Page 45 - Journal of Library Science in China, Vol.45, 2019

044 Journal of Library Science in China, Vol.11, 2019

computer-aided management. In the era of information service, library operation was changed from
manual to automatic. With the library integrated systems as the symbol, librarians were liberated
from heavy manual labor for the first time. In the pre-knowledge service era, technological
transformation promotes the new OPAC and the wide application of RFID, accelerating the
change of required skills in library operation. Digital technology is widely used in various fields of
libraries. From electronic library to virtual library, the digital library has developed to a new level.
It has made a breakthrough in the traditional library—the non-digital world. Thence the binary
world of parallel development of physical and virtual libraries has emerged.Technology urges the
library to transform into the hybrid library.
In the pre-knowledge service era, the transformation of the library is driven by digital
technology, resulting in the hybrid library. The post-knowledge service era is marked by the four
major themes of ABCD—Artificial Intelligence (AI), Blockchain, Cloud Computing and Big Data.
Integration with intelligent technology as the core of the new technology will further develop the
digital library and hybrid library, and once again break the binary world pattern of parallel of the
physical and the virtual. According to the Gartner Top 10 Strategic Technology Trends issued
between 2013 and 2017, the top ones were the mobile device battles, mobile devices diversity
and management, computing everywhere, the device mesh, AI & advanced machine learning
respectively (Li, X.W. Zhang, & Qin, 2017). AI still ranked the first in the 2018 edition (Gartner,
2017). The top strategic technology trends for 2019 were: autonomous things, augmented analytics,
AI-driven development, digital twins, empowered edge, immersive experience, Blockchain,
smart spaces, digital ethics and privacy, quantum computing (Gartner, 2018). The 24 hour self-
service library is just the beginning. As cashless shops, supermarkets and restaurants progress, the
number of self-help libraries will also increase. Due to great breakthroughs in machine vision and
speech recognition in recent years, artificial intelligence is developing rapidly, even faster than the
popularization of the innovative and high technology. The attitude towards artificial intelligence in
various service industries has switched from rejection to utilization. The first robot librarian at the
Shanghai library—Tu Xiaoling is a microcosm of the smart library driven by technology. Hubei
Province Library, Chengdu University of Technology Library, Nanjing University Library, Xinhua
Bookstore in Hangzhou and Beijing Book Building have also introduced robots to test artificial
intelligence in serving the cultural field. Blockchain technology provides different solutions for
data in different scenarios, with the emphasis on decentralization. The technical characteristics
determine that no intermediary is needed, and guarantee efficient and transparent process, low cost,
and safe and reliable data. By application of these techniques and the underlying idea, documents
and information will be annotated, referenced, linked, and disseminated on a larger scale, making
it possible to create a ubiquitous library that covers all works of human history and open to anyone
at any time. Both blockchain and cloud computing can be classified into the way people interact
with data, which is a way to improve the efficiency of data operation. According to The Digital
Universe of Opportunities by EMC&IDC (2014), less than 20% of the data in the digital universe