What a marvelous resource public libraries are, all those books that you can borrow for free! I've grown up with libraries as a big part of my life. My Mum is an avid reader, who goes through about 10 books a week so as long as I can remember Saturday mornings have involved trips round various libraries. Some of my regular readers may be surprised at this as one of the few areas which I have yet to write an opinion in is the book category (unless you count Delia Smith).
~~~ My Mum & The Library ~~~
I think that dear old Mum would be lost without the library, it would cost her a fortune to buy all the books she reads. During the week she regularly visits two or three libraries, which although all in the same borough offer a different selection of books and differing levels of quality (that’s her excuse for visiting so many). She holds three library tickets, hers, my fathers and mine although I no longer live with her and she probably ought to tell them Dad is deceased. These three tickets are usually filled to capacity with books on loan. In her lunch breaks my Mum is regularly to be found browsing the new books in WH Smiths armed with a notebook for jotting down the details. She then fills out a reserve card and takes it in to the library on her next visit. One complaint she does have though is that one library in her area charges 5p more than all the others for reservations. They are always phoning her up to say they have a book in for her and she dashes down there to pick up her books before they closed. Funny how they always phone the day before they are closed for the day. When I was a kid my Mum also used to borrow paintings from the library but they no longer offer this service.
~~~ Good Readers Club ~~~
I have memories of being in the Good Readers Club when I was a child. I would borrow books with the GRC mark on them and when I took them back the librarian would take me into the back and ask me questions on the book. You were rewarded with stars on a little card and each month there were a list of the top ten kids in the Good Readers Club. As I spent so much time visiting libraries with Mum my name was rarely off the list. This was a great idea which certainly encouraged you to think about the books you read. I think that helped to make reading such a big part of my life. I notice that locally there is currently a "reading carnival" for children
~~~ My Local Library ~~~
I'm very fortunate as we have a brand new library quite near to my home. It's only been open a couple of months and is very state of the art with a handy touch screen system for looking up books in the catalogue. Also the other benefit of this new library is that a lot of the books are brand new. There is also an excellent car park with lovely wide spaces which I'm sure are a bonus to those with children. I visit this library a couple of times a week to change my books. Living in Basildon my library is part of the Essex Library service so I can take out up to thirteen items at a time.
Being a little library mine doesn't offer CD's but it does offer videos. Personally I just go for the books.
~~~ Internet Access ~~~
Libraries today offer free Internet access, which I can't claim to be an expert on as I haven't used it. Even my little library offers 5 terminals which always seem to be in use when I'm in there. I was looking at them one day when I noticed the librarian having a little trouble explaining internet use to a customer so I helpfully pointed them to the BBC WebWise site. The librarian explained to me that she was waiting to go on her course for using the internet so was still a little lost. You can book in advance to use the internet at popular times which is handy if you don't have access at home. One of my friends was looking for a new job last year and went to the library every day to use the internet. He thought it was a great resource except they wouldn't let him use a disk in the machine in case of viruses. This was a bit of a drawback as he wanted to send his CV off. I arranged for him to send a copy to his hotmail account from my house, he presto all he needed to do then was forward the note containing his CV to perspective employers. I do think that the library should make some arrangements for virus checking floppy disks for people like my friend.
~~~ Distance Learning ~~~
Large libraries now offer a distance learning service. There are computer based training packages available on the library computers. Also there is a range of resources such as videos and audio cassettes available for loan. Of course they also offer a huge variety of teach yourself books as well. This is another great service from the library and it allows people to access excellent training materials at a negligible cost. I work in the training department of a large blue chip company and I have responsibility for distance learning materials. This leaves me qualified to tell you that the materials in the library are of a very good standard.
~~~ Fast Check Out ~~~
My shiny new library has a big fast check out terminal. This allows you to check out your own books rather than queue when the library is busy. You just pop your library ticket into the special slot, then follow the on-screen instructions to scan the bar coded ticket in the books. This doesn't stamp the books with the return date, but in Essex you can always check out when your books are due back using ELAN on the Internet (see below).
~~~ The Costs ~~~
Hang on isn't using the library free? Of course it is, if you borrow only books and return them on time. There are charges made for reserving books, overdue books, and borrowing other materials such as CD's and Videos. The charges are quite reasonable really when you consider what you get for your money. The charges with Essex libraries are as follows.
Compact Discs – 90p
CD ROMs - £2.60
Cassettes - 65p to £1.60
Videos - £1.00 to £2.50
DVDs - £2.50
Language Courses – 65p to £3.25
Reservations - 90p (or 60p through ELAN)
Overdue Books - 10p per day (maximum £5)
All borrowing periods are for three weeks other than for large language courses which are for 12 weeks.
Prices vary where there are multiple sets or childrens items. There are also quite high overdue charges on videos. Children are not charged for overdue items. There are various other charges for lost or damaged goods as well.
~~~ ELAN ~~~
Now this to me is the best thing about our library service. ELAN is Essex Libraries Automated Network. You can access it online at http://www.essexcc.gov.uk/infoserv/ecc_lib/fs_elanonline.htm. This service allows library members to find out a lot of information about the library service. I won't go into too much detail as that would be an opinion in itself, I'll just tell you the best bits. By inputting your library number (printed on your ticket) and your password (last 3 digits of your postcode) you can view your own library record. This allows you to see which items you have on loan and when they are due back to the library. You can also renew a loan online if you haven't finished with the item, helps save on those overdue fees. If there are any charges due you will be charged next time you visit the library, when they scan your ticket the charges will pop up on the screen.
Now you may be thinking that sounds really handy, but here comes the best bit. Using the ELAN service you can search for a book or other item which the library service has and put a "hold" on the item. The hold is a reservation, you can see which libraries stock your item, if they are in or out and if they are on loan, when they are due back. When you place a "hold" on an item you can specify which library branch you wish to collect it from. Remember when I listed the charges? You may have noticed that it's cheaper to reserve an item through ELAN than in the library itself, 30p cheaper in fact which can add up to a big saving. You can check online to see the status of your reserved item, one I reserved last week is currently "in transit" to my nominated branch. As with all reservations you will receive a phone call when the item is available for you to collect, this phone call service is shortly due to be automated so look for an update. If you have reserved items online you will be charged on your next visit to the library as normal. If you don't have Internet access to take advantage of the discount offered by reserving books through ELAN, no problem there is a dedicated ELAN terminal in the library. Reserve your own books using the ELAN terminal just 6 feet from the counter and save yourself 30p per time, if you don't know how to use it ask the librarian, she will help you!
~~~ Likes & Dislikes ~~~
I needed to get a bit of a whinge in somewhere didn't I. What I really dislike about the library services is their classification of fiction. When I was younger the fiction was stored A to Z by author, now it is stored alphabetically in categories such as crime, comedy, saga, modern etc. Now I don't like to read by category and neither do most people I know, this means instead of browsing around one big lot of goodies you are required to go round different sections.
This can be particularly annoying when you are looking for an author whose books may fall into several categories. If any librarians are reading this PUT THE FICTION BACK IN TO SIMPLE ALPHABETICAL ORDER!
Well that was my whinge, now for what I think is good about the modern library service. The libraries are no longer silent places that you feel you should tip-toe round. They still aren't particularly noisy but with people working on computers and librarians offering them assistance the silence is no longer oppressive. For me this is a positive thing as I always felt like a naughty schoolgirl creeping round the library in squeaky shoes. Now I feel far more relaxed in the less silent atmosphere.
~~~ The Bottom Line ~~~
The library service is a wonderful resource for all of us. It encourages people to read far more than they would if they needed to buy books. Imagine the cost of my Mum buying 10 books a week! The modern library is firmly in the 21st century offering a variety of items for loan and an excellent service from the staff. The online library facilities I access are excellent and firmly show the library service is actively encouraging the use of technology. I think all children should be brought up to see the library service as a part of their lives, after all reading is a good pastime which broadens the mind. Even reading fiction allows you to learn, many is the time I've read interesting books set during the second world war, which I'm sure helped me to achieve an A in GCSE modern history. Think about when you last visited the library, if it was some time ago you will be amazed at the changes.
Free Books For All 
