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Draft 2

Humans associate university libraries with a dark, gloomy, mysterious, forbidden buildings including collections of reading, listening and film materials for mostly scientific purposes. Freshmen students tend to share these opinions after being informed about some unfriendly, ignorant, cannibalistic librarians and huge buildings full of thousands of books which smell musty. If pupils cannot put off their registration at university libraries any longer, they gave up their prejudice immediately and consider libraries as places where useful experiences may be gained. After awhile pupils -having a slight scoliosis and glasses- begin to speculate how a better university library looks like. In their day-dreams a picture of a comfortable, interesting and more profitable university library appears which does not take after their one at all. The imagined library provides with better conditions in reading materials and equipment which students need for being able to make themselves at home.

One important feature of the fancied university library is that there is a huge increase in the number of available copies. This growth is meant to extend the rental time for months, which helps students give themselves up entirely to their studies. Additionally, parallel with the expansion of transcripts, the essential of a reading room declines very rapidly. Yet, there is a need for leaving some facsimiles in the reading section for pupils who are devoted to investigate on the premises for exceptional motives. Often, it is the hope for coming across a lover or a friend which fasten scholars to chairs in this room. By installing more dozens of computers, students can manage to receive their missing information or whole reading materials on screen much more easily. If someone is short of knowledge about word-processor, with the help of some well qualified, amicable and not cannibal reference librarians he or she can get the required database without endangering his or her health. Inspite of the fact that there is a great stress on computer work in this university library, paper catalogue which is indispensable for technologically unskilled pupils and tutors does not disappear, proving that an imagined university library supplies its readers without exception.

Besides making an effort to suiting the requirements for reading materials, a pictured university library tries to create comfortable and healthy surroundings for its readers. Comfort is a pressing obligation mainly for learners who spend all days, generally in the exam period so that they consider university library as their second home. Nevertheless, there are some building regulations which are very strict about the cleanness, lighting, temperature in a library is needed. After obeying such commandments, librarians can set out to add some defectives to transform university library into a home-like building. In an imagined library all disadvantageous, gloomy surfaces are made to disappear by decorating walls with some maps, paintings, pictures and floors are covered with wall to wall carpets. However, chairs and desks with lamps for each individual are chosen with a view to convenience and health in order to stop students’ sight and conditions to fail any more.

Desire for making an idealistic university library useful for both librarians and readers can be realised in the inner construction, as well. Each part of the library is separated spectacularly from the rest by placing on different floors. Following this pattern, each floor is designed for one specific section which is shown on a well visible board at the entrance on the first floor. Apart from such a panel, a lot of cardinal units can be hit upon persons entering the university library: stores, registration counter, cloakroom, buffet provides with eating, chatting and perhaps playing possibilities and a créche for readers’ children. Thinking about physically handicapped people, two floors are connected with a staircase and elevator, as well. On the second floor the borrowing section makes its readers gape with hundreds of bookshelves, and dozens of librarians who are working rapidly to bypass queuing up. The third floor gives place to a reading-room, computer-room, some researching rooms with well-trained experts. At last, offices and rooms for listening and watching opportunities are discovered to compensate those scholars who are willing to climb up to the top floor.

A really good imaginative university library endeavours to attract students and teachers by providing some extra services for them. Caring for starving pupils, fantasised libraries run cheap restaurants serving delicious food and give students some opportunities to make friends, talk to each other. Students either after filled with energy in the restaurant or getting bored with studies, can afford to have a nap in cosy beds in a large dormitory receiving pyjamas and bedding. It is useful to set up such a dormitory since nodding off on desks might entice the others to follow this example. For the shake of those students who want to get ride of their sleeping-sickness in another way, there were gymnasiums set up in each idealised library. After doing some sport activities and taking showers, scholars get refreshed and feel urge to return to their studies.

Fancied university libraries are trying their best to create a friendly picture of themselves towards students and teachers, as well. For developing such an image, besides expanding the number of their materials by purchasing or gaining them throughout interlibrary loan, these libraries are keen on create comfortable surroundings to their readers. Not only comfortable chairs make readers feel comfort, but stopping queuing up, expanding the rental time can also give good feelings to students. Usefulness of such university libraries are measured in both students’ brains and their bodies if all idealised universities recognise the importance of gymnasiums in their library buildings. These are created libraries but after a period of time they will come true, mainly in case of those libraries which are already in connection with other institutions or which can afford to supplement there services. Students living now have to be satisfied with the present-day version and just can hope for this idealised one.