article: the future of libraries, with or without books

Books are being pushed aside for digital learning centers and gaming areas. "Loud rooms" that promote public discourse and group projects are taking over the bookish quiet. Hipster staffers who blog, chat on Twitter and care little about the Dewey Decimal System are edging out old-school librarians…

"The library building isn't a warehouse for books," said Helene Blowers, digital strategy director at the Columbus [Ohio:] Metropolitan Library. "It's a community gathering center."

As books go...