Project Nalij & Red Library Redesign
Part 1 Project Nalij The first libraries were developed around 2600 BC. These early libraries contained ancient information that was stored on stone tablets and scrolls. The personal library began in Classical Greece in the 5th Century, allowing people to collect and store knowledge for their family in the future. Fast forward to now, and the concept of a library has left the home and scholarly centers and now lives predominantly in the public.
However, with the development of the Internet the future of the library is in question for the first time since it’s creation. To understand the current state of library my design team and me decided to interview and record the views of a wide variety of people. Project Nalij was born.
Capture
Create
Connect & Inspire
Early on my team decided that the best way to collect research on the library was to capture interviews and walkthroughs on film. This would complete the first stage of our process of understanding the state of libraries. The second stage would come in the form of a video that we would create out of our collected footage. The final stage was comprised of posting this video and allowing it to be the foundation for others all over the world to start their own library redesign initiatives.
Knowledge has to be improved, challenged, and increased constantly, or it vanishes. Peter Drucker Educator, Author
The logo served as way to legitimize the process itself. By harboring interest and creating interest with the logo we were able to get our foot in the door with people and establishments. The word ‘knowledge’ popped up in almost every early interview we recorded, so we decided what would better name. We chose the phonetic spelling to tip our hats to the importance of language itself in the communication of knowledge. The mark represents the digitization of the page, as well as the international importance of the library.
“The library is a place where the knowledge we have collected as a society can be preserved and extended for years to come.� Gale Martin Librarian West Ridge Elementary
“Libraries are for everyone. So it’s everyone’s responsibility that they stay around.” Kristin 5th Grader
“I mostly do most of my stuff on my phone or the internet, so I don’t really need a library.” Gretchen
“The library is a huge expierence for everyone. I know that sometimes there’s homeless people who sleep there, but at least they are there with knowledge.” Tom
We found throughout our interviews with over 50 different people, that everyone felt they could relate with libraries. While some believed the library should disappear many actually spoke to the importance of having libraries. Almost everyone we talked to could remember the first time they entered a library and how exciting it was to see so many possibilities to learn for free. When we asked people what they would like to see improved within libraries we got a huge variety of answers from “get rid of smelly people”, to “add new technology and educate people on upcoming technologies.” But no matter who it was, they always had an idea on how to improve the existing library. After we had collected these opinions and seen the universal connection people felt with the library, positive or negative, we were ready to begin re-conceptualizing the library for the future.
To watch the full video we captured visit: seancraigdesign.com/project-nalij
Part 2 Red After four months of capturing interviews of people and researching the state of libraries, it was time to try to reimagine the concept of the library. The mission was to start from concept and abstractions, and to work towards low fidelity renders. Working with CP+B, a local Boulder Design Firm, we were able to rethink what a library could be in the 21st Century.
Case Study 2 Denver Public Library
Main Library of Denver, provides a wide amount of media both printed and digital, and also offers an online ebook program dedicated floor for computers and nternet use.
Experience Design Fall 2013
Mike Warrington Father Research
oes to library to find children’s book and ovie. Also wants to d resources to teach son.
Mike is a low-income father of one. Thirty years old, so is moderately comfortable with digital technology. Wants to educate his son by reading to him while educating himself on parenting his son Walt.
Immediately asks librarian for help since his hands are full with his son.
While W enterta childre uses on to find parent
Research
What Could Exist
Portable research assistant User friendly version of Dewey Dec Research history/profile Recorded lectures/interviews Export citations Research Archive Research groups Able to digitize and print from non Link content across media Improved research space Social media collecting
We did more initial research before concept development, creating user personas, creating case studies, and researching available data from libraries around the world. We presented this research presentation to a few local design professionals as well as designers from CP+B to inform them of our initial directions and to sum up our earlier research. We found out a bunch of important things that helped us not assume that everything in the current library system was bad, and to get past the major misconception that libraries are rarely used, which is just not true.
Library Activities
Experience Design Fall 2013
550 people surveyed (53% used a library in 2012) Browsed books Borrowed printed books Researched topic that interested them Got help from librarian Sat, read, and studied in library Used research database Attended youth program Borrowed a DVD Attended a class, program, or lecture Attended a meeting of a group Borrowed or downloaded an audio book
73% 73% 54% 50% 49% 46% 41% 40% 23% 20% 17%
We determined that the library is used for a wide multitude of purposes. To create a more simplified system of language and organization we boiled down the user needs into three main categories. Research seemed the most common use for users such as students, scholars, and other professionals who constantly use libraries to find information. Entertainment use is quickly growing with the addition of computers and Internet in many libraries, which predominantly are used for free entertainment such as videos and social media. Development of some sort could be found in every library, from a student services to local outreach for the disabled or financially impoverished. What holds all these things together is the availability and use of free information, making the distribution and use of information key to the current and future use of any library.
Research
Development
Information
Entertainment
Experience
By combining the first letter of each of the three main areas of focus in the library, we came to the name of our new concept for a library call Red. We utilized the fact that information is at the center of all the use cases, as a clever tagline to further communicate what this new form of the library should aspire to be. I personally created the logo utilizing the dimensions of a rectangle (or book.) Then creating very subtle stroke weight difference and rounding the counters to create a more futuristic optimistic logotype. We used Avenir for the tagline and body copy to give the same open and optimistic feeling. DIN would be used for all headlines and navigation because it’s dimensions more closely fit with the modular logotype I created.
Red is at the center of everything. Instead of functioning as a storage facility of media, its‘ a mediator between multiple outlets, existing library branches.
Innovation
Progression Connection
To begin to understand how we wanted to divide the space we nailed down three important factors for the three subsections; Research, Entertainment, and Development. The order and importance of these three factors informed our layout of each of the three floors in the later physical development of the space. Connections between people make up the base of all interactions within Red, from interacting with a computer to engaging in local book clubs. Therefore, we wanted the ground floor to reflect the importance and need of connections within the space. Progression, while having little to do with the entertainment aspect of Red, was imperative to both the Research and Development side of Red. By focusing on progression on the second floor we aimed to create a metaphor for the user progressing upward to another level both physically as well as metaphorically. Innovation seemed to be the biggest place most people felt in our initial research that the library lacked. So in our concept of Red we knew that this factor would be one of the most important. We therefore placed this factor above all others as a symbol of the importance of innovation and the trickling down of new concepts and approaches into all the information in levels below.
The center of our building is dedicated to information. Encircling the center there is seven separate wings.
STAIRS ELEVATOR
The entire building, other than the top floor, is divided according to what the use case is in terms of Research, Entertainment, or Development. One section would be used for elevators and stairs to travel between the floors.
1st Floor
Cafe
Research Areas
Non-Fiction
Fiction
Development tools
Community Outreach
ducate
2nd Floor
Fiction
Research Areas
Non-Fiction
Community Outreach
In the center of the second floor would be a large classroom elevated above the ground floor. This island would be a multi-use space that would be utilized for a wide variety of classes and discussions while providing people on the ground floor and second floor a look into the educational aspect of Red.
Fiction
Research Areas
Non-Fiction
classrooms studios
Community Outreach
We found in our initial research that many users prefer to have a separate space in which to study and learn. This is because of noise levels as well as distraction from other patrons. Around most of the circumference of the building is lined with private spaces to provide maximum usage for users who simply want a quiet place to study as well as learn.
3rd Floor
Fiction
Lecture Hall Research Areas
Non-Fiction
Community Outreach
The top floor features a lecture hall, named Athenium after the classical Greek centers of learning thousands of years ago. Just as in these ancient places, this is where cutting edge knowledge as well as new ideas for the future of Red are discussed. In addition, this space can be used for conferences and lectures in the local community.
Profile-based information systems are beginning to appear in a plethora of places, from restaurants to hotels to schools. However, in library systems there is no profile building, nor is there any content integration or management. One of the main reasons given for not using libraries was the lack of personalization and the ease of use in existing search engines on the Internet. We attempted to create a profile that not only allowed you to connect to the information that pertains to you, but to allow you to explore this information in the same way you would when searching online. In addition, we wanted to create an incentive to using Red more by introducing ‘ranks.’ These ranks would be based on frequent use of the information system as well as the time you spend within Red itself.
In addition to a sophisticated search engine and content population, the profile allows for easy scheduling and planning for classes and certifications for those attempting to develop a new skill or hobby. This would also allow for a way to prove to employers that a worker is trained in a certain skill, allowing a free system of job training.
Intro to CAD Carlos Molina
Location: educate classroom
My name is Carlos Molina. I am searching for new opportunities through red. I someday hope to be an Architectual drafter
Class 1 Class 2
M ,W 6:30–8:00 T ,Th 6:30–8:00
name
Development Rank
development rank email
Classes currently offered HVAC CAD Microsoft Office Creative Writing Spanish English
phone Connect your Twitter account to your profile Here
SUBMIT
AM
Ev
Part of out Development series for those wishing to improve their work lives. This event will help Facebook users learn how to make their own professional Facebook page, as well as how to represent themselves.
On da the the up ab
The Red app allows users to connect with Red servers while inside Red to seamlessly search and locate information as well as locations. In addition, the user can be automatically prompted with information that is relevant to them as well as the ability to RSVP for events that are held at Red.
20 MINUTES LATER
Bzz Bzzzz
In addition, we developed a concept of having a Red Portable Assistant. These could be rented while within the space and could be used as a free portable assistant for visitors to find information both digitally and physically. Using GPS tracking in tandem with the existing Dewey Decimal System interactive maps can lead the user to exactly where they want to be.
The GPS tracking capabilities of the Portable Assistant would also interact within the environment itself. Micro L.E.D wayfinding would provide a personal breadcrumb trail towards the user’s destination.
The L.E.D wayfinding would also be built into the bookshelves themselves, leading you directly to the exact location of the book your looking for every time.
J.R.R.
Tolkien Advent
ure
Englan
d
Intervie w Peter J ackson
The Ho
bbit
image
of book
cover
Hobbit
s
Peter J a
ckson
Fiction Elijah W ood
e
In addition to navigation, the Red Portable Assistant allows for exploration based on your search. By creating a multimedia web between books, videos, articles, and other content; a user’s journey in finding information is allowed to take a more organic and personalized route, rather than the lateral process of finding information that a user currently has to go through.
The world is a diverse place. With Globalism continuously making the distances between people smaller, there is more chance now for international collaboration than ever before. Red can begin close to home, but information demands equality as well as accessibility.
Red can act as a catalyst of information. Just as the Internet has brought people together across the world, so too can Red. By focusing on accessibility and distribution of information, Red can further improve in creating a reliable web of information between people all over the world.
The problem of what to do with the library in the 21st century is an international problem. Throughout both Project Nalij and Red my design team and me had to solidify the core things that libraries now achieves, as well as the things they can do better. The most interesting thing was how accessible the library is to all people no matter who they are. A library is based on the need for knowledge no matter where it is, and that need is isn’t going away anytime soon.