There's nothing like that new library smell. The Squirrel Hill branch of the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh has that smell -- a combination of new carpet, furniture and new computers just out of boxes -- in spades. The once dark repository of dusty books and broken-down copy machines has been transformed into a shimmering high-tech light box with a modernist architectural attitude.

After hovering in obscurity above the parking garage at Forbes and Murray avenues for decades, a wraparound glass facade now juts two feet beyond its old border, giving the residents and shoppers of Squirrel Hill an unmistakable "How do you do?"

Closed for renovation since the beginning of last year, the library attracted an estimated 4,000 people on its opening day April 19. "They were standing in line around the block," said senior librarian Audrey Hines. "The people in this neighborhood love and support this branch. They had been without a library for a long time, so there was a lot of anticipation."

Though far smaller than the spectacle that attended the reopening of the Museum of Modern Art in Manhattan last year, it had a similar feel. Many Squirrel Hillians were eager to be among the first to experience the renovated library's $3.8 million rebirth. There is 7,000 more feet to explore than when it was last open to the public.

Along with a much-needed facelift came what can only be described as a personality transplant for the branch. Banks of sleek black computer monitors line the reading tables, turning what had once been monkish and austere into an oasis of instantaneous information overload. Lime-colored polyurethane chairs dazzle the eye in one corner along with orange comfy chairs that are either very expensive or were picked up at an upscale yard sale. A series of rectangular mats are arrayed against the caribe blue window running the length of the Forbes Avenue side. They invite patrons to get as comfortable as they'd like.

"Our main charge was to give the library a larger presence in the neighborhood," said Jamison Fielding of Arthur Lubetz Associates, the Pittsburgh architectural firm responsible for the redesign. "We tried to develop a facade that would attract attention and put people in the library on stage. We were interested in creating a loft like [atmosphere] showing what was in here."

The feeling produced by the coming together of the old and the new is part Bauhaus, part Grandma's house. There are more nooks, alcoves, window seats and public meeting rooms than before, but the vibe is noticeably friendlier and less officious. There are even two self-checkout stations for those too impatient to interact with librarians who could double as therapists.

Still, there's no danger of people getting too comfortable. When a man with a laptop propped on his lap dared to begin talking on his cell phone as if he was in his own home, a polite but no-nonsense guard tapped him on the shoulder and invited him to take the call outside. It's nice to see a bit of the old order carried over into the new order.