Time's Up: Libraries To Limit Patrons' Computer Usage

By ANTHONY McCARTNEY The Tampa Tribune

Published: Jul 30, 2007

TAMPA - The days of free, nearly unlimited access to the Internet at Hillsborough County libraries is coming to an end.

Logging on from one of the county's 25 libraries will still be free. But in October, library officials plan to start a system that will limit users to two hours a day.

"Almost every other large library system has implemented this a long time ago," said Jacqueline Zebos, manager of reference and administrative services for Tampa-Hillsborough public libraries.

The libraries' current Internet policy is generous: If no one is waiting to use a computer, a person can stay online all day. Zebos said some users have been logged on for as long as 12 hours.

Often, people wanting to use computers simply leave because they don't want to wait for others to finish their sessions, she said.

Computer usage policies vary depending on the library in Polk and Pinellas counties. Pasco County has had a 90-minute per day limit on computer usage since it began offering Internet access.

"We've not had enough computers to meet the demands," said Pasco Libraries Director Linda Allen.

Imposing limits is the best way to make sure computers are available to everyone who wants one, Zebos said.

The library system already has about 1,000 computers available for public use and has seen a roughly 40 percent increase in usage annually, Zebos said.

"The demand is voracious," she said.

Increasing the number of computers - and the bandwidth needed to operate them - would place even more strain on an agency that has many libraries built before the Internet Age.

Expanding the system would cost a lot of money, Zebos said.

The library system's decision is not directly related to upcoming budget cuts.

The system, which receives most of its budget from collections of a special property tax levy, is facing a reduction in its budget due to property tax rollbacks mandated by state lawmakers.

Libraries are already planning on eliminating part-time workers, most of whom are students. That cut will force libraries to open an hour later so workers have time to re-shelve books.

Zebos said changes to the computer usage policy have been in the works for about a year.

Almost every library in the United States now offers free public Internet access. How they manage usage of their networks, however, varies widely, said Loriene Roy, president of the American Library Association.

In Alaska, libraries in towns where cruise ships dock have opted to create free wireless Internet networks instead of building large computer labs.

Some communities in Texas, where Roy is a professor, offer tiered systems that grant up to an hour of unfiltered access.

On a Hopi Indian reservation in Arizona, Roy said, people's Web surfing time was tracked using an egg timer.

Hillsborough plans to use computer software to track usage. The two-hour limit will apply systemwide - someone who exceeds the time in downtown Tampa won't be able to log on at another library until the next day.

Roy said the need for computer usage policies reflects the void libraries are filling by offering free access. While 99.6 percent of libraries in the country offer Web access, only two-thirds of homes have the Internet, she said.

"It's just a huge part of today's public libraries," she said.

Reporter Anthony McCartney can be reached at (813) 259-7616 or amccartney@tampatrib.com.