> *Of course* an academic library knows exactly who its users are. And indeed we do know a great deal about what those users "want and need". And, despite the fact that you blithely assume an academic library needs to compete directly with Google, we know very well we do not actually serve the same group of users that Google needs to serve.
By "do not actually serve the same group of users" you really meant
the same *people*, or do you mean that you are serving different
*needs*?
If you mean the people, what "people" you're talking about? Surely
there are some, mostly elderly, faculty members who do not use
computers. But how many, and are there more of those than there are
students who don't visit the library?
Most students and faculty are served by Google *and* by the library.
So if you are serving the same need, you are in competition.
I suspect the answer is more nuanced than "we're not serving the same
people." You are. And the needs are partially overlapping. The
question is how much overlap and of what character, right?
Received on Mon Mar 02 2009 - 21:56:43 EST