[SteveEisenberg]

Originally Posted by rogue_librarian

Hear, hear! Would you believe that despite this being the fact in much of Europe the book world still hasn't gone under?

Can you provide a link to the eBook portal of a library in one of those countries?

We might not be talking about the same thing. If this was true, I suspect we would have heard of Simon and Schuster, and the like, working to thwart the rule.

Originally Posted by rogue_librarian

Sure, make it as inconvenient as possible, that's gonna help.

You previously endorsed a service requiring one-chapter-at-a-time downloads. This is far more inconvenient than my walking over to the library. Someone, just now reading this, who has to drive to their library, may think your way sounds better. But the first time they download a 20 chapter DRM-free book from one of those services (I've used 24x7 through my employer), they may start finding their local librarian's friendly face a lot more appealing.

I'm sure you would prefer something more convenient than either physical visit or chapter-at-a-time. My point is that friction in return for eBook borrowing is inescapable, even for a highly pro-patron librarian.

Originally Posted by jersysman

I do not agree with the gist of he suggestion that says easily being able to borrow a book from a library would hurt the funding stream of authors, et. al. I mean it was what was being done before ebooks came along and authors seemed to be able to eat and keep a roof over their head.

To borrow a paper book, I have to go to the physical library. And then I have to go back to return it.

I can borrow an Overdrive book right from my computer -- any day of the week. This makes Overdrive much more convenient than the library ever was.

Also, the paper library book is used. This doesn't bother me, but many people find it sub-optimal. By contrast, the Overdrive eBook is just as perfect as the same title purchased from Kobo or Amazon.

I'd love to read Simon and Schuster eBooks, but don't because they boycott Overdrive. Do I like this? No. Are they making a stupid business decision, or harming their authors? That I can't say.