The Ames Public Library gained national recognition after it was listed in a survey published by American Libraries magazine.The survey listed the Ames Library, 515 Douglas Ave., as one of the 10 best libraries in the country serving a population between 50,000 and 100,000.”It’s a wonderful opportunity to thank the Ames community and make them proud as well,” said Gina Millsap, director of the Ames Public Library. “It shows that we compare very favorably to libraries across the nation.”Millsap said she hopes survey results will spur interest in those who normally don’t visit the library.”It’s a compliment to the community and a wonderful opportunity to promote library services to people that may not be library users,” she said.Among data measured for the survey were the number of periodicals and visits per capita. Thomas Hennen Jr., director of the Waukesha County Federated Library System in Wisconsin, wrote the survey and has been conducting it for three years.”I used my best professional judgment” to select what data to use for the survey, Hennen said. “I’ve been a librarian for 25 years, and I belong to a list server [consisting] of 5,000 librarians across the country. I asked them what they thought were the most useful items to include in making such comparisons.”The survey does not rank all qualities of a library, Millsap said, such as the library’s employees or online resources.”What came through loud and clear to us through community surveys was what was important to the community was the personal service that our librarians and staff provided, and the trust that people in the community have that they are being served well by information professionals,” she said.