Comments on "away from the icebergs"

My comment is on the Rick Anderson article, "Away From the Icebergs".

I am in basic agreement with most of Mr. Anderson's ideas.

I now have no doubt that the next generation of library users will expect a much different set of services from public libraries. I believe the transition will be extremely difficult for any institution that depends on public funding. The problem is convincing taxpayers that a new generation of library users will expect materials and services that the previous generation may have little or no use for.

In our local case, where property owners are taxed to provide library funding, we will have to find ways to persuade citizens that something like the Web 2-based library model is worth investing in. We will have to educate local politicians regarding the changing face of public libraries and their services. If we cannot convince citizens and politicians to fund these new services---and the hardware and software to support them---then all of our futuristic ideas will mean little.