Summary:
In the above article, Rick Anderson offers his opinions on what libraries, their services, and function within society will be like in the year 2021. The article speculates about how libraries must adapt to not only survive but thrive in a time of shrinking budgets and rapidly expanding digital services. Anderson projects several feasible changes in the collection management practices of future libraries, most notably that “patron-driven acquisition (PDA) will be the new assumption” and that “most research libraries’ print acquisitions will be created at the point of need...and many will never be added to a permanent collection” (p. 213). In addition to these predictions, he suggests the potential roadblocks that may hinder libraries in achieving purpose and relevance in the digital age.
Response:
While Anderson’s article speculates on changes we might see in collection management by 2012, his suggestions initiate questions challenging whether or not information professionals are doing enough in the present to prepare for the library collections that will be necessary for future users. If our patrons now have the ability to access information virtually from nearly anywhere, what do we need to do to stay competitive with other educational services? Anderson’s prediction “that the very idea of the ‘collection’ will be overhauled...in favor of more dynamic access to a virtually unlimited flow of information products” sounded extreme to me initially; however, in reality, patrons are already viewing library collections in this way (p. 215). For instance, at academic libraries, students rarely consult the physical reference collection housed in the library; rather, they actively utilize the collection of web databases for their reference needs. With the growing availability and popularity of digital publications and research services, it seems very much worthwhile to consider the importance of aiming collection development towards more sustainable, web-based information resources.
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