Better service through creativity and technology

Volume 20, Number 3 • March 2000

Better service through creativity and technology
by Michael Schuyler

THE VIEW FROM THE TOP LEFT CORNER column ponders the theme of "reinvent librarianship" and predicts what is coming. Notes that most of American history involved the pursuit of wealth, and now this bandwagon is going to utilize the Internet. Describes Kozmo, a Web site serving large markets, whose claim to fame is "Anything delivered within an hour." Discusses the Time-Warner/AOL merger and observes that now information content will be delivered via the Web directly to the consumer for a modest fee tacked onto a cable bill. Says that Kitsap Regional Library in Bremerton, WA, is providing the option of mailing holds for a fee of $2.50. Points out that putting up a library Web site and placing community links on it is not going to cut it, as libraries must be prepared to "do business" on the Internet and be as responsive as Kozmo to the needs of people.