To be or not to be a librarian in the 21st century

Preservation is paramount

Librarians are responsible for the preservation of many types of materials, not only books. All 21st century libraries have a computer system of some sort, and most are operating online in many forms starting with their catalogs. Gone are the lovely old wooden card catalogs (except in my library at the Institute for Advanced Study). Preserving data files is as important as rare first editions. Even popular novels need some sort of preservation to be useful to patrons.

There are many available for guidance.

Two archival courses at are offered at Rutgers in the School of Communication, Information & Library Studies (SCILS) where I am working on an MLIS: Preservation of Library & Archival Materials , and the Manuscripts & Archives. The student organization at Rutgers for those interested in preservation is called SOURCE.