Bibliotecas públicas em Tempos Difíceis
| Main Author: | Sequeiros, Paula |
|---|---|
| Format: | Journal PeerReviewed Book |
| Bahasa: | pt |
| Terbitan: |
Instituto de Sociologia da Faculdade de Letras da Universidade do Porto
, 2013
|
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: |
http://eprints.rclis.org/20390/1/BibTemposDif.pdf http://eprints.rclis.org/20390/ |
Daftar Isi:
- The study of everyday-life during World War II showed how attendance and valuation of public libraries may considerably increase during “Hard Times”. Some of the reasons are expected – free reading – and some other are occasionally surprising – shelter under adverse atmospheric conditions, appreciated levels of comfort such as lighting, desired (and recently-lost?) social interaction. It should be noted that, in some European and North-American countries, there were neighbourhood libraries located throughout the big city, acting as estimated proximity services. Being aware of this reality helps us understand why cultural and recreational services, and nowadays Web services too, are not less, but even more important in times of crisis. In Portugal, and in the last decade, public libraries have been steadily degraded through the reduction of adequately qualified personnel and through a generalised lack of the updating of collections, along with other cuts. Certain technological options do not appear to have been made according to the needs of readers but following non-transparent investment choices away of public scrutiny. If Wi-Fi is quite widespread now, ebooks have not entered public libraries yet. However, we may question: What shelters do we want in our city to read in, and how do we want to read? “Secludedly” alone, in a community without propinquity? Do we tolerate intrusions while reading in public? Who pushes those technological choices? And above all: if we are deprived of these spaces or of these services, who will fill this void? Will they still be "built for us"?