In a world of email, listservs, cellular phones, and interactive multi-media Websites, who needs a real-time, real-place library conference?
The Washington library community does. We demonstrated this fact in Tacoma, at the exciting 2000 conference of Washington Library Association. Where else but at a face-to-face conference could we have had so many conversations with one another—in meeting rooms, at banquet tables, and in the halls—on topics ranging from the conference flyer, to the future of reference in a digitized world, to Internet access for children, to dealing effectively with difficult co-workers, to the best books of the year for young adult readers? Where else could we have seen Ray Bradbury’s face light up as he shared stories about his life and work, and have experienced the attentive response of the audience? Where else could we have enjoyed not just the comedy of the Firesign Theatre, but also the hilarious presentations at Society Gaius Julius V. Solinus Washingtonius (WLA’s answer to the Firesign), on such pressing concerns as ethical problems of reference service to aliens? Most important for the future of library service in Washington, where else could we have considered and acted on important draft proposals about intellectual freedom—documents that embody our principles—and turned back some initiatives, while continuing forward movement to update our IF statements? For all these reasons, we needed a conference.
Alki Editor: Carolynne Myall
Alki Editorial Committee: Sue Anderson; Kathleen Ardrey; Nancy Huling; Cameron Johnson; Eva-Maria Lusk; Carla McLean; Lisa Oldoski, intern; V. Louise Saylor, chair; Ginny Rabago, LINK editor
