The Library as a Maker-space

Just finished reading a story on NPR about libraries making "hackerspaces." I am always put off by adding the "hacker" in front of words but that is a whole other post entirely.

Anyway, one of the standouts of this article is the quote from Library Director, Jeff Krull,

      "We see the library as not being in the book business, but being in the learning business and the exploration business and the expand-your-mind business," he says. "We feel this is really in that spirit, that we provide a resource to the community that individuals would not be able to have access to on their own."

I love that public libraries have the opportunity to create these kinds of spaces. I think, this has been done in the craft world, with places like the now-closed Home Ec. Shop (I LOVED this place and I met the most wonderful Mrs. Jenny Ryan there), Urban Craft Center, and Tech Shop SF, places where people can rent equipment and hangout and create with like-minded people. It also reminds me of the Makery, which I learned about at http://www.punahou.edu/page.cfm?p=3238 this past summer. These are places where people learn and collaborate, just like a library.

Maybe I can use this to justify teaching kids how to bind books. :)