Page 11 - DLIS007_LIBRARY AUTOMATION

Library Automation

Notes 1.1.6 Disadvantages of Library Automation

Disadvantages of Library Automation are as follows:
Employee Cut-Backs: With the new automation systems in public libraries, there is less
funding left in the budget for employees. Also, fewer employees are needed. The
automation system does the work of human employees by scanning books and more. You
can check books out by yourself by simply swiping your library card and then scan your
book across the book pad. Users can be taught to handle terminals and systems, but it is
harder and harder to find people, especially out on the floor of public libraries, of whom
you can ask your perhaps not-fully-formed question or make a general inquiry.
Library Closings & Hour Shortages: Many libraries are closing their doors because of
economic pressures. Library doors are either closing permanently or they are closing
earlier or opening later. Partly due to the new automation system, funding can no longer
be afforded to keep them all up and running. Library closings mean less library access for
all patrons. Library closings mean job closings, less children’s story hours, book club
closings and cancelled after-school reading clubs to help keep kids off of the streets. It
seems that each week brings news of libraries forced to close branches, reduce hours.
Libraries without automation are simply less expensive to run. Government grants cannot
cover all of the branches with rising technology costs and smaller libraries cannot always
afford to pay for the automation costs on their own.
Book Budgets: A higher budget percentage being spent on automated library systems
means less money is being spent on books. With bookshelves shrinking, it is less likely to
find what you need during your next visit to the library. Library books have a shelf life
and sometimes are only kept according to the number of times they are checked out. If
academic libraries continue to cut back on their purchase of specialized scholarly books, if
they begin to define worth or value in terms of the number of times someone has sought
access to it one could imagine a day when every university would have its own “press.”
The new technology is radically changing the environment in which scholars do their
work. The great danger is we will end with a system of scholarly communication which
will be technically viable, but not intellectually desirable.

Rising Building and Maintenance Costs: When automated systems are added into a library,
FindArticles.com states that added power consumption and the changes in heating and air
conditioning needs are seldom planned for when automated systems are installed. The
noise and heat of the machines combined with the noise and heat of body heat from extra
people, cost more than what the library had been previously paying for the building’s
maintenance and power costs.

Task Critically examine how library technology provides the best resources for the
general public with the help of examples.

Self Assessment

State whether the following statements are true or false:
1. An automated library is one where a computer system is used to manage one or several of
the library’s key functions.
2. Library automation increases the workload for library staff in terms of cataloguing,
circulation and acquisitions.
3. Library automation leads to diminished building and maintenance costs.

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