Libraries for the blind have to consider how best to deliver services to
a remote and scattered client group; how to assist them with the selection
of books and information at adistance; and how to provide them with
support and the sense of community that a sighted person would get from
their public library. In order to fulfil these functions, specialist libraries
work more or less in cooperation with mainstream library services such as
public and education libraries. In an ideal world, one might argue, mainstream libraries would meet the needs of all potential users. Indeed, it is
typically the remit of public libraries to meet the needs of all members of
society in a socially inclusive way , although the reality in many countries
falls short of the ideal.