Chatt och e-post
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FolkbibliotekChattE-postElektronisk postDocumentationInformationLibrary scienceArchivisticsArkiv- och bibliotekskunskapDokumentationSocial Sciences
Ten years ago the public computers with Internet access were introduced in the public libraries. The purpose of the public computers was to give the possibility of searching information. Along with the Internet came also communication media like chat and e-mail. This type of communication was a new function for the libraries and the reactions among the librarians were mixed. It has been a source of big frustration and attempts to block it has not succeeded. The aim of this Master's thesis is to investigate the librarians conception of the virtual communication taking place on the public computers of the library, and if the libraries function as a public meeting place, according to their opinion, only is valid in the physical room. The method used is qualitative. Ten librarians working at two different libraries have been interviewed. The results indicate that it is the use of chat that causes problems. E-mail is almost accepted. The conclusion is that it s the content the chat is given and the behaviour that surrounds it, not the media itself, which generates the problem. The anonymity affects the librarians' view of chat. Their negative attitude towards the anonymity is partly due to their lack of knowledge of chat as a medium. The librarians have problems to relate their own library to a virtual meeting place. Two possible explanations are that a virtual meeting is something abstract and that they do not have a clear picture of what kind of meeting place the library is.