AS LIBRARIES WORK TO MAINTAIN
and increase their relevance, heightening
awareness among nonusers is a necessity
for survival and prosperity. To bring
new users through its doors, Barr Me-
morial Library, an award-winning li-
brary serving the military community in
Fort Knox, KY, leveraged the power of
curiosity, posing the question, “What’s
in the LibraryBox?”
The brainchild of Jason Griffey—a
consultant, former head of library infor-
mation technology at the University of
Tennessee at Chattanooga, and a 2009
LJ Mover & Shaker—the LibraryBox is
a self-contained, pocket-sized wireless
network that was conceived as a pro-
grammable, open source file sharing de-
vice. The LibraryBox functions like a
closed network and is discoverable on
portable electronic devices with wireless
capabilities, including tablets and smart-
phones. Details of the project can be
found at jasongriffey.net/librarybox.
Customization
The Barr LibraryBox started with
Griffey’s basic configuration, work-
ing with the TP-LINK TL-MR3020
3G/4G Wireless N150 Portable Router
he recommends. Storage for library-
able owing to copyright
considerations, the Barr
LibraryBox offers infor-
mation on how registered
users can access proprie-
tary databases and services
like Zinio. Creating the
custom HTML skin and
adjusting the open source
code to our specifications
were initially the most
time-consuming part of
the project, although web
authoring tools such as Dreamweaver
can also be used to create a custom skin.
For initial deployment, the library tar-
geted high-traffic locations where users
would be looking for diversion and a
way to pass the time, such as the shop-
ping complex’s food court, physical fit-
ness centers, a water park, pharmacies,
and cafeterias. Many of these entities
were not necessarily regular partners
with the library, which afforded an op-
portunity to build bridges and network.
downloaded), and a short
paragraph on who can use
the library. To encourage
continued use, content is
updated quarterly, and in-
centive “coupons” provide
users with expanded bor-
rowing privileges, etc.
Barr’s approach to de-
ploying the LibraryBox is
unique in that it is attempt-
ing to saturate the com-
munity with the product,
placing it, initially, at 18 locations. The
first few months of deployment were
wildly successful, and a year into the
project the library is averaging between
400 and 500 monthly LibraryBox uses.
Simple, eye-catching four-step posters
at LibraryBox sites inform users how to
connect. Customized pieces, such as di-
rections for digital monitors, were also
devised at the request of partnering or-
ganizations in order to allow them to
maximize exposure.
FIELDREPORTS
What’s in the Box?
By Michael Steinmacher & G.J. Corey Harmon
The Barr LibraryBox was developed to be
one part library promotion, one part content
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