This article is from the first edition of The Video Game Librarian website I published between 2008 and 2010. It was originally written on January 27, 2009.

“Bob,” the Assistant Manager of Computer & Network Services at the Central Arkansas Library System of Little Rock has been an MMORPG gamer for as long as they’ve been around. And now he’s bringing his love of MMORPGs to the library with the biggest MMORPG in all the land… World of Warcraft.

Bob has started a blog, World of Warcraft at the Library (AKA Library WoW!), to chroncile his progress with starting a WoW program at his library. Here’s an excerpt from his first post, appropriately titled “Hello World (of Warcraft)!“:

The “Why” of the program.
The social nature of WoW is comparable to a book club or knitting circle, and that communal experience is what I will attempt to harness in the program. I have met other WoW players in public or at work, and most all of these meetings are started with a sense of surprise from both myself and the other player. One of the first things asked when I meet another WoW player is, “What Realm,” which is always answered by, “Oh, /sigh I’m on Feathermoon.” Through these programs, I hope to foster a sense of community among the area WoW players and provide a medium through which we can all play together, if only for a couple of days per month, without sacrificing our other in-game relationships.

For those who are interested in further discussion of WoW and libraries, you may be interested in the LibGaming Google Group, which has had a ton of WoW-related discussion in the last few weeks.