New Article Looks at “Implications and Opportunities” For Google Glass in Libraries

The following full text article appears in the May 2014 issue (vol. 75 no. 5) of C&RL News.

Title

Ok, library: Implications and opportunities for Google Glass

Authors

Char Booth
Claremont Colleges
Dani Brecher
Claremont Colleges

From the Article

Like virtually any emerging technology, Glass provides interesting potential use cases for libraries and higher education. However, its pervasiveness in the current cultural conversation intensifies the usual challenges of justifying device acquisition and avoiding fad-based decision-making.
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Among the many wearables now available to consumers, Glass seems to be gaining the most traction in libraries. In our opinion, this is due to Glass’s unique research and information discovery potential, its ability to be constantly reset and linked to new users’ accounts, and innovative design affordances that seem to capture the popular imagination
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Workshop discussions of first impressions of Glass as well as its potential applications confirm this amicable tension. On the one hand, “creepy” reactions related to privacy, design factors,  and questioning Glass’ basic utility tend to be as (or more) dominant as the “cool” camp. Similarly, imagined applications run the gamut from surgery and ethnography to, ahem, academic dishonesty and porn.

Direct to Full Text Article (Approx 2000 Words)

On a Related Note…

Interesting Research! FaceBlock App Allows Google Glass Users to Take Privacy-Aware Pictures (March 28, 2014)

Filed under: Academic Libraries, Libraries, News, Patrons and Users