Library Books... admit it, do you do this?

[doreenjoy]

Originally Posted by AbFabGab

What drives me crazy is the libraries that offer non-resident cards and some even have online sign up BUT you have to physically go into library to either activate card or get permanent card.

Yeah, that is a pain. I'm terribly organized (it's a curse, honestly) so I coordinate business trips with library card visits.

[Knitnpurl]

Originally Posted by GraceKrispy

I just got the email notification that FOUR of my library books on hold are ready for me. I have two days to pick them up. I have 10 books (the max) checked out already. So, I return 4 of them (through ade), download the 4 new ones and I'm good to go. I just have to remember NOT to hook up my reader to my computer until I've finished the 4 I already returned. It's the spinnerooo game. Who else plays that?

I discovered, with joy, that even if a book is "expired" (I've had it more than the three weeks), I can still finish it as long as I turned off the reader while I was in it. As soon as I back out of it, I can't get into it anymore. I was happy to find that trick.

Who else uses the library most of all right now?

The public library where I live (Phoenix) is my primary source of ebooks, and I have wondered if those tricks would actually work or not, so thank you for sharing!

[Mr. Dalliard]

What a ridiculous concept: treating e-books the same as p-books - including limiting the number of copies of a particular book that can be borrowed at any one time.

Unbelievable!

[doreenjoy]

Originally Posted by Mr. Dalliard

What a ridiculous concept: treating e-books the same as p-books - including limiting the number of copies of a particular book that can be borrowed at any one time.

Unbelievable!

Well it's not the libraries' fault. They are limited by their agreements with publishers to having only a certain number of copies "in circulation."

[Gideon]

My library sucks. It doesn't (and neither does the extended network of libraries it is part of) ever have anything I'm wanting.

Even the university library is pretty lacking (in stuff it should have.) Had to order 3 books today for a paper because it didn't carry them and couldn't get the books from elsewhere fast enough.

[dordale]

Originally Posted by AbFabGab

What drives me crazy is the libraries that offer non-resident cards and some even have online sign up BUT you have to physically go into library to either activate card or get permanent card. I wouldn't mind paying the non-res fee for a few libraries just to check out ebooks...

So far NYPL is only one that allows online sign up and you don't have to go in.
If anyone finds any others that you don't have to go in, let us know!!

AbFabGab--
The Salt Lake County library offers non-resident library cards for $80/year. I haven't signed up for one yet, but I did e-mail them a month ago or so to find out more. They responded to me saying that I could send in a check and a copy of my driver's license and they'd mail me a card (same as NYPL does). You might want to e-mail them to verify.

They do have a fairly decent collection, but it's not as large as NYPL.

dordale

[AbFabGab]

Originally Posted by dordale

AbFabGab--
The Salt Lake County library offers non-resident library cards for $80/year. I haven't signed up for one yet, but I did e-mail them a month ago or so to find out more. They responded to me saying that I could send in a check and a copy of my driver's license and they'd mail me a card (same as NYPL does). You might want to e-mail them to verify.

They do have a fairly decent collection, but it's not as large as NYPL.

dordale

oh my, thanks for the tip!
I have to check this out!!

what state?
or do you have library link?
Thanks.

[dordale]

Here's the link for SLC's overdrive collection:

http://slco.lib.overdrive.com/0A31B6...en/Default.htm

And here's the link for their main library page.

http://www.slcolibrary.org/

If you do apply for a card, post back and let us know how it works!

dordale

[joobies]

I am guessing that the folks that use the public library resources for their ebooks... do NOT have Kindles. I tried it and everything was locked. Librarian told me that the Kindle would not work with their books. Perhaps, soon.

[kelly1010]

Hi Joobies....this is why I chose not to get the Kindle. Because I knew my library had free ebooks and the Kindle seems very restricted in what you can put on it. I have heard, though, that somehow you can convert files and be able to put them on the Kindle, but that seemed really complicated and unnecessary to me, so I got the Sony instead.

Kelly

[GraceKrispy]

I must admit, I'm very relieved to find many like-minded people!

I use the Hawai'i public library, btw. I have seriously considered spending money to join another library to get ebooks. I think our collection is certainly better than I expected and I do have a lot of books on my "wishlist" waiting to be checked out, but it seems that so many books I want are wma overdrive instead. What's UP with that???

I actually used directions in another post to set up ADE on another computer and now I wonder.... can I return the books on the other computer and then check out 10 new books on *this* computer and hook up my reader to this computer only and then get all 20?? I might try it just for the heck of it someday, just to see, but I really don't need 20 books at once from the library. I can only read 4 or 5 at a time anyway right? I'm really not greedy. My eyes are just bigger than my reading capacity....

[Leep]

Originally Posted by GraceKrispy

I must admit, I'm very relieved to find many like-minded people!

I use the Hawai'i public library, btw. I have seriously considered spending money to join another library to get ebooks. I think our collection is certainly better than I expected and I do have a lot of books on my "wishlist" waiting to be checked out, but it seems that so many books I want are wma overdrive instead. What's UP with that???

I actually used directions in another post to set up ADE on another computer and now I wonder.... can I return the books on the other computer and then check out 10 new books on *this* computer and hook up my reader to this computer only and then get all 20?? I might try it just for the heck of it someday, just to see, but I really don't need 20 books at once from the library. I can only read 4 or 5 at a time anyway right? I'm really not greedy. My eyes are just bigger than my reading capacity....

The number of books you check out is a function of how many your library allows you to have on your account at one time, not on a given computer. If the ebooks are downloaded into digital editions, however, you can return them early and they will come off you library account within minutes. You might not want to return all ten books at the same time, however as one of our mobile read members got a hold put on her account by doing this several times in a short time period. A more reasonable suggestion to "stay under the radar" would be to return one or two books per day.

cheers

[MickeyC]

Originally Posted by AbFabGab

What drives me crazy is the libraries that offer non-resident cards and some even have online sign up BUT you have to physically go into library to either activate card or get permanent card. I wouldn't mind paying the non-res fee for a few libraries just to check out ebooks...

I just signed up in the DC PL on line and, since I live just across the Potomac, I drove over yesterday and got my permanent card. Now I have two libraries (Fairfax and DC) for eBooks. Life is good!

[Leep]

I am guessing that the folks that use the public library resources for their ebooks... do NOT have Kindles. I tried it and everything was locked. Librarian told me that the Kindle would not work with their books. Perhaps, soon.

Many of us using Public Libraries do, in fact have Kindles. That is why we were so distressed with the Amazon edict that Mobile Read take down the visual wiki's that were created so that others could learn the steps for getting the library ebooks on their Kindles. It can, in fact be done. The key is obtaining your Kindle's PID. If it's something that you want to learn about, suggest that you search Mobile Read and the web for the steps/tools needed.

cheers