Library needs an update

I was surprised to read Monday's Indiana Daily Student staff editorial, "Library need not be luxurious," which included some misinformation.\n1. As contracted services independently operated, the Commons Café in the lobby and the cafeteria on the ground level are not funded by the IU Libraries. Their operation in no way displaces funds dedicated for books or other library resources.\n2. The Main Library is not a substitute for the Indiana Memorial Union. Our purposes are far different, but it is true that we share a desire to offer students the \nenvironments that can help them in their work. Because the library is close to many of the dorms on the north side of campus, we offer space for students to gather, to work collaboratively and to use library resources.\n3. New databases and books are not as visible as new lobby furniture, but we are constantly offering more resources to provide students, faculty and the academic community with the materials they need. Last year we added 105,028 titles to the collections. As the IDS noted, our collection of books is among the nation's largest. High circulation numbers reveal it is also one of the most heavily used collections for libraries our size. Yes, even the students you refer to in your editorial check out and read books. \nWe continue to offer new services. For example, we recently launched a test version of SingleSearch, a powerful research tool that allows students to search multiple databases at the same time. You are now able to select which databases you would like to search, type a keyword and view the results in the order you choose.\nOur goal always is to support students in their academic pursuits. In addition to offering top-ranked collections and services, we also provide them 24 hours per day, 7 days per week. The new lobby furniture and the expansion of the Information Commons are incremental changes, consistent with a major renovation the University is proposing for the Main Library. University Architect Bob Meadows and I will make a presentation to the IU Student Association Thursday, and I hope many Bloomington students will attend.\nLibraries are not warehouses; they are environments where students and faculty discover, interact and learn. Perhaps even more important, libraries are not static institutions. If they were, the Main Library would be exactly as it was when it opened its doors in 1969. Then, the card catalog filled an entire room. Electric typewriters were considered high-tech. Students took study breaks in smoking rooms located in the Main Library's West Tower.\nLibraries have long been considered the intellectual core of the University, but as the University changes, it is important that libraries also change. New patterns of learning and new technologies demand new approaches in the ways we offer services. In spite of its age, the Main Library offers unprecedented potential to meet the demands of today's students and faculty.\nOn a more basic level, it does seem odd to me that we would be criticized for replacing furniture that is more than 36 years old.