Do you use the library?

[Kitty 34]

I work a ton in our middle school and read lots of books that are in their library.

 

[pookybean]

How do you find information about Disney topics?
Library, websites, books, all of these?

Have you created your own source of information?
Books, Blog, websites or?

If you use technology to advance the Disney community and/or to share information, in what ways do you do so?

Anything anyone can share would be gratefully received!

Please know that privacy is respected and no names are used without consent.

Deb

I love, love LOVE going to our library and was there this afternoon. I get all my pleasure reading from there and have not bought a book in years (well, maybe one or two from goodwill). I read them too quickly and too often for it to make financial sense. I belong to a couple of reading recommendation pages on facebook and also when i find an author i like i want to read all the books! I often request them and run in to pick them up when they come in. this is also a good system to be sure I can read a series in order since my local library very rarely has all the books in one location.

For research i will use the computer, when i needed scholarly articles they were just easier to find this way. then i could print, highlight and take notes if needed.

For disney i use the internet for planning because my library hardly ever has any updated copies. and it is easier to look something up with my specific question on the internet than to find it in a book. when i do find that my library has a new edition disney book i will take it out, but it will be for pleasure not for planning.

i dont think i use any disney information for the disney community. i use it to lure others over to our side!

thank you for becoming a librarian, i worry that someday our libraries will close for lack of use...but i need them!

 

[georgina]

I research Disney through the internet, websites such as this and others. Have not created my own source.

We use our library to borrow movies, CDs, actual books and E-books. When my FIL lost most of his sight, he borrowed cassette like things and a reader to listen to books. Our county library system is great.

 

[LBIJim]

How do you find information about Disney topics?
Library, websites, books, all of these?

All of these.

Have you created your own source of information?
Books, Blog, websites or?

No

If you use technology to advance the Disney community and/or to share information, in what ways do you do so?

Posting on this and occasionally on other Disney internet sites.

Responses to OPs questions in red.

DD was so excited to get a Kindle a couple years ago as she is a total bookworm. Loaded one book, decided she hated the Kindle, hasn't used it since. She visits our public library weekly. Occasionally, I'll have her check something out for me.

Anyone want to buy a barely used Kindle?

I'll undercut your price by 25%.

DW got me a Kindle for my birthday last year. Downloaded a few things, used it a few times, now it's collecting dust somewhere.

There's nothing like the gestalt of a book. The feel of it in your hands; turning the pages; rich, vivid color photos that no e-reader can match, etc.

I visit the library frequently. Borrow books and DVDs, read magazines and the Sunday New York Times and other papers, buy used books for a buck or less, borrow CDs to burn MP3s, listen to lecturers on various topics, to name a few reasons.

 

[Imzadi]

Yes, I use my library all the time. Mostly for the eBook downloads now. The NY Public Library has one of the most extensive eBook collections. We have 58,744 in the EPUB format and 56,536 in the Kindle Mobi format.

Even so, I made special trips to both Brooklyn & Queens to join their libraries too, so I could have access to their eBook collections, too. Being smaller libraries, they often have more specialized eBooks that our Manhattan/Bronx libraries don't have.

 

[Colleen27]

I've read 70-odd books this year and haven't bought a single one... I make heavy use of our library, which is just a couple blocks from my house and has a great interlibrary loan catalog. However, for Disney planning I find the library useless and the bookstore nearly so as well. Things change so quickly in the world of Disney travel planning and the writing/editing/publication cycle moves so slowly by comparison that even the newest editions of respected travel guides can sometimes have outdated info by the time they hit the shelves. The internet, on the other hand, can be updated in real time. So that's what I use for my Disney planning - the DIS, All Ears, Easy WDW, and other unofficial/fan-based planning sites that always have the latest buzz, not what was current when the book went to press last year.

 

[TLSnell1981]

I can't remember the last time, that I stepped into a library, but it's been YEARS! I use the Internet for vacation planning and purchase almost all of my books online (eReader). will buy hardcover's by my favorite authors, if I can get first editions.

 

[drinkme]

Professional Librarian here!

Some libraries are just so small and it's hard to get your books & materials. However, if you have a great library system near you then you are in luck. Libraries offer so much more than the latest best seller.

Anyway, to answer the ops question. I usually use the internet to plan a Disney trip. But I think using trip planning as an example of why people aren't visiting libraries as much is a bad example.

There's nothing like a library!!!

 

[SAHDad]

Answering the questions first, before digressing:

I primarily use the internet when looking for information on Disney or when planning a trip. OTOH, we get the new Unofficial Guide every year - easier to access when on the road, in flight, etc. That said, my internet access certainly includes library use, since I will happily use the internet at the library as well as at home.

For Disney? I'm on a podcast, so yeah, I guess I help create content.

Now, regarding use of the local library? The local library system has a maximum limit of 50 items, and I routinely bump up against it. I have a few DVDs out at the moment, and probably a few for the kids, but a fair number of those are mine. I read more than a book per week (generally about two on average), not counting graphic novels, magazines, etc. There are a few authors where I will purchase their latest works, but there are plenty where I read the book and return it.

 

[JVL1018]

I don't use the library at all for research on anything including trips(use the internet at home exclusively for that), but I take out plenty of books.
I do have a kindle and the kindle app on my ipad, but I much prefer reading actual books.
I read so much, if I had to pay for all the books I'd read, it would be a lot of money.
Anything my library doesn't have on hand, I can request online through my county interlibrary loan system(75 libraries) and it's is delivered to my town library less than a mile away.

Library=free books, what's not to love?

 

[Starwind]

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[WowLookAtThat]

I didn't use the library until we moved. I lived really close to a bookstore and the library was far away so I would either buy online or at the store. That all changed when I moved far away and now the closest bookstore is probably an hour away but our library is 15 minutes walking distance. I now use the library far more than I used to.

For things like research, I tend to use the internet and only at home. I don't really like our library computers.

 

[PollyannaMom]

How do you find information about Disney topics?
Library, websites, books, all of these?

When I planned our first family Disney trip, I started with a guidebook checked out from the library. I knew I would have to confirm some things on line, as updates are always happening, but it gave me ideas of what to look for in the first place. Then I moved to online, and also bought a kids' guidebook/journal for my son.

Have you created your own source of information?
Books, Blog, websites or?

No.

If you use technology to advance the Disney community and/or to share information, in what ways do you do so?

Mostly participating here on the DIS, answering others questions as they have mine. I've e-mailed links to friends who were planning trips as well.

Anything anyone can share would be gratefully received!

I love our library!! Several years ago, it's hours were cut for budget reasons, and the people of our town worked together to get it back. My family uses it for paper books, e-books, CD's / DVD's, community programs, and museum passes. We also participate in their book-sale fundraisers.

 

[java]

For trip planning i generally use the internet, because it seems more up to date.

But, I do use the library for other items. I generally get all my cookbooks from there first. When i take one out more than twice I know it is one I would like to own. I go on waiting lists for books, which seems to take forver, but patience is a virtue.

We rent blue ray movies, take out magazines and attend special events. I love the library.

 

[Pigeon]

I use the public library constantly. We are there about once a week and always leave with a huge tote bag full of books.

We mostly use it for fiction, cookbooks and DIY books. We also borrow music CDs and DVDs. I also download ebooks from Overdrive, but I prefer print to ebook. The ebooks are convenient if I can't get to the library and have run out of reading.

My kids will go there to do research as their school library is awful and is run by a librarian who prefers the library to be free of those pesky students.

For Disney stuff, I did borrow the most recent Unofficial Guide every time we went to Disney to see if I needed to buy a new copy (I did end up buying).

I don't blog or create my own Disney info sources. I hate blogs in general.

I use the Dis and a few other sources for internet research.

Our library is pretty much always packed with people and bursting at the seams. They have great programming.

I'm a librarian (not a public librarian) and have been for decades. Librarians are the most self-flagellating people on earth. The whole "nobody will use the library and we are getting obsolete" meme was old when I went through library school. Our jobs have changed and we reach people in different ways. That doesn't make us irrelevant.

We do need to make a conscious effort to keep up with and be proactive about technology. Some public libraries are great about that, some are not. Some libraries have great and up-to-date websites, some are atrocious. If your license agreements for electronic resources allow remote access, it is worth making that happen for your patrons. Survey your patrons and see what services they need. Offer classes on different types of technology.

 

[bellebud]

I use the public library constantly. We are there about once a week and always leave with a huge tote bag full of books.

We mostly use it for fiction, cookbooks and DIY books. We also borrow music CDs and DVDs. I also download ebooks from Overdrive, but I prefer print to ebook. The ebooks are convenient if I can't get to the library and have run out of reading.

My kids will go there to do research as their school library is awful and is run by a librarian who prefers the library to be free of those pesky students.

For Disney stuff, I did borrow the most recent Unofficial Guide every time we went to Disney to see if I needed to buy a new copy (I did end up buying).

I don't blog or create my own Disney info sources. I hate blogs in general.

I use the Dis and a few other sources for internet research.

Our library is pretty much always packed with people and bursting at the seams. They have great programming.

I'm a librarian (not a public librarian) and have been for decades. Librarians are the most self-flagellating people on earth. The whole "nobody will use the library and we are getting obsolete" meme was old when I went through library school. Our jobs have changed and we reach people in different ways. That doesn't make us irrelevant.

We do need to make a conscious effort to keep up with and be proactive about technology. Some public libraries are great about that, some are not. Some libraries have great and up-to-date websites, some are atrocious. If your license agreements for electronic resources allow remote access, it is worth making that happen for your patrons. Survey your patrons and see what services they need. Offer classes on different types of technology.

Why are there so many librarians like this??? It always cracks me up.

 

[cassandrap83]

I go to our public library every week. I like physical books and e-books. I'm also an adult who has gone back to school - I CANNOT learn from an e-text. I must have the book in front of me. There is something about "learning" via online text that just doesn't gel with me.

I had to visit the library on campus once and was surprised to find that there was only a broom-closet-sized section that had actual books.

 

[Jedana]

As someone who works in a library, we often hear that no one uses books anymore and everything is on the web. I'll admit that I mostly used the internet when I planned my niece and nephew's first trip to DCA but I still check out lots of books from the library. I also recently bought two books on Mary Blair.

As a Grad student in library science we are also looking at issues of library versus internet. I am wondering if anyone here would be willing to share their thoughts and experiences. Either way, thanks for reading!

How do you find information about Disney topics?
Library, websites, books, all of these? Internet/websites

Have you created your own source of information?
Books, Blog, websites or? no

If you use technology to advance the Disney community and/or to share information, in what ways do you do so? Message boards such as this one; Facebook with friends/family

Anything anyone can share would be gratefully received! I don't use the library computers, everything is done from home. We do go to the library almost weekly (sometimes it's every other). DS and I get books, DH gets books on CD to listen to on his commute.

Please know that privacy is respected and no names are used without consent.

Deb

Bolded answers are mine

 

[Andtototoo]

When planning a Disney trip, the ONLY way I use the library is if I decide to borrow the Unofficial Guide instead of buying it and THEN only if the library has the most recent version available in a timely basis.

 

[rodeo65]

How do you find information about Disney topics?
Library, websites, books, all of these?
Online exclusively - the very first trip I used a travel agent but since then on my own using internet.

Have you created your own source of information?
Books, Blog, websites or?
No.

If you use technology to advance the Disney community and/or to share information, in what ways do you do so?
Disboards, e-mail with friends and family, used the Disney Experience app last trip also.

Anything anyone can share would be gratefully received!

Please know that privacy is respected and no names are used without consent.

Deb

As far as using the library unrelated to Disney trips, I home school my kids and take them to the public library once weekly to borrow books and for project research in addition to their internet use.