Maintain library equipment, such as photocopiers, scanners, and computers, and instruct patrons in proper use of such equipment.

“Maintain library equipment, such as photocopiers, scanners, and computers, and instruct patrons in proper use of such equipment.” is a core task performed by Library Assistants, Clerical. Among the occupation's 33 rated tasks, workers place it 14th by importance (#20 most important). About 88% of workers say it is relevant to their job.

This is a single occupation-specific task statement from O*NET. The figures below describe how central the task is to the job and what independent studies measure about AI and this kind of work — not a prediction that the task will be automated.

Work activities this task rolls up to

O*NET groups concrete tasks into broader work activities shared across many occupations.

• Maintain tools or equipment. in Repairing and Maintaining Electronic Equipment

AI exposure

The OpenAI / Eloundou “GPTs are GPTs” study rates this task E0. No direct exposure — current language models give little or no time savings on this task.

Exposure measures whether a model could meaningfully speed the task up — it is an estimate of overlap with model capabilities, not a measure of whether the work will be done by software. The study's intermediate score (β) for this task is 0.00. Automation potential label: T1.

Other tasks in this occupation

• Sort books, publications, and other items according to established procedure and return them to shelves, files, or other designated storage areas. · importance 4.3
• Open and close library during specified hours and secure library equipment, such as computers and audio-visual equipment. · importance 4.3
• Locate library materials for patrons, including books, periodicals, tape cassettes, Braille volumes, and pictures. · importance 4.3
• Classify and catalog items according to content and purpose. · importance 4.3
• Enter and update patrons' records on computers. · importance 4.3
• Answer routine inquiries and refer patrons in need of professional assistance to librarians. · importance 4.3
• Manage reserve materials by placing items on reserve for library patrons, checking items in and out of library, and removing out-of-date items. · importance 4.2
• Lend, reserve, and collect books, periodicals, videotapes, and other materials at circulation desks and process materials for inter-library loans. · importance 4.1
• Instruct patrons on how to use reference sources, card catalogs, and automated information systems. · importance 4.1
• Inspect returned books for condition and due-date status and compute any applicable fines. · importance 4.1
• Maintain records of items received, stored, issued, and returned and file catalog cards according to system used. · importance 4.0
• Perform clerical activities, such as answering phones, sorting mail, filing, typing, word processing, and photocopying and mailing out material. · importance 4.0
• Register new patrons and issue borrower identification cards that permit patrons to borrow books and other materials. · importance 4.0
• Operate small branch libraries, under the direction of off-site librarian supervisors. · importance 4.0

See all tasks on the Library Assistants, Clerical page.

Sources for this page

Every figure above traces to a named public dataset and the exact release below — not hand-written opinion. See the full methodology for what each measure does and does not mean.

• O*NET 30.3 U.S. Department of Labor / National Center for O*NET Development
• “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130 OpenAI / academic

Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.

@misc{singulariki-task-18772,
  title  = {Maintain library equipment, such as photocopiers, scanners, and computers, and instruct patrons in proper use of such equipment.},
  author = {{Singulariki}},
  year   = {2026},
  note   = {O*NET 30.3; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130. Accessed June 7, 2026},
  url    = {https://singulariki.com/tasks/task-18772}
}