Press: “Public Library begins new path for technology and digital initiatives”

“The Chattanooga Public Library is ‘a breath away’ from having the fastest Internet of any library in the United States. But the institution’s leaders are asking the same question posed by the nationally recognized Gig Tank competition headquartered here.

“Nate Hill, who started his new job on July 2 as the library’s first assistant director of technology and digital initiatives, will now be another mind added to list of several others working every day to figure that out.

“Nate said he sees a lot of potential for libraries right now at the intersection of the production of content and the consumption of knowledge.

“‘To me, the big, exciting possibility for public libraries in the future is that we have always been institutions about consumption of knowledge. We’re in this place where The Public Library can really service the creative side of the community in a totally different way than we’ve ever been able to before,’ he said.

“Nate not only brings next-generation thinking to his post but has also hands-on experience developing apps, websites and other user interfaces.

“He is the Library Journal’s 2012 recipient of their Mover and Shaker Award. In his previous job as the Web librarian at the San Jose Public Library, he developed an award-winning mobile application called Scan Jose that featured the library’s local historical materials. He is also involved with the Digital Public Library of America, a new organization formed in 2010 that is comprised of representatives from foundations, research institutions, cultural organizations, the government and libraries to discuss best approaches to building a national digital library. The DPLA recently joined President Barack Obama’s US Ignite initiative, a program that Chattanooga is also a participant in.”

From Mary Barnett’s article in Nooga.com, Public Library begins new path for technology and digital initiatives