Libraries and the Internet [1997]

The Internet, by making an almost boundless variety of information easily accessible, is providing libraries with powerful new tools to meet their patrons' information needs beyond traditional printed materials. Now, even the smallest library can reach beyond its walls to provide its clientele with resources once available only from the largest libraries.

Besides staff use of the Internet to answer reference questions, a growing number of libraries throughout Washington State--and throughout the country--are making the Internet available directly to their patrons through in-library computer workstations and even dial-in access from home computers.

The Internet is useful for more than the entertainment-related "surfing" that's often the focus of the media . A recent survey cited in Newsweek (1) reported that 53% of their respondents used the Internet for education, 51% for work-related pursuits, 41% for business research, and 36% for academic research. Whether a small business owner researching products, a farmer looking for agricultural commodity prices, an elementary school student doing homework, or a cancer patient wanting to learn about the newest treatment methods, the Internet can help locate the latest information.

Unfortunately, not everyone has ready access to this wealth of information. According to the same Newsweek article, only an estimated 15.4 million of the 98.8 million U.S. households were online in 1996. That number will grow to 23.3 million by the end of 1997 and 38.2 million in the year 2000. While this is a significant portion of the population, even in 2000 it will comprise only about 37% of total estimated U.S. households. With almost two-thirds of the population without home access to electronic information, libraries will be a primary source of Internet access for millions of people. And, as the complexity of these information networks grows, the people of Washington will turn to librarians they trust as guides and navigators.

Washington libraries are committed to meeting this growing need so that all the state's citizens, whether they live in downtown Seattle or rural Eastern Washington, have the same free and open access to electronic information that they've enjoyed with more traditional library materials.