Jeff's Community Informatics Projects

Hardware and Software Capabilities

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The type of computer hardware installed in each library location was not detailed above.  The age of a computer tells you something about its capabilities, but ideally more information is required before one can truly know what can be done in a given library.  Of all of the libraries surveyed only one, the Urbana Free, paid specific attention to assistive technologies, larger screens, screen readers, special keyboards, and walkers that could assist patrons with disabilities.  Some came close, such as the Champaign Public main, which offered large flexible-arm LCD’s screens and walkers, but none truly planned their computer access for blind, deaf, and mobility-challenged populations.

Computer technology resources were gauged with a few different measures: the ways a machine might help a user create digital content, the methods they might connect to a computer, the sheer value of computers owned by the library, and the software offerings present on each machine. Figure 4.5 shows the overview of these factors by library.

               Figure 4.4 – An overview of computer hardware capabilities by library.

Overall, few libraries were severely limited in their capabilities.  No library received a maximum connectivity score, indicating that libraries in general need to work on these items.  The break down for each category can be found below:

Connectivity (%)
County / locale	USB	CD-rom	DVD-rom	Floppy	Scanner	Display*	Camera**	Speakers / Headphones	Mic	Internet
Peoria	100	40	20	80	20	20	40	100	0	100
St. Clair	100	100	50	86	16	0	0	67	20	100
Champaign	100	100	40	100	60	40	0	80	20	100
Alexander -Pulaski	100	100	100	100	20	0	20	60	0	100
Significant	100	92	42	83	50	25	8	75	8	100
Predominant	100	78	67	100	11	0	22	78	11	100
Sample Ave	100	86	52	90	33	14	14	76	9	100
*Projectors, TV’s, or large monitors that might be used for instructional purposes **Web cams, video cameras, or still digital video cameras

               Figure 4.5 – The Connectivity break down by locale and community type.

The hardware composition of computers in each location brought a few surprises.  For instance, all of the libraries surveyed in the Alexander-Pulaski counties fielded computers with DVD-roms that patrons were free to use.  This seems to contradict simple logic, as these libraries have the smallest budgets and have fewer and older PC’s.  This could relate primarily to policy; many of the libraries in the Champaign and Peoria county featured DVD and CD-roms but did not permit patrons to use them.  Scanners, projectors, TV instructional displays, video cameras and microphones are largely absent nearly every county save Champaign.  Several of the Peoria libraries would rent a still digital camera to patrons and no libraries had web cams or digital movie cameras of any sort.  Most users could listen to music or video, however, as a majority of libraries had headphones or speakers at their computers.  In some locations, such as the Peoria Main, patrons could purchase headphones at the desk for a low price.

A comparison between the significant and predominantly African American community libraries paints a different picture.   A significant gap can be seen between most items, with the exception of DVD-roms again (presumably due to policy).  Persons looking to find scanners, projectors, microphones, cameras, or even CD-roms are hard pressed to do so in the libraries serving predominantly African American communities.  These libraries did feature more computers with floppy drives, but this is less of an advantage and more of a reflection of the older machines typically present.

In conclusion, most libraries facilitate for basic connections such as USB, optical media (CD/DVD), headphones and the internet, but few field equipment that can assist with the production of multimedia.

Creation (%)
County / locale	B&W printer*	Laser printer*	Color printer*	CD/DVD burner	Fax Machine	Copy Machine
Peoria	60	40	20	0	60	80
St. Clair	33	33	33	33	50	67
Champaign	20	60	80	60	80	80
Alexander -Pulaski	40	40	40	40	80	80
Significant	33	50	66	25	83	92
Predominant	50	38	13	44	44	56
Sample Ave	38	43	43	33	67	76
*Printer percentages may not add up to 100% as some libraries fielded more than one printer

               Figure 4.6 – The Creation break down by locale and community type.

The differences in peripherals and components used for creation are relatively negligible between the different counties.  The Peoria libraries had few CD/DVD burners and those that did would not permit their use.  Few Peoria libraries had the benefit of having color printing available for visitors.

Wider gaps can be seen between significant and predominant community populations.  Once again optical drives seem to be the exception, as more predominantly African American areas had burners.  Unfortunately they lagged behind in terms of fax machines, copiers, and advanced (color or laser) printing. 

Overall, libraries, especially those in predominantly African American areas, could do well to start offering color printing.  Policies and hardware limitations prevented CD/DVD burners from being common place items.  In general, libraries serving predominantly African American areas suffer from fewer resources for the creation of physical items like fliers, CD’s or DVD’s, and are less able to offer services such as faxing a resume or signed document to an important party.

What parts exist physically inside of the computer is really only a beginning, however.  The software, especially that which facilitates for the production of knowledge and media as well as keeps users safe from intrusion, is also vital.  Since many of the functions previously performed by stand-alone software programs have migrated to the internet in web application form this report only collected data on a few important types of software.  If users wish to take advantage of open source material and web-based software they need the most advanced web browsers available.  Furthermore users with vision-related disabilities have an easier time using more recent web browsers and they offer other benefits such as increased security, ad-blocking capabilities, and tabs for multitasking.  Luckily none of the libraries surveyed were horribly out of date, but some did still have Internet Explorer 6, a browser that is now generally considered to be outdated and problematic.  Every library surveyed had at least a basic office suite (Word, PowerPoint, and Excel) and all of them used Microsoft-based office products.  Some libraries, however, had the extended office package, which includes Publisher (usable for making websites and a whole array of print materials), Access (a database program that can be used to draft web forms and fuel data-driven websites), and sometimes FrontPage (an advanced website design program).  The differences and capabilities between office versions are relatively minimal (and many librarians wouldn’t know what version they had) so the interviews did not inquire about the year of product release, though generally most libraries were using Office XP and 2003.  Users who wish to perform more sensitive or potentially dangerous operations on the computer, such as check bank records and pay bills, scan pictures of their children, or download programs need to be effectively covered by anti-virus.  There are many types of protection available today, including ones that scan email, manage files and hardware, and encase computers in firewalls, so this report did not look to specify for each library.  Instead the interviewer inquired about the overall type of anti-virus (if it were present, confirming a name) and if the librarians knew if it were kept up to date.  Figure 4.8 details the items selected in this study:

Software (%)
County / locale	Modern Web Browser*	Full Microsoft Office Suite	Updated Anti-Virus
Peoria	80	60	100
St. Clair	67	16	33
Champaign	100	80	100
Alexander -Pulaski	40	100	100
Significant	75	66	83
Predominant	66	56	78
Sample Ave	71	62	81
*Defined as Internet Explorer 7, Safari or Firefox.  No libraries reported Opera or any other web browser types.

               Figure 4.8 – Software resources broken down by locale and community type.

Only a handful of libraries had Apple-based computers with OSX and Safari.  Every other library was running Windows XP (though a few had additional old machines with Windows 2000) and none of them used Windows Vista.  A few more deployed Firefox onto their workstations but the vast majority used Internet Explorer (IE) as their main web browser.  Some of these libraries neglected to keep IE up to date and were using version 6.  Most of these were in the rural counties surveyed, which makes sense because these were the areas using older computers.  Newer computers come with IE7 pre-installed.  Often times the librarians didn’t know the difference and in some interviews the version type was identified by inquiring about the color of the blue ‘e’ icon.  St. Clair County was really the only place where software was a real issue, many of the libraries were in need of cohesive and updated Anti-Virus.

Both predominant and significant African American community libraries were around the sample averages and generally in pretty good shape overall.

Very few libraries had any advanced software programs.  By the end of the interview series it was decided to stop asking about them, but the few libraries that did have software beyond basic Windows and Office applications cited children’s games, GED software, and media players like iTunes.  This is a potential area libraries could improve.  If they started to offer more advanced software, such as programs for website design, connection to corporate networks and servers (FTP/VPN), development and programming suites, audio or video  recording and editing apps, graphics and animation packages, mathematics and statistics programs, simulation software, games, and educational tutorials then they might open their services to a wider array of individuals.  If a library had a budget of 300 dollars and purchased a version of the Adobe Creative Suite then potentially hundreds of patrons could come use a program that they wouldn’t normally have access to at home.

The internet itself is a vast archive of knowledge, but other databases are important as well.  Luckily, 90% of the libraries interviewed reported access to system-wide library resources, which means patrons in most places could order a book from across the state. Even better, 95% of libraries had access to some kind of knowledge databases, ranging from simple ones Encarta and Britanica, to more advanced opportunities such as EBSCO.
A final point of comparison ought to come in the form of the total wealth, in terms of sheer amount of hardware and computers, available at each library. Since the variance in software is minimal this measure would fairly accurately predict the amount of funding a given library has for their IT budget.  The hardware score was computed by multiplying the creativity and connectivity scores (comprised of the previously discussed components, such as DVD-rom’s and printers) by the total number of computers available for patrons.  Figure 4.9 displays this by library:

               Figure 4.9 – Total accumulated hardware in terms of number of computers, capabilities and available peripherals.  Champaign Public and Urbana Free were omitted.

The comparison is missing the Champaign Public and Urbana Free libraries, because they have considerably more resources.  The Urbana Free scores 341, and the Champaign Public dwarfs every other library with a score of 1260, which is primarily due to the fact that they have well over 100 computers and just about every kind of hardware resource imaginable in the scope of what Midwest small-town/city and rural libraries do today.  This measure becomes more interesting, however, when you examine the sample average and compare it to libraries in predominant and significantly African American communities.  If you include the Champaign Public library then significant populations score 196.2, as compared to the 71.2 for predominant communities, which would indicate an enormous gulf between library budgets.  If the Champaign Public is dropped, then significant communities score 92, which is still higher, but not astronomically so.  The sample average not including Champaign Public is 82.2.  The Douglass branch library, which is part of the Champaign Public library system and serves a predominantly African American section of Champaign ranks at a score of 70, though it is a much smaller library.  Since the sample is small, ergo the numbers are limited (and locale also is a mediating factor), it is hard to say if predominantly African American communities are at a sure disadvantage when it comes to hardware budgets when compared to significantly African American communities.  If Champaign is anything of a comparison however, the 70 to 1260 ratio would suggest this is true.