Last night was a great class yet again. Full of copyright and contract laws and judicial precedent (it was fun for people to learn that sometimes a branch of government which the public voter has no control over and doesn't vote into office can make laws....ummm democratic much?!?!.....the government can be so rude sometimes) and talking about missions and how we will improve society with SCIENCE... of the library persuasion. However, the thing that kept turning over and over in my mind is that companies which license e-books to libraries only allow the library have that license for 26 reads before they must purchase a new license because 26 is the amount of times that a book of the physical realm can be checked out before dying a biblio death.
TWENTY SIX TIMES! A book only has a life span of 26 reads?! I couldn't believe it, byet it made a sick sort of sense. I have probably read my favorite book every year since I first bought it ( yes I reread books, they get better each and every time) in 2003, meaning I have probably read it 8 times....and it shows. I immediately had a little panic frenzy in my head worrying about my beautiful library at home and how they will not last 26 reads. I want to be able to reread my books my entire life but if they die what will I do? In the future maybe a copy of my book won't exist because it did not get turned into an e-book and I will never be able to read that story ever again! Ok...I need to rein this in.
The more relevant reason to life and class why I don't like the idea of a library book having a life span of 26 reads is that I think library books can last longer than that. At my former job at the Boston Free Library I often gave books a second chance at life...fixing broken bindings, cleaning covers that are covered in mysterious sticky glue (goo gone is one of the best inventions ever), reinforcing paperback books so that the covers won't rip or the spines be broken as quickly as they could be. If a book fell apart, I could and would fix it.
Books can last through the ages if we take care of them....heck in my Special Collections class I am working with a book that is several centuries old! I am not saying that library books need to last centuries, but I think it is possible to care for a book and to extend its life span past 26 reads.
Companies or what have you, that license out e-books just want to make more money by making libraries purchase a new license for an ebook every 26 reads. The point of ebooks is that they don't wear out, they don't get hot chocolate spilled on them, or show water damage, or the wear and tears of the years...they are an electronic copy that can't be harmed by the woes that befall books.
Dear companies, I am sorry you made a product that doesn't die after 26 reads... and now you have to find sneaky, nefarious ways to make money. Maybe the print industry knows something that you don't...for example, how to keep people coming back for more.
It might be that I am being silly wanting books to last longer, I mean there are ebooks and nooks with which to read them....but I don't like the idea of being denied reading a book because my battery died or because I read it too many times and need to "buy" it again. That's just mean.
Hasta la vista amigos!
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Well....this is weird
I've never blogged before so this is a new experience, but I guess I am looking forward to it? So it's a place to ramble and rant about all the lovely wonderful topics that come up in class and out and my life as an aspiring librarian...cool.
I love going to class and I absolutely love that I am going to school to be a librarian because, let's face it, being a librarian is one of THE best things to pursue in life because, we're awesome. No holds barred, we are pretty fantastic. I can't wait to go to class and listen to our professors and everyone else in class because everyone has great ideas and points of view and it is so...kicking.
For example last week in class with prof Lankes he talked about us (his attentive students) wanting to change society for the better and that's why we want to be librarians...and I was all, excuse me, I am not that altruistic and gung-ho looking to change the world through librarianship. I mean, I live to read books and hang out with my friends....not much society changing action going on there. But then I started thinking about it, cause obviously prof Lankes knows what he's talking about, I mean he wrote a book and everything, so it's not like it's something he spontaneously came up with on the spot during class and said gee that's a good idea ( I mean I guess it was a spontaneous idea at some point but not during that specific class cause it's in the book....and yeah I need not to go on a tangent about this). And when I was thinking...I started to realize that yeah....I kinda want to change things for the better, not through grand giant actions and new political ideologies ( ugh politics...makes me shiver in despair and cynicism) but through the little things that happen at libraries. I want to help people find the exact bit of information they're looking for or that one book that they will absolutely love...which will put a smile on their face and make their day. Or blow someone's mind about all the services that are available at the library. Creating a positive, encouraging center in a community is part of what libraries do and I want to help create that center, become a part of the lifeblood of a community, whether in a public library in small town in the middle of no-where ( which I've done) or in an academic library at a college or what have you. I want to make my community a better place and help other people.....so yeah....change society, put it in the check column of my life.
phew....that was a lot....maybe meaningful...maybe not... mostly rambling thoughts that happen after class lol.
So, I dipped my toes in the blogosphere.....and that's that. more to come as thoughts start bouncing and ricocheting around my gray matter. or it is grey?
Oh and I love big words that you have to look up in dictionaries so if anyone has a totally awesome word you'd like to share please do....here's one for you, susurrus means quiet rustling/noises/murmurs in the background
OH OH and if you don't know what abibliophobia is it means to be afraid of not having enough reading material....good thing I plan on working with endless amounts of information that I can read!
peace out girlscouts ( and boyscouts so not to be sexist)
I love going to class and I absolutely love that I am going to school to be a librarian because, let's face it, being a librarian is one of THE best things to pursue in life because, we're awesome. No holds barred, we are pretty fantastic. I can't wait to go to class and listen to our professors and everyone else in class because everyone has great ideas and points of view and it is so...kicking.
For example last week in class with prof Lankes he talked about us (his attentive students) wanting to change society for the better and that's why we want to be librarians...and I was all, excuse me, I am not that altruistic and gung-ho looking to change the world through librarianship. I mean, I live to read books and hang out with my friends....not much society changing action going on there. But then I started thinking about it, cause obviously prof Lankes knows what he's talking about, I mean he wrote a book and everything, so it's not like it's something he spontaneously came up with on the spot during class and said gee that's a good idea ( I mean I guess it was a spontaneous idea at some point but not during that specific class cause it's in the book....and yeah I need not to go on a tangent about this). And when I was thinking...I started to realize that yeah....I kinda want to change things for the better, not through grand giant actions and new political ideologies ( ugh politics...makes me shiver in despair and cynicism) but through the little things that happen at libraries. I want to help people find the exact bit of information they're looking for or that one book that they will absolutely love...which will put a smile on their face and make their day. Or blow someone's mind about all the services that are available at the library. Creating a positive, encouraging center in a community is part of what libraries do and I want to help create that center, become a part of the lifeblood of a community, whether in a public library in small town in the middle of no-where ( which I've done) or in an academic library at a college or what have you. I want to make my community a better place and help other people.....so yeah....change society, put it in the check column of my life.
phew....that was a lot....maybe meaningful...maybe not... mostly rambling thoughts that happen after class lol.
So, I dipped my toes in the blogosphere.....and that's that. more to come as thoughts start bouncing and ricocheting around my gray matter. or it is grey?
Oh and I love big words that you have to look up in dictionaries so if anyone has a totally awesome word you'd like to share please do....here's one for you, susurrus means quiet rustling/noises/murmurs in the background
OH OH and if you don't know what abibliophobia is it means to be afraid of not having enough reading material....good thing I plan on working with endless amounts of information that I can read!
peace out girlscouts ( and boyscouts so not to be sexist)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)