Nothing is New Under the Sun – Kind of
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From the desk of Rand Simmons
Certainly when it comes to libraries many issues remain constant. While preparing a retirement letter for Karen Goettling (26 years with the Washington State Library) I came across a publication Action! Results! of the governor's Conference on Library and Information Services. The document published by the State Library in 1997 was an outgrowth of the 1991 Governor's Conference on Library and Information Services.
I was fascinated that the issues of concern roughly 20 years ago when I was just a library pup are issues that still rank high for us now that I'm an old library dog. Consider access for all, basic literacy, libraries and information, life-long learning, services to children, marketing and competition, national information policy, censorship, training, and cultural diversity.
In the past 20 years some of these have shifted in prominence. Regarding access, certainly no one is seriously pining for the return of the card catalog. But, many people and groups are discussing the role libraries should play in eBooks now. The introduction of Amazon's Kindle and Barnes and Noble's Nook and their popularity as 2010 Christmas gifts brought a flurry of demand for eBook content at public libraries. My peers in other state library agencies are heavy into discovery and debate about the role of State Libraries regarding eBooks. We also have a representative on the Digital Public Library of America planning group - dealing with other access issues.
A good portion of our future centers around preservation of and access to the past: access to Washington State government publications, both printed and electronic, our digital collections, our genealogical and history materials, our statewide newspapers, and our Washington Rural Heritage project to name a few.
That's my opinion. I'd like to hear yours.
Rand Simmons
Acting Washington State Librarian
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Secretary of State
Steve Hobbs
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