Transformation Of Knowledge In The Digital Age Environment Through Library

Book excerpt: The proposed book emphasizes importance for a library to be flexible to changing needs and to adopt new technologies rapidly. If a library of today wants to achieve success, it must offer high quality service, the best possible satisfaction of requirements, and exhibit great flexibility in its activity. In order to achieve all these goals, it is necessary to attract specialists of a library to solving common problems. Today, people get their information online — often filtered through for-profit platforms. If a book isn’t online, it’s as if it doesn’t exist. Yet much of modern knowledge still exists only on the printed page, stored in libraries. Libraries haven’t met this digital demand, stymied by costs, e-book restrictions, policy risks, and missing infrastructure. We now have the technology and legal frameworks to transform our library system. The Internet Archive, working with library partners, proposes bringing millions of books online, through purchase or digitization, starting with the books most widely held and used in libraries and classrooms. With the emergence of new technologies, the traditional library, acting as a medium for sharing information, needs an integral refinement in its processes. This transformation will bring in efficiency and minimize human error in the processes with the help of smart gates, material location finder and smart check-out booth to automate the processes of controlling access, locating items as well as the issuing/returning of materials. However, the changeover to a smart library system might face several challenges like for instance the cost of implementing numerous high-frequency RFID readers at prime locations in the library. Another crucial challenge of this system will be the limitation of the equipment to achieve a more performing system. Highly sophisticated equipment will be required which will largely affect the cost. Smart library focuses on use of technology in a library and is designed to be very collaborative learning environment, where participants are encouraged to contribute ideas and information. Smart library improves traditional and non-traditional library services, improves users' library experience and enhances opportunities for students learning. Libraries are facing increased expectations from users, and challenge of developing technologies including: Web 2.0, e-books, digitations and a problem of archiving digital content. Web-based technology provides users and information professionals with powerful and flexible tools for information dissemination.