FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions


What is this site about?

This site is about kicking your butt if you don’t start saying thank you at the reference desk.

Don’t librarians just stamp books?

No, we have people for that.

Why all the fuss?

Librarians have been getting systematically underpaid and uncredited for about a century. The profession encompasses some of the world’s finest minds who have chosen to anonymously help better your life, your research, and your children’s future at the expense of their own glory. That’s admirable. Plus my mom’s a librarian, so there’s some personal interest.

How do I become a librarian?

Go forth and get thee a Master’s degree from an accredited school. I suggest you research salaries first. This is not a get-rich-quick profession, unless you call yourself an information architect or something. Disenfranchised Humanities majors tend to gravitate toward Library Science, since it pays better than Translating Latin.

How do I become a Librarian Avenger?

  • Step one: Get a job in a library or a library degree or something
  • Step two: Knit your brow
  • Step three: Growl
  • Step four: Smite the enemies of Free Information

I answered this question in more detail here.

Do Archivists count?

Of course archivists count. A bunch of overdressed librarians with an attitude, you lot are. Hell, we’re all family. Let’s Avenge together.

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How long has this site been around?

Pull up a chair, sonny. This site has been around since 1997. It started when I was a wee English major learning HTML by eavesdropping in the computer lab. It continued as a proto-weblog through Information School, and showed up in its recent form now that I’m doing User Experience stuff for Second Life.

What’s up with the “Look It Up” girl?

This image is from Terry Moore’s comic Strangers in Paradise. I suggest you visit the artist’s website for more info. He’s cool about copyright requests, so be sure to ask.

Can I use the “Worship a Librarian” thing?

Yeah, sure, probably! Everything on this site is available via a Creative Commons license which you can view here. Loosely translated, it says ‘please use my writing for all reasonable pursuits, but don’t sell it to the Hottentots at great profit without giving me a cut or I’ll sick the librarian mafia on you’.