Data Reinvents Libraries for the 21st Century

Libraries are proving that they’re more than mausoleums of old knowledge — they’re in a state of progressive reform, rethinking services and restructuring with data.

http://www.govtech.com/data/Data-Reinvents-Libraries-for-the-21st-Century.html

“Whatever the case, the truth is that today libraries are proving they’re more than mausoleums of old knowledge. They’re in a state of progressive reform, rethinking services and restructuring with data. It’s a national trend as libraries modernize, strategize and recast themselves as digital platforms. They’ve taken on the role of data curator for information coming in and citizen-generated data going out. They host civic hacker hubs. They serve as booming e-book distributors. They provide digital clinics for aspiring technophiles.

It could be called a refresh to a retro institution, a data movement that’s growing organically in spurts. According to latest 2013 statistics from the American Library Association’s Digital Inclusion Survey, 97.5 percent of libraries help visitors complete online government forms, 74.1 percent support e-government and civic engagement programs, 98 percent offer technology training, and 53.3 percent provide office space to a mobile workforce. And data is a common thread running through all of these services.”

Stephen