booktorrent

From booktorrent

Something to think about: "S. R. Ranganathan (1931), the "father" of librarianship in India, outline the Five Laws of Library Science :

• Books are for use.
• Every person his or her book.
• Every book its reader.
• Save the time of the reader.
• The library is a growing organism.[1]"

Contents 1 Library Redesign Ideas 1.1 Accessibility 1.2 Electronics 1.3 Lighting 1.4 Space Usage, Redesign 1.4.1 2nd Floor (Entrance Level) 1.4.2 3rd Floor! 2 References

Library Redesign Ideas

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Accessibility

• 24-hour library access, maybe like at Wisconsin's College Library, where it is 24/5 instead of 24/7?
  • I think that the current hours are a weird mix of "enticingly open late" and "oops, it actually closes earlier than I thought, well darn"
  • Staffing and security are big concerns, I know. Let's crunch the numbers and see, at least!
  • Limiting access to students with IDs from midnight to 8 AM would help
  • Computer lab can remain separate and have its regular hours, the flow of patrons at late hours probably won't max out library computer access
• Make it so that librarians have office hours, perhaps "stepped" so that there is at least one on-call staff member during designated "normal" business hours?

Electronics

• MORE POWER OUTLETS please please please
• More wireless capabilities with sufficient bandwidth (anticipate a rise in usage once it is more available, as that is what happens)
• Don't bother investing in e-readers, but do link to E-pub website and other websites that have content, including out-of-copyright content FO' FREE! on library website for users who already own an e-reader

Lighting

• The lighting isn't THAT bad, but local lighting, specifically lamps, would be beneficial.
• Would lighting fixtures on tracks that clip/clamp into place be better? Then they could be moved around in subsequent redesigns, no problem.
• Light up artwork
  • You paid for it, why not show it off, with a little gallery flair? I hardly noticed anything before I went out of my way to really see what was here

Space Usage, Redesign

2nd Floor (Entrance Level)

• Move the Archives room into the Sound and Image Library space
  • Market it as an actual resource, too
    • Maybe have a "featured" display of thematic materials pulled from the archives
  • Consider the old Archives room a dead space of floods and horror, or fix the pipe for real and use it for something not important. (WHY store important and easily lost/destroyed items in a place that gets habitual water damage???)
• Move the Reference desk to the printer station
  • Yes, this involves tearing down the weird desk/divider wall thingy. The other one can stay if you really want
  • This will make it so that those who enter are in immediate contact with persons who are resources, reference folks on the left and the circulation counter on the right
  • Maybe put in a new, complementary carpet splotch under/around the reference desk area. It will hide the wall deconstruction and will make it a designated space. I am thinking ovoid or organic.
• Move the printer station to what would be the right of the New reference desk area.
• Set up a "computer core," where all of the computers are in one area, probably in lines as now, but with tables that all match. Basically located where the reference desk is currently
  • Purpose being that then all computers are close to the printers, as well as the Writing Center/QUaSR
• Move the reference and collectibles shelving to along the glass wall. There's room, I swear.
  • The shelves act as a blocking structure, keeping people from wanting to see that part of the library, much less want to use it
• Is there a way to dampen the sound from the air ducts? They are actually super noisy
• Move the DVD, CDs, VHS collection upstairs or downstairs
• Where the DVDs, CDs, VHS collection is now, put a study area with tables and chairs (and pony rides and dancing bears, there'll even be a band...)

3rd Floor!

• Use the recently dissembled government documents room! It looks so sad, currently. We propose an intellectual "salon" of sorts.
  • It could be public, besides reserved times that programs can take advantage of.
    • Truth: most non-arts programs do not have a space of their own! The late-goverment-documents room is just large enough to host a regular sized program; it is too large & centralized to be converted into an average-joe study room.
      • The salon can be a place where librarians and programs interact. Maybe faculty could reserve time with a reference librarian so that her/his students could get some face-time with a research specialist?
• We should find a way to move all the computers on the third floor into the same space. Having to walk around the perimeter of the floor only to find an open terminal and FAILING is a taxing/frustrating task, indeed.
• What is up with all of those empty stacks? Fill them up or get them O-U-T!
  • Create more group work areas with the possible freshly vacated floor space. Make sure that there is specific floor room for independent study as well. Do not integrate the two for fear of mixing decibel ranges.
• Label the collection with clear subject: D.decimal signs to aid browsing.
  • Make these signs convertible, so they can change with the collection.
• Provide hardy book baskets? One cannot use one's own bag for they will look like a thief; carrying a large chunk of books makes the walk back to the circulation desk awkward/bad for backs.

References

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• The Reference Interview: Theories and Practice