Sunday, April 27, 2014

The digital divide

In the four-hour period I was on the desk today, I had to explain to two different people that they had to use the same library card number to release their print jobs as they used to log on to their computers. They expected that they could:
Use library card A to log into a computer, then send something to the print release station.
Use library card B to log into the print release station, which would then display the print jobs they sent from the computer in library card A's session, even though there is no way for any technology to 'know' that both cards are associated with them.

People stand at the computer reservation station, which has "reservations only" written on it in inch-high type, for up to 30 seconds, contemplating how to release their print jobs. There is only one button on the home screen, "Make a Reservation."

Teenager has opened a Powerpoint from her flash drive on one of our public computers. She asks me, "so to print this, I just click 'save'?"

Angry woman: "Is there any way you can turn the computers in the computer lab back on!?"
Me: "You can still log into them, blah blah blah, [explain how our computer reservation/management system works]."
Woman: "No, that is not what I'm asking! They are completely off!"
The monitors were turned off.

1 comment:

  1. might be an iq divide, too....just sayin'

    ReplyDelete