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* Independent Consultant and Founder of Library Technology Guides
THE NEXT CYCLE OF CHANGE MAY COME UPON LIBRARIES QUITE RAPIDLY.
Libraries continue to steadily advance through a number of long-standing technology trends, but we should anticipate disruption from fast-moving technologies such as generative AI. Many of the trends involving library management systems and discovery services have played out over the course of years or even decades. ChatGPT, a service based on generative AI that was developed by OpenAI, was launched just a year ago and has already made a massive impact on education, business, and society. The next cycle of change may come upon libraries quite rapidly.
Each type of library drives distinct trends. While all libraries share some core services and values, public, academic, and school libraries each follow distinctive paths related to their main technology infrastructure. The differing characteristics that each of these library types take for managing collection resources and providing services demand specific technology infrastructure. As such, a different set of technology trends can be seen in each of the subsectors of the library community.
Trends in Academic Libraries
Collections dominated by e-resources-
Over the last couple of decades, academic libraries have seen their collections become dominated by e-resources, including subscription-based and OA materials, while their involvement with print resources has diminished. A look at the circulation statistics for ARL member libraries reveals that the number of circulation statistics for print materials in 2020 is about 5% of the figures seen in 2000. Recent interlibrary loan activity has dropped to about a third of the levels seen in 2012. Spending on e-resources has steadily climbed over the last 2 decades and now represents about 80% of the collection budget of a typical large academic library.
Technical infrastructure for complex multiformat collections-These trends drive the need for technology applications with more advanced capabilities for managing and providing access to e-resources, while also providing adequate support for print materials, which remain important for academic libraries.
The 2012 emergence of library services platforms addressed this scenario. Products such as Ex Libris Alma, OCLC WorldShare Management Services (WMS), and FOLIO aim to deliver comprehensive resource management for the complex multiformat collections of academic libraries. Large portions of these libraries have migrated from ILSs, which...