If you thought that Generation Y (18-30s) in the USA would not be keen to visit a library to solve a sample of 10 possible common problems, then you'd be wrong! The latest Pew survey "Information searches that solve problems" shows that they were the most likely group who would visit the library to solve hteir problems. 40% of Gen Y against 20% of those above age 30. A major thread in the survey concerned those with no access to the internet (23% of the population) and those with dial-up[ access (13%). These are the poorer, older, less well-educated sector who may be less inclined to visit government offices or public libraries, about whom public librarians will be most concerned.
Lee Raine (from Pew) in his keynote at Computers in Libraries this week, highlighted the huge influence of wireless technology in bridging the digital gap, and the increasing number of "adults" using 2.0 technologies. Read LibrarianInBlack's full report. It makes crucial reading for public librarians. Wonder how far the same trends can be seen in UK public libraries? Certainly my own public library in St Albans is usually bustling, with large percentage of teens and 20s and it's not just on the PCs...
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