Project :1 Reference Observation

There are some pretty sweet library's locally. The downtown Main branch of Long Beach reminds me of an old Scooby Doo mystery where old man Jenkins would still be haunting it , for not those kids and that dog.

But if you have read any of my work , you know I am a small town type of guy , I chose a library in Kalona IA for any earlier assignment. So in this case I chose the Long Beach Public Library system a branch call the Ruth Bach branch.
It is a public library , its typical patron are children from the neighborhood, senior citzens, and kids doing thier homework. The patrons would use this library to find books for reports, read consumer reports, use the internet to do job searches.

I can not begin to describe the wonderful experience I had at this branch. This library has a childrens reference librarian as well as adult reference librarian. I first went to the childrens by mistake and she redirected me to the adult reference librarian.
This being a small branch the reference section was very limited, but for its lacking in books the staff were exceptional
It had one desk and one chair. There was a study desk near by with 6 chairs.
The reference librarin was willing to look things up for me, and I could also the internet databases that were provided at www.lbpl.org/databases.

There are classes workshops that you can sign up for. Many of them community based. How to use the internet, how to look for a job online.

The reference section is very limited here. It is mostly copies of consumer reports, and older news papers.
Their online catalogue was easy to use and returned more hits on the subject of candy bars then Pcc catalog did. There was one kiosk where there were 5 computers which you used to gain access to the catalog.

There were several handouts , one covering the many things the library could do for you and where you could find those services. One of classes coming up in the near future.

The same kiosk area was available where the 5 computers were located. There was a 30 min use policy in place, even if no one was waiting. They had restrictions on certain sites. Adult material was grounds to have you removed from the library. Printing was also available at the cost of .15cents a page.

I was informed by the librarian that the most popular online resources were their extensive selection of databases.
I went on to www.lbpl.org/databases there was a huge selection. I unfortunately do not have a LB library card and could not access them.

I have writen many times of how it was the staff who could make or break a library. Did you want that human interaction did you want that librarian running you down to help you.
The thing that this library has going for it is its staff. From the front desk help , the childrens reference librarian to the adult reference librarian. It is limited in its selection because of its size, and I am sure becuase of its funding. I picked up 5 books from the childrens section and on average they all were copywrited from the 70s. The library staff here was friendly helpful, if they didnt understand what was being asked of them , they asked you to clarify in a non -demaning tone and attitude.
This group of Librarians could easily be a model for approachability.
(sigh) The library 2.0 conversation, I do not see how 2.0 could benifit this library it is hard to put a blog or input a media sharing type of system where the patrons will have constant access to it.