended to serve two rather different purposes. These purposes or strands are not addressed in sequence or in a sustained argument but are intertwined in a succession of vignettes. The Þrst strand continues the attack on the digital ÒdystopiaÓ
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77
with an emotionally charged tone. Those who promote change are stigmatized as Òreal enemiesÓ of libraries (p. 9). The discussion tends to be one-sided and biased toward the status quo. The second strand, which is concentrated in the second half of the book, is more moderate. It is a kind of guide to the perplexed for librarians worried about what the future holds. Here the goal is to help answer questions about the mediumterm future of libraries, how to identify each libraryÕs needs, clientele, and partners to develop a Òrobust future.Ó Many of the forceful statements of the Þrst strand reappear in attenuated form in the second, often making it difÞcult to tell where Crawford actually stands. It is surprising that Crawford, past president of LITA and a proliÞc writer on library automation, would string together a book of brief anti-digital arguments and would adopt an occasionally irascible and scolding tone. He says that he is responding to the false predictions of the Òall-digital brigadeÓ and unconvincingly denies attacking straw men. You would think that he would then be careful in citing what his opponents actually wrote. In fact, he hardly ever cites his opponents. For instance, by its title, this book is clearly intended to rebut the best-selling Being Digital by Nicholas Negroponte of MITÕs Media Lab and Wired.2 Yet Being Digital is never mentioned, much less quoted. Strangely, Negroponte is mentioned only in a footnote relating to a copyright proposal. In an essay in Online, Crawford does mention that Wired is Òhome to one of the most assertive death-of-print claimants,Ó a clear reference to Negroponte.3 Is Negroponte one of the straw men who believe that print will die out completely in a few years? Crawford adduces no evidence, and I can Þnd none in Being Digital. CrawfordÕs reluctance to respond to NegroponteÕs speciÞc arguments is truly puzzling. Mentioning astonishing predictions and absurd suggestions, Crawford alludes to a Òrenowned business thinkerÓ who Òis reputed to have said that within twenty or thirty years there would be no university and college campusesÓ (p. 105). But he does not mention that he is referring to Peter Drucker, professor at Claremont University, who was interviewed by Forbes,4 and in so doing he does not confront DruckerÕs points. Crawford is very speciÞc, however, in his criticism of Andrew OdlyzkoÕs article, ÒSilicon Dreams and Silicon Bricks: The Continuing Evolution of Libraries,Ó devoting pages 9Ð11 and 98 to a rebuttal.5 Crawford claims that Odlyzko Òbrooks no disagreement with his vision of the all-digital futureÓ (p. 11). Yet Odlyzko, sounding like Crawford himself, actually wrote that
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SERIALS REVIEW
the mix of print and digital resources in libraries will change gradually. The current library will remain hybrid Òfor the foreseeable future.Ó That the change to a predominance of digital media Òwill not be sudden . . . reßects the advantages of books and of the current library system.Ó6 All readers of this book should also read OdlyzkoÕs thoughtful article, which presents some powerful arguments for libraries, particularly research libraries, to begin fundamental change. For Crawford the libraries of today are wonderful institutions, which need to be protected. We need to recognize the ÒmadnessÓ of the proponents of virtual libraries as well as look carefully at our customersÕ needs and lobby effectively for continued funding. He has reassuring words for those of us who feel our ideals have been threatened. Libraries should not be utilitarian businesses but should serve some higher purpose (p. 98). Libraries thirty years from now will be similar to what they are today. Change will be evolutionary, not revolutionary. ÒPrint excels at communicating organized information: meaning, knowledge, and wisdomÓ (p. 7). Digital documents fall short. Thus in future libraries the print collection will be larger and more heavily used than it is today (p. 103). In chapter 13, Crawford implies that library cataloging as currently practiced will be alive and well in the library of the future. All these points are debatable and do not receive the extended critical attention they deserve. Let us consider one speciÞc point. Crawford presents his case against print-on-demand from digital originals (pp. 23Ð25). Borders, the bookstore giant, evidently does not share CrawfordÕs belief that the process is inherently uneconomic, as it recently bought a minority share in Sprout, Inc., an on-demand print supplier for bookstores. Borders believes this will enable them to compete better against Amazon and Barnes and Noble, manage inventory better, and ameliorate the number one problem in retail books: returns to the publisher. CrawfordÕs argument appears shallow. Consider some other examples of recent digital technology at work. Recently Microsoft announced ClearType technology for improved on-screen readability as part of its proposed Open eBook standard. Xerox is partnering with 3M to produce electronic paper. Using technology developed ten years ago, electronic paper is expected in the marketplace in 2001. And what about netLibrary and its concept of online books? These all represent interesting applications of new technology. Crawford tends to dismiss them all out of hand. The problem with CrawfordÕs rosy views of the future for libraries is not just that the future is unknow-
Ð TERESA MALINOWSKI Ð
able, but also that they ignore technical development and the possibility of shifts in customer preferences. These shifts bring about infrastructure and cultural change with concomitant shifts in cost structures and the ways we go about our business. Like the build up of forces that Þnally result in an earthquake, this kind of change can be quick and unforeseen. Complacency about the status quo is not a strategy I would advocate. For Crawford, ÒdigitalÓ is apparently the medium or substrate alone; he does not mention any improvements software could provide digital media over print. He has Òhigh hopesÓ for DVD as an improved storage medium over CD-ROM and videocassettes (pp. 153Ð 156), but he never considers that digital documents could offer some characteristics far superior to print or could offer value that users may soon demand. Citation linking, full text searches, interactivity, updatable data sets, no limits to one person at one place at one time, user proÞles, and the like simply do not enter into his equation. Nor does he consider the possibility of fundamental change in what libraries do and how they do it to take full advantage of digital documents or enable users to locate and use both print and digital documents in new and better ways.7 For Crawford the online system is simply Òa direct electronic analog to the prior card catalogÓ and periodical indexes Òare digital analogs for the old ReaderÕs GuideÓ (p. 192). Progress should and will be incremental and measured. In the second strand of the book, Crawford deals with libraries and their users or customers. Good librarians must be prepared for an environment of constant change and the need to learn continually. His view of customer service can be summed up: ÒGood libraries make sense to people. If they donÕt, theyÕre not good librariesÓ (p. 111); ÒIncreasingly, all academic libraries must focus on serviceÓ (p. 70); and ÒUsers will be at the heart of those services . . .Ó (p. 120). The section devoted to ÒCustomer-Oriented LibrariesÓ contains many incisive observations (p. 175Ð182). We need to know and empower our customers, to serve but not pander to them, and to reach out to our non-users, particularly the powerful ones whose support of libraries is important. CrawfordÕs treatment is general and somewhat superÞcial. As he says, there is nothing new here, but reinforcing old truths about customer service is always welcome. Crawford takes a traditional collection-oriented view of customer service: the bigger the collection the better. He does not go into much detail regarding new, innovative services but does present some good ideas regarding public relations.
Ð TOOLS OF THE SERIALS TRADE Ð
NOTES 1. Walt Crawford and Michael Gorman, Future Libraries: Dreams, Madness, & Reality (Chicago and London: American Library Association, 1995). 2. Nicholas Negroponte, Being Digital (New York: Knopf, 1995). 3. Walt Crawford, ÒPaper Persists: Why Physical Library Collections Still Matter,Ó Online (January 1998) http:// www.onlineinc.com/onlinemag/OL1998/crawford.html. 4. Interview with Peter Drucker, Forbes, 159 (March 10, 1997): 122. For DruckerÕs latest thinking, see Chapter 4, ÒInformation Challenges,Ó in Management Challenges for the Twenty-First Century (New York: Harper Business, 1999). 5. Andrew Odlyzko, ÒSilicon Dreams and Silicon Bricks: The Continuing Evolution of Libraries,Ó Library Trends, 46 (Summer 1997): 152Ð67. http://www.research.att.com/ zamo/doc/eworld.html. Odlyzko is a member of the Information Sciences Research Center at AT&T Labs, Florham Park, NJ. 6.
Ibid., p. 162.
7. Consider Edmund BurkeÕs distinction between change and reform: while at Þrst impression they may appear to be the same, there is a huge difference between blind change or innovation (following) and purposive, systemic reform designed to further a speciÞc end (leading). Crawford appears unable to distinguish between these two.
Kevil is Collection Development Librarian at the University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65201; e-mail: [email protected].
Budgeting for Information Access: Managing the Resource Budget for Absolute Access, by Murray S. Martin and Milton T. Wolf. Chicago: American Library Association, 1998. (Frontiers of Access to Library Materials, no. 4) 184 p. $35.00 paperback. ISBN 0-8389-0691-5 Pat Bril What library today is not struggling with the issue of budgeting for information access? In addressing a decidedly critical issue, the authors of this volume
VOL. 25, NO. 4, 1999
79
Teresa Malinowski, Column Editor
TOOLS OF THE SERIALS TRADE Teresa Malinowski, Column Editor with contributions from L. Hunter Kevil, Pat Bril, and Valerie Bross
Being Analog: Creating TomorrowÕs Libraries, by Walt Crawford. Chicago and London: American Library Association, 1999. 247 p. $35.00 ISBN 0-8389-0754-7 L. Hunter Kevil
Malinowski is Serials Coordinator and Head of Collection and Processing Services, California State University, Fullerton, CA 92834-4150; e-mail: [email protected].
Ð TOOLS OF THE SERIALS TRADE Ð
This book continues and in part rehashes Future Libraries: Dreams, Madness, & Reality, which Walt Crawford co-authored with Michael Gorman.1 In both books Crawford attacks the Òdigital pipedreamsÓ of the Òall-digital brigadeÓ and their Òsimplistic visions.Ó He sees the root problem as the Òcomputer as God: people falling so in love with technology that they fail to recognize plausible limits.Ó ÒSome politicians and campus ofÞcials still move to dilute or deny funding for libraries because they have been told books are disappearingÓ (p. 191). Countering this threat is a prime motivation for this book. Being Analog appears intended to serve two rather different purposes. These purposes or strands are not addressed in sequence or in a sustained argument but are intertwined in a succession of vignettes. The Þrst strand continues the attack on the digital ÒdystopiaÓ
VOL. 25, NO. 4, 1999
77
with an emotionally charged tone. Those who promote change are stigmatized as Òreal enemiesÓ of libraries (p. 9). The discussion tends to be one-sided and biased toward the status quo. The second strand, which is concentrated in the second half of the book, is more moderate. It is a kind of guide to the perplexed for librarians worried about what the future holds. Here the goal is to help answer questions about the mediumterm future of libraries, how to identify each libraryÕs needs, clientele, and partners to develop a Òrobust future.Ó Many of the forceful statements of the Þrst strand reappear in attenuated form in the second, often making it difÞcult to tell where Crawford actually stands. It is surprising that Crawford, past president of LITA and a proliÞc writer on library automation, would string together a book of brief anti-digital arguments and would adopt an occasionally irascible and scolding tone. He says that he is responding to the false predictions of the Òall-digital brigadeÓ and unconvincingly denies attacking straw men. You would think that he would then be careful in citing what his opponents actually wrote. In fact, he hardly ever cites his opponents. For instance, by its title, this book is clearly intended to rebut the best-selling Being Digital by Nicholas Negroponte of MITÕs Media Lab and Wired.2 Yet Being Digital is never mentioned, much less quoted. Strangely, Negroponte is mentioned only in a footnote relating to a copyright proposal. In an essay in Online, Crawford does mention that Wired is Òhome to one of the most assertive death-of-print claimants,Ó a clear reference to Negroponte.3 Is Negroponte one of the straw men who believe that print will die out completely in a few years? Crawford adduces no evidence, and I can Þnd none in Being Digital. CrawfordÕs reluctance to respond to NegroponteÕs speciÞc arguments is truly puzzling. Mentioning astonishing predictions and absurd suggestions, Crawford alludes to a Òrenowned business thinkerÓ who Òis reputed to have said that within twenty or thirty years there would be no university and college campusesÓ (p. 105). But he does not mention that he is referring to Peter Drucker, professor at Claremont University, who was interviewed by Forbes,4 and in so doing he does not confront DruckerÕs points. Crawford is very speciÞc, however, in his criticism of Andrew OdlyzkoÕs article, ÒSilicon Dreams and Silicon Bricks: The Continuing Evolution of Libraries,Ó devoting pages 9Ð11 and 98 to a rebuttal.5 Crawford claims that Odlyzko Òbrooks no disagreement with his vision of the all-digital futureÓ (p. 11). Yet Odlyzko, sounding like Crawford himself, actually wrote that
78
SERIALS REVIEW
the mix of print and digital resources in libraries will change gradually. The current library will remain hybrid Òfor the foreseeable future.Ó That the change to a predominance of digital media Òwill not be sudden . . . reßects the advantages of books and of the current library system.Ó6 All readers of this book should also read OdlyzkoÕs thoughtful article, which presents some powerful arguments for libraries, particularly research libraries, to begin fundamental change. For Crawford the libraries of today are wonderful institutions, which need to be protected. We need to recognize the ÒmadnessÓ of the proponents of virtual libraries as well as look carefully at our customersÕ needs and lobby effectively for continued funding. He has reassuring words for those of us who feel our ideals have been threatened. Libraries should not be utilitarian businesses but should serve some higher purpose (p. 98). Libraries thirty years from now will be similar to what they are today. Change will be evolutionary, not revolutionary. ÒPrint excels at communicating organized information: meaning, knowledge, and wisdomÓ (p. 7). Digital documents fall short. Thus in future libraries the print collection will be larger and more heavily used than it is today (p. 103). In chapter 13, Crawford implies that library cataloging as currently practiced will be alive and well in the library of the future. All these points are debatable and do not receive the extended critical attention they deserve. Let us consider one speciÞc point. Crawford presents his case against print-on-demand from digital originals (pp. 23Ð25). Borders, the bookstore giant, evidently does not share CrawfordÕs belief that the process is inherently uneconomic, as it recently bought a minority share in Sprout, Inc., an on-demand print supplier for bookstores. Borders believes this will enable them to compete better against Amazon and Barnes and Noble, manage inventory better, and ameliorate the number one problem in retail books: returns to the publisher. CrawfordÕs argument appears shallow. Consider some other examples of recent digital technology at work. Recently Microsoft announced ClearType technology for improved on-screen readability as part of its proposed Open eBook standard. Xerox is partnering with 3M to produce electronic paper. Using technology developed ten years ago, electronic paper is expected in the marketplace in 2001. And what about netLibrary and its concept of online books? These all represent interesting applications of new technology. Crawford tends to dismiss them all out of hand. The problem with CrawfordÕs rosy views of the future for libraries is not just that the future is unknow-
Ð TERESA MALINOWSKI Ð
able, but also that they ignore technical development and the possibility of shifts in customer preferences. These shifts bring about infrastructure and cultural change with concomitant shifts in cost structures and the ways we go about our business. Like the build up of forces that Þnally result in an earthquake, this kind of change can be quick and unforeseen. Complacency about the status quo is not a strategy I would advocate. For Crawford, ÒdigitalÓ is apparently the medium or substrate alone; he does not mention any improvements software could provide digital media over print. He has Òhigh hopesÓ for DVD as an improved storage medium over CD-ROM and videocassettes (pp. 153Ð 156), but he never considers that digital documents could offer some characteristics far superior to print or could offer value that users may soon demand. Citation linking, full text searches, interactivity, updatable data sets, no limits to one person at one place at one time, user proÞles, and the like simply do not enter into his equation. Nor does he consider the possibility of fundamental change in what libraries do and how they do it to take full advantage of digital documents or enable users to locate and use both print and digital documents in new and better ways.7 For Crawford the online system is simply Òa direct electronic analog to the prior card catalogÓ and periodical indexes Òare digital analogs for the old ReaderÕs GuideÓ (p. 192). Progress should and will be incremental and measured. In the second strand of the book, Crawford deals with libraries and their users or customers. Good librarians must be prepared for an environment of constant change and the need to learn continually. His view of customer service can be summed up: ÒGood libraries make sense to people. If they donÕt, theyÕre not good librariesÓ (p. 111); ÒIncreasingly, all academic libraries must focus on serviceÓ (p. 70); and ÒUsers will be at the heart of those services . . .Ó (p. 120). The section devoted to ÒCustomer-Oriented LibrariesÓ contains many incisive observations (p. 175Ð182). We need to know and empower our customers, to serve but not pander to them, and to reach out to our non-users, particularly the powerful ones whose support of libraries is important. CrawfordÕs treatment is general and somewhat superÞcial. As he says, there is nothing new here, but reinforcing old truths about customer service is always welcome. Crawford takes a traditional collection-oriented view of customer service: the bigger the collection the better. He does not go into much detail regarding new, innovative services but does present some good ideas regarding public relations.
Ð TOOLS OF THE SERIALS TRADE Ð
NOTES 1. Walt Crawford and Michael Gorman, Future Libraries: Dreams, Madness, & Reality (Chicago and London: American Library Association, 1995). 2. Nicholas Negroponte, Being Digital (New York: Knopf, 1995). 3. Walt Crawford, ÒPaper Persists: Why Physical Library Collections Still Matter,Ó Online (January 1998) http:// www.onlineinc.com/onlinemag/OL1998/crawford.html. 4. Interview with Peter Drucker, Forbes, 159 (March 10, 1997): 122. For DruckerÕs latest thinking, see Chapter 4, ÒInformation Challenges,Ó in Management Challenges for the Twenty-First Century (New York: Harper Business, 1999). 5. Andrew Odlyzko, ÒSilicon Dreams and Silicon Bricks: The Continuing Evolution of Libraries,Ó Library Trends, 46 (Summer 1997): 152Ð67. http://www.research.att.com/ zamo/doc/eworld.html. Odlyzko is a member of the Information Sciences Research Center at AT&T Labs, Florham Park, NJ. 6.
Ibid., p. 162.
7. Consider Edmund BurkeÕs distinction between change and reform: while at Þrst impression they may appear to be the same, there is a huge difference between blind change or innovation (following) and purposive, systemic reform designed to further a speciÞc end (leading). Crawford appears unable to distinguish between these two.
Kevil is Collection Development Librarian at the University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65201; e-mail: [email protected].
Budgeting for Information Access: Managing the Resource Budget for Absolute Access, by Murray S. Martin and Milton T. Wolf. Chicago: American Library Association, 1998. (Frontiers of Access to Library Materials, no. 4) 184 p. $35.00 paperback. ISBN 0-8389-0691-5 Pat Bril What library today is not struggling with the issue of budgeting for information access? In addressing a decidedly critical issue, the authors of this volume
VOL. 25, NO. 4, 1999
79