Libraries: once and future

In a recent article in The New Yorker, Nicholson Baker laments the demise of the paper card catalogue as a ‘paroxysm of shortsightedness and anti‐intellectualism’ on the part of over‐zealous librarians, wrecking destruction ‘in a class with the burning of the library at Alexandria.’ Baker's poignant plea on behalf of the venerable catalogue fails to acknowledge or even mention the numerous benefits and advantages gained by libraries with online catalogues. In this article, Brian Helstien responds to Baker's piece focusing on four issues not discussed by Baker — authority control, collection preservation, collection access and collection costs. Vastly improved authority control is a major benefit of library automation, allowing library staff members to create and maintain large bibliographic databases efficiently and effectively, with more ease and accuracy than was possible with paper catalogues. Technology and automation are providing essential methods to fighting the ongoing deterioration of acidic collections and preserving the very scholarly materials indexed in catalogues. Without such technology, libraries (and scholars) can expect to lose large parts of their collections over relatively short periods of time. Rising collection costs faced by libraries is another issue not addressed by Baker. The use of technology such as online catalogues by libraries is one way libraries are fighting the rising costs of acquiring materials and providing access to these materials; without the technology, libraries and the scholars that use them will acquire fewer materials at a higher cost. Baker's viewpoint evokes nostalgia, but ultimately fails to recognise the real issues faced by libraries of today.