The WWW: TMI?

In 1994, Her Royal Majesty Queen Elizabeth extended a gloved hand and knighted Sir Tim Berners-Lee for his commitment to innovation, technology, and public service. Berners-Lee may not be a household name, but this computer programmer is largely responsible for the way hundreds of thousands of people conduct their day-to-day lives. Everything from tele-conferencing, Skyping, Netflix accounts, Facebook stalking, tweeting, blogging and live-streaming all stem from his idea in the 1980’s about how organize the big, messy information overload that was the European research organization CERN.

While working as a computer scientist at CERN, (also known as the European Particle Physics Laboratory, which was popularized in Dan Brown’s thriller The Da Vinci Code), Berners-Lee developed a program called the World Wide Web, "to link and access information of various kinds as a web of nodes in which the user can browse at will" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Wide_Web).  The “Web”, as it came to be known, created a more user-friendly way to access the Internet, which previously was available for use only by those who knew complex programming languages. At first, only scientists and government entities were using it, but it soon turned into an unstoppable rolling stone of more magnitude than even Keith Richards.

In 1993 the Web became available for the public at large—Berners-Lee did not patent his invention, as he was committed to making the Web universally accessible. (http://www.nndb.com/people/573/000023504/). Today he is the head of the World Wide Web Consortium, which works “to further the potential of the Web to benefit humanity” (http://www.w3.org/People/Berners-Lee/). It is largely due to his lack of interest in the personal profit that the Web became such an important catalyst in the popularization of the Internet.

The computer used by Tim Berners-Lee at CERN that became the world's first web server. The post-it note reads "This machine is a server. DO NOT POWER IT DOWN!" Photo courtesy http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:First_Web_Server.jpg

Fast-forward thirty-two years to a generation that has never known what it is to search through an encyclopedia to write a research paper, to go to the store to buy a hard copy of a musical album, or to spend class time learning how to use the Dewey Decimal System. Looking for a job or an apartment?  You can still use a newspaper, but why would you when Craigslist.com or Indeed.com open up unlimited possibilities? As technology races forward, many of these pastimes are becoming obsolete at such a blindingly fast rate that it has become a daily challenge to understand the fastest way to search for information, watch a movie, or read a book. Many universities, such as Virginia Tech, actually require their students to own a personal computer (and they will lend you the money to buy one).

The legal system has had to catch up as well, as problems stemming from digital copy write infringement, malware, and national security re-frame what it means to break the law. Using the Internet in the United States means having nearly complete freedom to acquire or disseminate information in a way that has never before been accessible. The last time so much information was made available to the masses it was in the form of a printing press in Gutenburg.

What does this mean for society today? The verdict is still out and the debate rages on in the form of Wikileaks, The Freedom of Information Act, and illegal downloading. The battles are not only of the legal kind; they are also a matter of personal taste. Ask most anyone if they prefer an e-book or a physical one—whatever their stance on the matter, you will likely receive an impassioned reply. Music stores and bookstores are becoming more and more difficult to find with companies such as Amazon and eBay competing for business with much smaller overhead and much larger client base. In the realm of private industry and capitalism, the bottom line will eventually make the decisions. In the public sector, however, it may be a different story.

On their websites, public libraries provide links to such wonders as eBooks, eJournals, eAudiobooks, and eCollections. Anyone can check out databases or sign up for computer tutoring, and members can renew books online (http://www.alexandria.lib.va.us/client/home). As libraries struggle to keep up with the new digital age, government funding for them continues to decrease. With an economy that has been in a recession for the past five years, funding for libraries ranks somewhere between keeping the fire station staffed and the enforcement of bicycle laws.  Every year at the annual conference for the American Library Association, the discussion about library advancement continues with an increasing focus on the digital era. This summer in Chicago, librarians from all over the country will meet to debate “digital content and e-books, technology in libraries, innovation, books and authors, leadership, library advocacy, civic engagement, library marketing, and more” (http://www.ala.org/conferencesevents/upcoming/annual).

There can be no underestimating the impact all this has had on public library use. According to a study conducted by the University of Washington Information School, which was funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Institute of Museum and Library Services, 77 million Americans use public libraries to access computers and the Internet. While it was reported that social networking was the most popular form of computer usage at public libraries, educational purposes clocked in at a close second. According to the same report, 61 percent of young adults between the ages of 14 and 24 below the federal poverty line reported using pulbic library computers and the Internet for educational purposes.

Public libraries continue to be a Mecca for anyone who is interested in searching for information, knowledge, and opportunities, but thanks largely to Sir Tim Berners-Lee, these days that journey is conducted with fewer pencils and legal pads, and with more Macbooks and thumb drives.