Article Courtesy of Lebanon Daily News
May 23, 2010

BRAD RHEN Staff Writer

David Shaw comes to the Lebanon Community Library about once a week - not for the books, but for the web. The 42-year-old Lebanon man said he been using computers at the library, located at Seventh and Willow streets, for about 10 years.

"I only use a computer maybe a half-hour to an hour a week, so the price of buying a computer, the upkeep, and stuff, it's not worth it," he said on a recent day at the library.

Shaw said he uses the Internet for a variety of purposes. A collector, he goes online to search for prices of antiques and collectibles, and he also uses it for personal reasons, like e-mail and web searches.

The idea of having free computers to use in public libraries is a great idea, he said. "Today, people are TV-oriented and watch a lot of TV, and it brings people into the library, and they can check out books while they're in here," he said.

According to a national study, Americans are using library web connections more than ever, and one-third of libraries report they don't have adequate connections. The study, conducted by the University of Washington Information School, found that 77 million people, or one-third of Americans older than 14, use public libraries or wireless services to go online.

"People from all walks of life use library computers to perform routine and life-changing tasks, from e-mailing friends to finding jobs," Michael Crandall, senior lecturer and chairman of the master of science in information management at UWIS, said in a news release.

"More than three-quarters of those who used the library for Internet connections had access at home, work or elsewhere. Oftentimes they needed a faster connection, assistance from a librarian or temporary access in an emergency."

The study further said about 40 percent of library Internet users - about 30 million people - receive help with career needs. Among these users, 75 percent reported they searched for a job online, and half of these users filled out an online application or submitted a resume via the Internet.

Jayne Tremaine, director of the Lebanon Community Library, said having computers at public libraries is essential because many people don't have computers of their own. She estimated that only 40 percent of people nationwide have home computers.
 
"So that leaves an awful lot of people who do not, and those individuals are just as in need as anyone else," Tremaine said. "They're looking for jobs, and so many applications now have to be filed online. I think it's vital that libraries provide that service. So many folks come in, and they have to apply for a job, ... and they don't know anything about a computer. It's the first time they've had to use it, and it's for a job application. So it's creating a real need, and I think with the economy, people are looking at the cost to have one at home."

The Lebanon library has 20 public computers plus one special job-search computer that is linked to CareerLink. The library's computers recently reopened after being shut down for about six weeks because of hardware problems.

Tremaine said she has definitely seen an increase in the number of people using the computers in the past couple years as the economy faltered.

"And those are individuals who are specifically looking for help to find work," she said.
Despite the increasing number of people using the computers, Tremaine said, the library has no plans to add more.

Dee Neff, director of the Annville Free Library, said she would like to add more computers, but there simply isn't enough room.
 
The Annville library has eight public Internet connections. So far this year, she said, there have been 4,241 total web sessions. There were 11,567 users in 2008, and 17,067 users in 2009, a 47 percent increase.

"There are a lot of people that are doing job searches," Neff said. "We don't really monitor what people are doing - people are doing that, people are checking e-mail, people are doing all sorts of things. We have had a number of people applying for jobs, and some people come in, and they have absolutely no computer skills whatsoever, but they have to apply online, so that's kind of an issue."

The library offers help, including classes, to people who have limited computer skills. Many of the classes are full, Neff said, including the next scheduled session.

Public Internet connections at libraries is a great idea, Neff added, because libraries are "the perfect vehicle for getting people tech-savvy."

"We're here, we're open, and most of us have the skills, and we have the equipment," she said. "It's just an amazing resource for people to come in here. They don't have to buy a computer, they don't have to buy an Internet connection, we do all the technical trouble-shooting, we have the printers."

John Reinhardt of North Londonderry Township was one of the people using the computers at the Palmyra library on a recent day. He said he canceled his home Internet connection after a dispute with his provider and now relies on libraries for his computer needs. He said he visits the library at least once a week.

"I love it," he said. "For people who don't have computers, they can come in here and use them all the time."

The Palmyra Public Library currently has seven public Internet connections, and they receive heavy use, executive director Karla Marsteller said. The library is in the process of adding two more computers.

While the computers have been popular since Marsteller started at the Palmyra library 8 1/2 years ago, the demographics of the people using them and their purposes have changed, she said.

"It was more people coming in and checking their e-mails - seniors coming in who wanted to communicate with their grandchildren, a lot of kids after school," she said. "But in the past, I would say, year, year and a half, we've seen a real change. It's now adults, considerably more men than it used to be. When you walk by, just at a glance, a lot of them are looking at job-related sites."

"There is a lot of job searching going on," she added. "We are now running computer classes as well, ... and we're finding people signing up for those who are displaced from work and looking to gain some additional skills."

Marsteller said a lot of those who use the computers come in strictly for computers and do not check out any other library materials.

"The use of our materials has grown over the past five years by just over 50 percent, but the number of people coming through our doors has grown by 150 percent in the past five years, so obviously not everybody coming through the doors is checking something out and taking it home," she said.

Neff tells a similar story. Many of the people at the computers at the Annville Free Library use only the computers and no other library resources, she said, adding that she would like to see libraries utilized more to bring computer skills to the general public.

"I think it's just one of the most important things we can be doing, because it's not going away," Neff said. "We're the perfect venue for it. It's something we should be doing. It's just as important as story time."

bradrhen@ldnews.com; 272-5611, ext. 145