Public libraries also use several different techniques to
separate patrons during Internet sessions so that they will not
see what other patrons are viewing. The simplest way to achieve
this result is to position the library's public Internet
terminals so that they are located away from traffic patterns in
the library (and from other terminals), for example, by placing
them so that they face a wall. This method is obviously
constrained by libraries' space limitations and physical layout.
Some libraries have also installed privacy screens on their
public Internet terminals. These screens make a monitor appear
blank unless the viewer is looking at it head-on. Although the
Multnomah and Fort Vancouver Libraries submitted records showing
that they have received few complaints regarding patrons'
unwilling exposure to materials on the Internet, privacy screens
do not always prevent library patrons or employees from
inadvertently seeing the materials that another patron is viewing
when passing directly behind a terminal. They also have the
drawback of making it difficult for patrons to work together at a
single terminal, or for librarians to assist patrons at
terminals, because it is difficult for two people to stand side
by side and view a screen at the same time. Some library patrons
also find privacy screens to be a hindrance and have attempted to
remove them in order to improve the brightness of the screen or
to make the view better.


Another method that libraries use to prevent patrons from
seeing what other patrons are viewing on their terminals is the
installation of "recessed monitors." Recessed monitors are