Technology in the Library

By Evelyn C. McDonald
Arts & Culture Reporter
January 10, 2018 3:19 p.m.

Last Monday night was the dedication of the Fernandina Beach Library’s Adult Tech Lab, the final culmination of the partnership between the library and the Friends of the Library. Dee Torre mentioned the long road that the partnership took between the old library and the one we have now. Four presidents of the Friends helped push the ball along to the goal – Donna Paz Kaufman, Bill Flynn, Dee, and now Chuck Comeau.

Dee talked about the cooperation and contribution from the businesses in our city – among them were Rotary Club of Amelia Sunrise, Rayonier Advanced Materials Foundation, Kinder Morgan, Florida Public Utilities, WestRock. Representatives from each group stood to be recognized and applauded by the audience. She also thanked the individual donors who contributed to the fund-raising effort.

Dawn Bostwick gave a brief recap of everything that was available in the new Tech Lab. She said that there have been various classes in the room, from photo editing to how to enjoy eBooks. The room supports various class formats from lecture to hands on learning.

On the way in to see the Tech Lab, I was struck by the Giving Tree, shown in the photo accompanying this article. The Giving Tree is a wall-hanging with large and small leaves containing the names of all the individuals and organizations that have contributed to the conversion of our old library and to something that is a key asset of our community. It is literally the picture worth 1000 words. Its branches spread to accommodate givers and really convey the feeling that this was a community effort.

The Tech Lab hardware consists of 14 computer stations with mouse pads saying ‘Amelia Island’, a 60-inch wall mounted TV, and a very versatile scanner. Scannx can scan to mobile devices, PDF, USB drives, email, text and printers. One computer station can be converted into a master station for classes. The library can also scan large books. Prior to the renovation, the library Internet capability was slow and at its limit. Cables were under the concrete floor, limiting the ability to upgrade.

The software suite is quite extensive and reflects the library world’s recognition of the role technology has in supporting learning. Microsoft Office 2016 provides Word and Excel plus other applications. Gimp2 and Lightroom support image manipulation and digital editing. Cloud Library and Novelist provide eBooks, audiobooks, book reviews, book discussion questions, and titles in a series.

Gale and Career, Learning Express, and Jobs provide information on resume writing, support for K-6 teachers, test preparation, health information, career and job information, and full text magazines and journals. Ancestry Library Edition supports genealogy research and Flipster provides on-line magazine titles.

It’s a space we can be proud of and celebrate all the people and organizations that made it possible.

Evelyn McDonald moved to Fernandina Beach from the Maryland suburbs of Washington, D.C. in 2006. Evelyn is vice-chair on the Amelia Center for Lifelong Learning and is on the Dean’s Council for the Carpenter Library at the UNF. Ms. McDonald has MS in Technology Management from the University of Maryland’s University College and a BA in Spanish from the University of Michigan.