I visited the Helsinki Library and it has a frigg'n makerspace in the middle of it! Laster cutters, 3D printers, Vinyl cutters, all for nearly free. It also has "video game rooms", general meeting rooms, 2 cafes and a restaurant! It's astounding what you can have if you fund public works.
Jun 19, 2026, 4:23 AM@scottjenson I was there two weeks ago. On top of all of this cool stuff it also has stunning architecture!
@scottjenson it also has an awesome rooftop terasse
@scottjenson We were in Finland for a wedding a few years back, and a friend suggested we visit the Helsinki Library. I'm so glad we did!
@scottjenson I live here and I agree. It is one of the most awesome of spaces. And I tell you that it feeds business and culture like a machine! Many of meetings I’ve had in the rooms over are somehow related to startups…
May I rephrase this a little?
It's astounding what you can have if you accept that your country is dependent on *everyone*, regardless of background, reaches their potential *and* lives a fulfilling life.
Jun 19, 2026, 6:29 AM@scottjenson It itches me the wrong way when people call Oodi the Helsinki Library. It's not the main library and not even the only one within 1 km radius.
See https://oodihelsinki.fi/en/
and https://helmet.finna.fi/OrganisationInfo/Home?lng=en-gb#86476
It's very nice though and you'll even find a cinema in the same building.
@scottjenson
That all is truly awesome, and there are books too! 😉
@scottjenson I had a tour of the recording studios there last year…
...and the lower levels are a nuke bunker.
@scottjenson Also has sound studios, musical instruments, all kinds of hardware tools to borrow (a drill or a midi keyboard, for example). And there are many more in the country 😊
Jun 19, 2026, 9:23 AM@scottjenson
Within the Oodi building there is also a cinema called Kino Regina, where the Finnish film archive has its screenings!
Jun 19, 2026, 9:50 AM@scottjenson #Edmonton, Alberta, #Canada also has similar library facilities, just saying. Is similarly progressive. :blob_cat_heart:
Jun 19, 2026, 10:14 AM@scottjenson We have a lot of that here in libraries in Oslo as well.
@scottjenson the bookshelves are even lit! Such a gorgeous experience.
Jun 19, 2026, 10:20 AMAmazing space, isn't it? Don't forget the indoor kid's playground and the cafe's terrace :-)
Jun 19, 2026, 12:22 PMI've seen similar cool libraries in Japan.
And while these places are not half as nice and well-equipped in Germany, they do offer public 3D scanners and printers, too!
@scottjenson absolutely! But I guess that tells us that Finland has scrapped the no-noise-in-libraries world-standard.
Nice !
I live in Newton MA, US, a town of about 90,000 affluent educated liberalish people
so obviously, way smaller then Helsinki
but our main library is doing a lot to become a "library of things" eg you can borrow all sorts of physical objects
the library doesn't have the space, I think, for a maker lab, but who knows ?
Jun 19, 2026, 9:14 PMOodi is the best place I have visited!
Also you forgot to mention free loans of musical instruments, recording studios and working spaces.
As well as sowing machines and instructors to help you fix garments.
This is what libraries should be about.
@scottjenson Sounds nice. I have that in my local library in Alabama but smaller. No laser cutter and no video game room but it has the rest of it (and a cafe, meeting rooms) and an embroidery machine. I think makerspaces are becoming kind of a standard for libraries. Another thing some libraries are doing (I've heard) is tools that can be checked out. We don't have that here yet but it's a great idea.
That is how humans live when assholes are not in office.
@scottjenson got to see it on our last visit, impressive indeed.
@scottjenson @simra Oh man, warum sollte man da noch zuhause rumhängen. Das ist ja nur geil 😍
Jul 8, 2026, 12:56 PM@scottjenson I think the last time I have read 'frigg'n' must have been before the 90s :notlikethis:
@scottjenson if you’re ever in Düsseldorf go visit the Zentralbibliothek. They have so many nice facilities. https://www.duesseldorf.de/fileadmin/Amt41-202/stadtbuechereien/pdf/41-202_Br_Zentralbibliothek_GB_komplett_web_bf.pdf
@scottjenson Great. Similar to some of the newer libraries here in Melbourne.