I received my master’s degree 30 years ago: where has the time gone? For those born with technology in your hands, you may wonder how past law librarians survived and thrived. This question makes me want to reflect on being a new librarian in the pre-internet, pre-flat rate contracts era.
In the pre-internet-days printed materials ruled supreme. Westlaw and Lexis were not on every device imaginable In fact, at Clausen Miller where I started my career as a newly minted librarian we had one red Lexis UBIQ terminal with tiny chicklet shaped keys. The printer was a tall device with only one function, print cases on paper with holes running up the sides and perforations between the pages. Nightmares ensued when the paper was not fed correctly. Westlaw was loaded on only one computer which used a dial up modem to connect. Use of electronic services was a luxury. Continue reading A New Decade: A Librarian’s Reflection