Posted by rustyhancock 6 hours ago
This happened to my state's library system a while back. Public computers and free wifi were down for a few months, but no major disruptions of lending services. I don't think the state paid any ransom, instead they just repaired their systems.
Since we are talking about e-borrowing I assume DRM are involved. If they are not, ignore the rest.
The point of DRM (ignoring their terrible side effect) is precisely to keep on controlling data even after content has been released. There is a validation mechanism (typically pinging back the digital right owner) to insure that the file can indeed be read. So... do not validate all the signed books already out, issue a new key for the library to "e-borrow" (hate that term) once again. Why is this even taking more than 1min? I don't get it. It feels like once again in theory it could be positive but in practice the negative side effects of DRMs trump out everything.
That would also have arguably been more risky of a redemptive act than the right thing to do in this circumstance.
I remember hearing that they do have customer support, though! Not sure if you can escalate to a sales rep to get a personalized quote or non-profit discount from there.
some groups offer it (not out of goodness: rather on price discrimination grounds)
They really are looking for a reason to exist in the digital age.
Many other uses of tax dollars are handouts for a very small number of people that most of us see no benefit from (and may even have side-effects that make things worse for everybody else).
A beloved public institution, that improves society as a whole, is equally available to all, has enough money to do their mission well offer auxiliary services and to take advantage of PSA programs?
What a treasure.
Kind of like how many regions will have a unified transit payment card, even if it covers a half dozen completely independent adjacent transit systems
Wipe the system and start again.
The library has something like 5 million books. How many could you enter into an empty system each day? Maybe 1000? That would take a decade to complete.
Today, it could probably disappear and no one would miss it. There's a reason these places operate on a shoestring budget and haven't bothered to update software security. The services we value, we pay for or vote for. If there was a proposition to close libraries in favor of some other minor benefit (e.g. one extra field trip for every school child per year), it would probably lose badly.
Probably most of the relevant functions of a library can be accomplished by other more efficient means. Student loan forgiveness (librarians), homeless shelters with computers, and free daycare for kids. That's basically what people use it for now, and all can be better done if we just admit what its for and do that instead.
Libraries are for reading and socialising, so many users here have a really really hard time to imagine that someone might have some benefit from them.
Personally, I believe these are important for a functional society more generally.
At least every other week if not more often. I also use the library digital services a good bit. There's always lots of people at the libraries I go to browsing books, I imagine they're also checking them out.
> it could probably disappear and no one would miss it.
The libraries I go to have so many people using their various services constantly. People studying and reading. Kids playing, exploring and reading. 3D printers buzzing. Classes and events being hosted.
> one extra field trip for every school child per year
You're going to replace something lots of people use across all age ranges constantly with a single day event for only children once a year? Sounds like a terrible loss IMO.
I agree a library is way more than just a place to get books today. They do offer a lot of community center features, and I think modern library designs should cater to that need as well. But they're not homeless shelters, they're not daycares. They still have their own specific use, a general place of learning and knowledge for all people. A place for all the community to come together, not just little kids or just the homeless. It's just the way we go about sharing that has evolved a bit over time compared to the stodgy old libraries of the past.