Standards are conventions and accepted practices that establish procedures for doing business.
They are also essential for cooperative efforts such as OCLC cataloging or interlibrary loan. After all, libraries have successfully incorporated many formats that have emerged over the past several decades significant portions of library collections can be found on microformats as well magnetic and optical media. Moreover, recent technological advances such as online catalogs, the MARC format, and the Z39.50 protocol have made many aspects of library work easier while improving service for patrons. The fact of the matter is that libraries have been quick to implement new technologies, and few libraries are even considering utilizing standards that haven't been around for years. The explosive growth of the Internet has made it clear that information will be much more decentralized and dynamic in the future than it is now.