Grant will upgrade Wisconsin libraries' Web connections

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Many of Wisconsin's public libraries are scheduled to get an Internet upgrade.

Libraries that are still using dial-up or cable Internet connections will be upgraded to fiber optics

Walter Burkhalter is the director of the Mid-Wisconsin Federated Library system. He says the upgrade could increase Web-surfing speeds by a factor of 10 to 20.

Burkhalter tells Wisconsin Public Radio the upgrades come at an important time. He says the economic downturn has led to a "significant increase" in the number of people using libraries, especially jobseekers.

The upgrades are expected to start this year and wrap up by the early part of next year.

The funding comes from part of a recent $7.2 billion federal grant.

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