Hi Amanda,

I worked as an intern with LAPL last summer. One of the things they started lending after that survey was electronics, like laptops and wifi hotspots. They were all incredibly popular. Whenever a patron came in asking for a laptop, I’d usually have to look around at the closest dozen branches to see if anybody had one anywhere, and then immediately call over there to ask for a hold to be put on it! Otherwise, there was a decent chance it’d be gone by the time the patron got there.

The wifi hotspots were also always gone. The hotspots were provided to LAPL through a specific grant, but it’s one case where I think the library service was actually a little TOO good. Each one could be checked out for six months at a time. People figured out that they could get a hotspot and not have to pay for internet for half a year, so competition for them was fierce. There was very little circulation turnover because people would hang on to them for as long as possible, and six months is a long time. The last I heard, that specific grant ends at the end of 2023 (so if you checked out a hot spot right now, you wouldn’t get a rolling 6 months due date, but a December 31st 2023 due date). I’m really curious to see what changes will happen to this initiative once that deadline is reached.

@mandyluwho Hello from Michigan – also in eastern time!

Then library tour sounds super cool as a way to get to know all of the options. I also appreciate your thoughts on future positions in the field! Yay to being a director.

Welcome to #hyperlib!

Hi Amanda! Where on Long Island are you? My husband grew up in East Meadow, and I see in your photo you visited the Syosset library. Not too far from his old neck of the woods! We are East Coasters too, in upstate NY.
The library tour sounds so fun and what a clever way to keep kids occupied and connected to the library over the summer, and like you said, an interesting comparison of different library facilities and services. Thanks for sharing and I look forward to this semester with you!