[13:26]  Katt Kongo: ...Then I realized that, though libraries are a rich part of history, they are also the most personal institution in existence. Almost everyone has a story about the significance of libraries in their lives.

 As a child, I spend hours in the local library, picking out books, then getting lost in another world, from the sands of the Sahara to the streets of Paris. The library has long been a needed part of society, providing a gateway to other places and times

 In the library, those with sufficient drive and curiosity can uncover the deepest truths, using books to explore the thoughts and actions of others and to spark their own creativity -- growing ideas from those of others.

 The information that a library provides is a gateway to a better tomorrow, for this information challenges us to use our minds, to find better ways of conducting ourselves...

and managing the great problems we often must deal with. In the library, we can find the resources to examine and confront our most difficult social problems.

 Though a virtual library, the Alliance SL Library is no less personal, no less needed. In today's Age of Information, the sheer volume of knowledge one can find is often overwhelming.

 This library here provides a starting point, a living search engine, as well as a way to see exhibits in a central location.

 The establishment of a community is marked by the construction of certain institutions -- schools, churches, newspapers, medical facilities and libraries.

 It's no different in a virtual world, and the opening of the Alliance SL Library is a true indication that Second Life really is a community.
When I first learned that Alliance was creating a library here in Second Life, I was excited by the possibilities.

 In the past six months, the "reality" of what this group of people has managed to create under the umbrella term of library has amazed me.
 I look forward to seeing what else they bring to the grid.