It seems to me that my public library has gotten louder then it has even been recently , I recall years ago when the library was as quite as a Catholic Church. What kind of quite occupies your Library ?
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Have Libraries gotten louder ?
- Thread starter MAJOR METAL
- Start date
The spelling and grammar section at LIBRARIES sure haven't 
I think they have, and I think it's because of the introduction of (more) computers so more people are working collaboratively.
I think they have, and I think it's because of the introduction of (more) computers so more people are working collaboratively.
about 5 years ago, I could read comfortably in a library. Nowadays, I can't concentrate on what I'm reading, since there are a bunch of screaming kids, or people having loud conversations, that frankly, I don;t nead to hear. So yes, libraries are sucking for quiteness nowadays!
Komakino said:The spelling and grammar section at LIBRARIES sure haven't
Thanks, I really do not know how to spell.
All around the computer area is pretty noisy (Well, for a library). The rest of the place is deadly quiet... as no one ever ventures out into that wilderness.
I'm a library assistant for a private college (and will be starting a new job in a month as a Technical Support Specialist at another private college library) which should tell you much already.
Libraries now often require technical support specialists and technologists to keep their systems running. The college I currently work for has two campuses, each library has about two dozen computers in them, and the one I'm starting at soon has over 50.
When you combine computer noise, study groups, cell phones/ipods, and everything of that sort, the place is gonna get noisy. And what with wireless networking, people can be typing away on their laptops and working on projects even in areas of the library that would normally still be quiet.
I'm at work right now, typing on my laptop that is on the library's network, so I'm definitely not against it (maintaining these systems is what pays the bills for me, after all), but most libraries of all kinds are in a similar situation.
It seems to me that the library is now a place for free internet access more than a quiet study place. And considering that more articles and research materials can be accessed through online databases, even the regular collection of books has become nearly obsolete...not to mention that even in an academic setting, many professors are beginning to let students get away with fewer and fewer hard copy sources in their term papers.
Though to be honest, it all boils down to the same basic principle, that you do what sells. The library brings in more people with the technology it offers, and if a few people who used to enjoy the quiet are displaced by the many dozens who wish to come in and use the computer workstations, internet, and group project areas that are more noisy, then so be it (at least, that is what a lot of today's library administrators are saying).
In the case of my supervisors, it means more funding. Of course, that funding ends up getting put into new computers and LCD monitors to make the library look up to date, rather than into new resources. Go figure.
I apologize for the essay, but despite my technology job, I'm a bit of a library purist and miss the quiet too.
Libraries now often require technical support specialists and technologists to keep their systems running. The college I currently work for has two campuses, each library has about two dozen computers in them, and the one I'm starting at soon has over 50.
When you combine computer noise, study groups, cell phones/ipods, and everything of that sort, the place is gonna get noisy. And what with wireless networking, people can be typing away on their laptops and working on projects even in areas of the library that would normally still be quiet.
I'm at work right now, typing on my laptop that is on the library's network, so I'm definitely not against it (maintaining these systems is what pays the bills for me, after all), but most libraries of all kinds are in a similar situation.
It seems to me that the library is now a place for free internet access more than a quiet study place. And considering that more articles and research materials can be accessed through online databases, even the regular collection of books has become nearly obsolete...not to mention that even in an academic setting, many professors are beginning to let students get away with fewer and fewer hard copy sources in their term papers.
Though to be honest, it all boils down to the same basic principle, that you do what sells. The library brings in more people with the technology it offers, and if a few people who used to enjoy the quiet are displaced by the many dozens who wish to come in and use the computer workstations, internet, and group project areas that are more noisy, then so be it (at least, that is what a lot of today's library administrators are saying).
In the case of my supervisors, it means more funding. Of course, that funding ends up getting put into new computers and LCD monitors to make the library look up to date, rather than into new resources. Go figure.
I apologize for the essay, but despite my technology job, I'm a bit of a library purist and miss the quiet too.
thank cell phones for the loudness. people forget to turn them off and not talk on them in the library.
the libraries i attend are not very quiet either. i was in one this morning and this obnoxious lady wouldn't shut up.
the libraries i attend are not very quiet either. i was in one this morning and this obnoxious lady wouldn't shut up.
All of the public libraries I've been to have definitely become noisier over the years.
The University Library system, however, is a sanctuary of silence! It's so quiet, you can hear the echo of your own breathing.
Silence is still golden here. Making noise in a library may not be a criminal offense, but don't come crying to me if you're about to be lynched for your noise-making antics by sleep-deprived students who have 8:00am paper deadlines and three midterms in the same day.
Chances are, I'm the one tying your noose
The University Library system, however, is a sanctuary of silence! It's so quiet, you can hear the echo of your own breathing.
Silence is still golden here. Making noise in a library may not be a criminal offense, but don't come crying to me if you're about to be lynched for your noise-making antics by sleep-deprived students who have 8:00am paper deadlines and three midterms in the same day.
Chances are, I'm the one tying your noose
I work in a library that has a capacity of a million books. It's one of the major libraries of the University of Chicago, which in three years will be the biggest library system in the US. It's pretty quiet save for the construction going on - other than that, the professors that have their offices lining the outside walls sometimes leave their doors open while on the phone, but the reading rooms are tombs.
I guess they have gotten louder, but as long as there's not a bunch of people talking really loudly, I don't mind. I actually don't like complete silence when there are a lot of people around. Makes me really self concious of what I'm doing-- I write and type really loudly, so I always think when it's completely silent and I'm writing or typing that everyone can hear it as loud as I can, but then I realize that I'm right next to the pencil/keyboard and it's probably not bothering anyone.
markjazzbassist said:
+1...I don't mind noise from typing, computers, etc. But when someone lets their cell phone ring (let alone talk on it), that drives me up the wall. What's worse is when one person has a meaningless conversation with another person right next to where I'm studying...without whispering, of course.
the library at my college is a joke. the 3rd floor is supposed to be reserved for "silent study" and there's a sign on the door that says "no cell phones, group study (even quiet group study)"!
still, it seems middle of the afternoon is the only time you can get any quiet there (while most people are home or in class). but night-time, foret about it. people pay no regard to the cell phone rule. and there's plenty of people talking. of course some think it's ok if they hold a lengthy conversation just as long as they are loudly whispering through the entire length of it.
i stopped studying at our library after freshman year. i only go there when i have chunks of time in between class and i don't feel like walking all the way back to my apartment.
still, it seems middle of the afternoon is the only time you can get any quiet there (while most people are home or in class). but night-time, foret about it. people pay no regard to the cell phone rule. and there's plenty of people talking. of course some think it's ok if they hold a lengthy conversation just as long as they are loudly whispering through the entire length of it.
i stopped studying at our library after freshman year. i only go there when i have chunks of time in between class and i don't feel like walking all the way back to my apartment.
Go to the physics building. Mine is usually dead silent. There is a study center there. Nobody really cares if you do physics or not, as long as other people don't have priority (i.e. group tutoring or something). Besides, it makes you feel smart.
Poop-Loops said:Go to the physics building. Mine is usually dead silent. There is a study center there. Nobody really cares if you do physics or not, as long as other people don't have priority (i.e. group tutoring or something). Besides, it makes you feel smart.
i go to a pretty small school. we don't have spereate buildings for different departments, let alone any real study centers in any of the building. our student center has 2 "study lounges" that are really just a place people go to socialize with their books open.
The 2nd floor (entry level) of my library is louder than feeding time at the zoo. It's great for working in groups, last minute catching up or writing a paper, but anything beyond that, you need to fight for one of the four study rooms on the 3rd floor (dead quiet, no cell phones allowed) or one of the two in the basement. I've been lucky enough to get one of these rooms ONCE in two years.
