Librarian notes that services and rules have evolved

Dear Heloise: As a public librarian, I am saddened that so many of your readers feel that their libraries no longer meet their needs because the environment provided is no longer to their liking.

However, I feel I must defend the libraries. Louder libraries are not the result of lax or uncaring staff. They are the result of a conscious decision to fill more needs of more people in the communities that they serve. Modern public libraries see themselves as community centers that offer gathering places and programs of all types. Story times, music performances and teen gaming programs all serve the community, but none of them is quiet. As the services that libraries provide have evolved, so have the rules surrounding appropriate library behavior. While library staff still attempt to keep people from running and yelling in the building, whispering is no longer a requirement.

Librarians today are hoping to create a welcoming environment where people feel comfortable bringing their children, chatting with each other and even having enthusiastic conversations about books with the staff. As was noted in the earlier letters to Heloise, libraries do attempt to provide quiet spaces as well as the new, more casual spaces. Librarians do wish to serve those patrons hoping for a quiet place to study and read, but in this day and age, it seems unlikely that serving only those patrons will garner the community support necessary for libraries to continue to exist. That would be a loss for everyone. T.T., via e-mail

Thanks for updating us and for sharing your perspective. Heloise

Dear Heloise: Please print this hint about leaving messages on answering machines. Many people do not stop to think about how their message is coming through. I keep a pad near the phone to write down telephone numbers and messages that require dates, account numbers, etc. However, the person speaking does not take into consideration that a person cannot write as fast as he or she is speaking. Please, when you are leaving a message, speak slowly and distinctly. Otherwise, you may be wasting your time. Eva Stein, San Antonio

Dear Heloise: I picked up a hint from one of my aunts. She would write the date she paid for a subscription on the last page of her checkbook register. Then when she got a notice, she could confirm that it was actually coming due and that the company wasn’t simply trying to get her to renew many months too soon. Karen Fesler, Bath, N.H.

Dear Heloise: Check your printer settings to see if you have a preference option. If you do, open this option and then mark the “quick print” option. Your printing will be done faster, the results will be a little lighter, but the print cartridges will last longer. Most of the things I print are for my own use, so there are big savings, because my cartridge lasts almost 50 percent longer. Maggie, via e-mail

X Send a money-saving or timesaving hint to Heloise, P.O. Box 795000, San Antonio, TX 78279-5000, or you can fax it to (210) HELOISE or e-mail it to Heloise@Heloise.com.

King Features Syndicate