Library Enjoyers!

[bingus_baby]

Any library enjoyers in the chat?!?! I finally applied for a library card because I'm currently trying to save money, but also REALLY want this one CD, and I'm trying to find out if my local place does interlibrary loans. (I'm afraid it might not.) It made me think... Nobody uses the library anymore!!!! A few years back I used to go with my family all the time, since there's more than just books. So, does anyone here go often? If not, you should. Especially if you like CDs, since you can rent them and copy it to your PC. Dubiously legal I imagine, but it's the way I got some good music a while back. You can also get cheap books if they have a second hand shop! (Many libraries do!!)

[Mo/Otto]

I just started getting back to my local library this summer (even if i can't come back as consistently during the semester)! I've mostly been raiding the manga shelves, but I ran through just about everything that looked interesting over the summer... I might start picking up real books over winter break, shock and horror.

[arsenicCatnip]

Me me me!!!! I LOVE library...I'm currently studying at a creative arts college so there's a big big library on campus, and I'm really excited to read through the books they have there. In my hometown there used to be a big library too, but it got shrunk down to make space for a sportsgear shop :/// A decision which I will always always frown upon, but I suppose with the internet now, it was bound to happen eventually. People can get anything and everything in terms of information through computers.

[Guest]

I would love my local library, but it only opens on two days a week for like 3 hours each day, and I'm either busy during that time frame or I simply forget. I know it's a case of it needing more attention = more hours of operation, but it's difficult to work around their schedule! Still, I used to love going to the library as a kid...!

[BlazingCobaltX]

Library enjoyers rise!! It is the best option for people who can't afford to buy books or don't want to (me). Honestly because it's such a convenient service I have never even considered pirating books; if the book I want isn't in the library I will simply wait for it. The CD ripping suggestion is quite clever, learned something new there. 

I have a lot of love for our local library. It got a substantial upgrade when I was in my early teens, being an early adopter of public workspaces fitting an university library, despite our town not having a uni at that time. Along with that, it offers several services for (digitally) illiterate people, fun activities for kids, and it even has a cinema! I think all of these things have added to the vibe of it being a welcoming place for all, but especially for teens to just hang around, which is super important (re: the loss of third spaces). This library is arguably the best place in town. 

Personally I prefer to work/study at home, so I only go to the library to get books. As much as I praise the services, I haven't actually used most of them. But it makes me happy to go there and see it quite packed most of the time, mostly with kids and teens.

[TheFrugalGamer]

I'm so glad to see so many library lovers here. I adore going to my library, and when my kid was young, I used to take him about every other week. We both have really fond memories of our days out, picking out fun books that we would read at bedtime dozens of times, and then getting something fun to eat afterwards.

These days it's harder to get out, but every time I do, I always find something fun. Our librarians put up themed displays in different sections, and then there's usually a "recently arrived" section. I love going through both and I usually find something interesting, kind of like a treasure hunt.

I know not everyone has the ability, so absolutely no shame if you don't, but if you're well off I highly encourage you to donate what you can to your local library system. They're dealing with a lot of crap from publishers right now, especially in the U.S., and they need all the help they can get. Libraries are one of the few places left where we can go and not be expected to spend money just to hang out.

[Bede]

I use Libby for all of my library-related needs! It's a free app that lets you check out, and then read, digital content from your library (which is a lot more content than you'd probably think)! I've gotten so much more reading done because of it.

[Cobra!]

I would visit the library more often, but my local library was flooded during the pandemic and has remained shut since.

Now my closest library is a half an hour bus ride away. I'm usually  in the area where the library is, so I might see if I can check it out. Have had the idea of checking out programming books and trying stuff from those!

[brisray]

I could live in a library! I've spent hundreds of hours in them. Not so much for borrowing anymore but in the reference or archive sections, usually in the basement, especially Bristol Central library, Bristol Archives and now the local university library.

It's pretty cool asking the staff for whatever copies of things the "Bristol Gazette" from 1820 they have or Archive Box 84932 and they bring out a trolley of stuff for you to go through. It's pretty neat being able to handle the original documents or even just the onionskin copies.

Reference libraries are the physical equivilent of the deep web. Most of these documents were never digitized and very unlikely to ever be. I think they are also more likely to last and be available longer than any digital archive. Places like Project Gutenberg and the Internet Archive do a great job but cannot capture everything.

Bristol Archives is massive. It's an old bonded warehouse, where things like tobacco and spirits were held after importation, but before tax was paid on them.