On Wed, May 7, 2008 at 4:55 PM, Tim Spalding <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> As for the idea that getting a book off the shelf is a non-trivial
> hassle, while I admit that it can get hard if your library is split
> between locations, at most colleges, getting a book from a library is
> a trivial effort. And anyway, you're a student for pete's sake!
> Learning is your full-time job. If gets books off shelves bums you
> out, what are you doing in college?
>

What about distance learners?

What about books that aren't in your library that you're considering
an ILL request for?

What if you're trying to decide, from home, if this book is worth the
30+ minute drive to the library to use for your paper due (oh, I don't
know) tomorrow?

In the modern world, it's a very small fraction of the student body
that lives in the dorms.

Also, it doesn't matter how "trivial" it is to get the book from the
library, the laws of physics still apply.  If the patron is sitting on
a computer (which, given this discussion, they obviously are), the
path of least resistance dictates that a journal article will be used
before a book.

-Ross.