{"id":54735,"date":"2013-12-16T10:30:57","date_gmt":"2013-12-16T15:30:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/?p=54735"},"modified":"2013-12-15T19:11:52","modified_gmt":"2013-12-16T00:11:52","slug":"public-libraries-the-compromise","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/?p=54735","title":{"rendered":"Public Libraries: The Compromise"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Rebecca Tischler, Head Editor, INALJ Tennessee<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Public Libraries: The Compromise<\/span><\/b><\/h3>\n

\"rebecca<\/a>I recently read an article on the MacLean\u2019s website called, \u201cThanks for the Tip, I\u2019ll Get It on Amazon<\/a>,\u201d by \u00a0Brian Bethune, which explained that even though bookstores are having problems with sales, people still come into the stores to browse, or to ask for help on reader\u2019s advisory. \u00a0Bethune says that physical bookstores can\u2019t compete with the low prices of the online stores, but the online retailers can\u2019t compete with the guidance that the employees can provide, or with the immersive browsing experience. \u00a0So, the online retailers are trying to find alternative ways to provide advice and immersive browsing in order to compete with the bookstores.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

One of the main examples is, of course, Amazon. \u00a0In their attempt to compete, they have created areas on their website that suggest books similar to the ones you are examining, and they also provide suggestions based on your purchase history. \u00a0Unfortunately, your purchase history may include gifts, assignments, continuing education, and books you\u2019ve discovered that you don\u2019t like. \u00a0But, Amazon has also included areas to provide reviews and forums for people to discuss their favorite books, and they\u2019ve also purchased the website Goodreads. \u00a0The major problem with this is that many of the reviewers may be hired to post glowing reviews, which means that the customer can\u2019t tell which reviews or comments are real. \u00a0So far, online retailers just can\u2019t compete with the service that bookstores can provide, even if the bookstores can\u2019t compete with the prices.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

However, I find it highly ironic that everyone seems to forget about the libraries in this debate about price vs. service. \u00a0Most libraries allow patrons to borrow books, audio books, cds, ebooks, and movies for free. \u00a0The public library can also provide free family and academic programs as well as access to the internet, which in our society, has become necessary in order to apply for jobs, to do homework, etc.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

So not only are public libraries providing these services at extraordinarily low prices (usually for free), the library also has a physical location with thousands of books for both research and pleasure through which patrons can browse. \u00a0They can come to the library for reader\u2019s advisory assistance, and talk to people who can give personal recommendations tailored to the patron\u2019s desires and can provide troubleshooting with technology. \u00a0The public library is the compromise between the online retailers and the physical bookstores; low prices with personal service.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Public Libraries are the best of both worlds, and we need to advertise ourselves as such. \u00a0We need to let people know about our services, about our programs, and about our books. \u00a0We need to let people know that we are here.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Rebecca Tischler, Head Editor, INALJ Tennessee Public Libraries: The Compromise I recently read an article on the MacLean\u2019s website called, \u201cThanks for the Tip, I\u2019ll Get It on Amazon,\u201d by \u00a0Brian Bethune, which explained that even though bookstores are having problems with sales, people still come into the stores to browse, or to ask…<\/p>\n

Read more \u2192<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[145],"tags":[69,3592,3657,5199,5837],"class_list":["post-54735","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-articles","tag-article","tag-blog","tag-inalj-tennessee","tag-public-libraries","tag-rebecca-tischler"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1WoMK-eeP","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54735","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=54735"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54735\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=54735"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=54735"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inalj.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=54735"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}