Library

I was thinking glatt getting an infrared camera from the Library and the mention of 3-D printing, when I saw this
2019 chart from the PEW. Then digging a little deeper a whole 2016 report on the public's relationship with libraries,
and the services they provide beyond just books.

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Who uses the library and for what?

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General appreciation or ambivalence by whom.

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The best way to cure ignorance is shoot it..

PEW PEW PEW Sorry, that was bad. :blush:

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I'm guilty, I read a lot, I think more than most of my peers. But I haven't read a non-technical book for years... and years.

I read a lot, but haven't been to my library since high school... my authors and publishers probably appreciate the cash, but I do feel a bit guilty for not patronizing my local library.

For a few years there, my local library branches seemed to always be closed when I wanted to visit. I could never remember if they were closed in the morning or in the evening on the weekends. Or if it was a Wednesday night that they closed at 4PM, or was that Thursday?

Recently, they have resumed much more reasonable hours, and I'm slowly starting to warm to them again. I need to check out their sewing machine situation. There are 3-4 times a year that I wish I had access to a machine for various reasons. Usually outdoor gear related.

I've taken the kids to our local library a couple of times when they needed something for school, and I even got a membership myself on the promise of getting an interlibrary loan from an out-of-state University (though ultimately it was denied.) The library one suburb over is *huge*--like national award-winning huge--and we reserved a room for my son and his friends to play board games once. But overall, I don't take as much advantage of them as I should.

A local library system recently experimented with 3D printing. For a modest fee ($5), one could take a design to the library and print out their creation. I believe the experiment did not continue.

Previously, libraries would even check out diagnostic software or a Kill-A-Watt. A powerful tool that any (informed) consumer might need maybe once or twice a decade.

I can see 3-D printing would be problematic. Besides the danger of injury and mess to clean up, people coming in wanting to duplicate something or even just a sketch, when they need a program.

xoxoxoBruce;1047059 wrote:

Besides the danger of injury and mess to clean up, people coming in wanting to duplicate something or even just a sketch, when they need a program.

Program was provided for free. One would design at home. And then run their program on a machine that is not exposed or dangerous. Program would also say how long it would take. I believe the rule was that printing could only take 5 minutes.

I don't think any of that was a problem. Problem apparently was that so many did not do it. A normal fear of trying to do something new.

I took the class. Plenty of vacancies there.

Except for my time in the Army and overseas, I think I have had at least one book checked out of a library over 99% of the time since 5th grade.
For the last fifty years I have probably averaged three or four at a time.
Call it cheap or thrifty, whatever you want.

Since 5th grade, the fine must be thousands by now! :lol2:

xoxoxoBruce;1047296 wrote:

Since 5th grade, the fine must be thousands by now! :lol2:

Not around here.

Bunch of damn commies, that's what they are.
The nerve of them letting those criminals run rampant over civilized society, when they should be making an example of the perps.
They're missing a great teaching moment for the children where they publicly punish the criminals with 50 lashes of the whip for a first offence.
Second offence, having to tw monolog for 12 minutes.

That's cruel.