Libraries with ebooks is not new. Vendors like
EBook Library,
Ebrary and
Netlibrary, as well as more specialized vendor services like
CRCnetBase,
Knovel, and
Safari Books Online allow libraries to make books available online to readers. These are all read online from the user's Internet-enabled computer.
Large digital collections like
Google Book Search,
UVa's ElectronicText Center, and
Project Gutenberg have also been indexed by many libraries to make their content available to their users.
However, it has been almost 10 years since libraries made ebook reading devices like the Rocket Ebook and Softbook available. Now, as we prepare to loan out Sony Readers and Amazon Kindles, I would like to talk to other librarians and library users about their experiences.