Free Library of Philadelphia

GeckoFriend · 02-06-2018, 08:52 AM

I have been unable to access the FLP site for two days to download a book. No matter how I try to access the site I get a "504 Gateway Time-out" error message. Are others having this issue?

JSWolf · 02-06-2018, 09:13 AM

FLP is working for me.Is this the URL you are using? https://freelibrary.overdrive.com/

John F · 02-06-2018, 09:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GeckoFriend

I have been unable to access the FLP site for two days to download a book. No matter how I try to access the site I get a "504 Gateway Time-out" error message. Are others having this issue?

I just checked, and I was able to get to the site. I did not try downloading anything.

GeckoFriend · 02-06-2018, 09:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

FLP is working for me.Is this the URL you are using? https://freelibrary.overdrive.com/

That's the same URL and it still doesn't work for me. I've restarted my PC and can't think of anything else to try. Suggestions?

JSWolf · 02-06-2018, 10:08 AM

Try with your cellphone data. Maybe it's your ISP.

GeckoFriend · 02-06-2018, 10:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Try with your cellphone data. Maybe it's your ISP.

Good suggestion but that isn't it. I tried using Explorer instead of Firefox and was able to access the site without any problems.

Can anyone confirm that they use Firefox to access FLP?

Update: using Firefox support info I cleared cache and cookies and fixed the issue. No idea why just one web site was a problem.

JSWolf · 02-06-2018, 02:07 PM

Glad you got it fixed. I use Firefox 56.x until one plugin is written for the new Firefox. It will be eventually.

Hellmark · 02-08-2018, 11:05 AM

If you have a malformed cookie for a website, that can cause problems. It isn't a common thing, but it does happen from time to time.

Glad that it is working for you now.

haertig · 02-10-2018, 12:47 AM

I was going to explain some things can cause 504 errors, but I see you're already good to go. Bottom line: 504's are not something you can fix on your end, and they often resolve on their own (from your perspective). They are typically intermittent and short lived. If your browser cached a 504 page and was displaying that to you from cache and not going out to try to retrieve the actual current page, that would explain it. Although, a web browser should not cache an error page unless due to poor programming or a bug.

Then I looked at the specific link you were asking about, freelibrary.overdrive.org, and thought - Neat! A free overdrive library I might be able to use in addition to my local overdrive one.

Well, it looks like it's free as long as you consider $50 per year to be "free". Oh well, What the large print giveth, the small print taketh away.

DuckieTigger · 02-10-2018, 10:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by haertig

Well, it looks like it's free as long as you consider $50 per year to be "free". Oh well, What the large print giveth, the small print taketh away.

If you live in Pennsylvania it is completely free. Out of state it is "free" to open enroll for a fee. Not all libraries allow out of state members to begin with.

rcentros · 02-10-2018, 02:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DuckieTigger

If you live in Pennsylvania it is completely free. Out of state it is "free" to open enroll for a fee. Not all libraries allow out of state members to begin with.

I was curious if they offered out of area access, but I couldn't find any information about that on their website. (Not that I really need it at this point.) $50 a year is not bad if your local library doesn't really offer much. Is it better than Brooklyn or others who offer access for a fee? ... I don't know.

(As a side note, now I can't get to the site. "IP Address could not be found" error. Tried in three different browsers.)

EDIT: I got there by following the links on their main site. It's not freelibrary.overdrive.org, it's https://freelibrary.overdrive.com/ (.com instead of .org) – even though the main site is .org. It seems like they could set up a re-direct for that fairly easily (since they own the freelibrary.org domain).

EDIT: Not very quick today. freelibrary.overdrive.com is subdomain of Overdrive, not Free Library. (Now I'll just shut up and slink on out of here.)

SteveEisenberg · 02-10-2018, 02:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rcentros

Is it better than Brooklyn or others who offer access for a fee? ... I don't know.

Fbone had a collection size thread which hasn't been updated in a few years.

Searching Overdrive, I get:

Philadelphia - 27,976 all eBooks; 25365 English language Kindle
Pittsburgh - 76,707 all eBooks; 68,287 English languaue Kindle
Brooklyn - 119,670 all eBooks; 101,636 English language Kindle

I'm not sure you can easily get the numbers for the smaller collections like Freading and the Cloud Library, but I think the above numbers give a good picture. As a Pennsylvanian, I can and do get library cards from the larger collections in my state. Pittsburgh is good. But the library I borrow from the most is the one I pay, Brooklyn.

Of course, it's not just a matter of numbers. A lot depends on how close your taste is to that of the librarians.

steven168 · 03-15-2018, 03:47 AM

how to apply free?

DuckieTigger · 03-15-2018, 07:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by steven168

how to apply free?

Read the whole thread. It is only free if you live in Pennsylvania. If you do, their website is pretty self explanatory ( or call them).

steven168 · 03-15-2018, 07:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DuckieTigger

Read the whole thread. It is only free if you live in Pennsylvania. If you do, their website is pretty self explanatory ( or call them).

i only see the free... maybe they should change name

02-06-2018, 08:52 AM	#1
GeckoFriend Guru Posts: 618 Karma: 1164945 Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: SF Bay Area, California, USA Device: iPhone 7+, iPad Mini4, Kindle Voyage	Free Library of Philadelphia I have been unable to access the FLP site for two days to download a book. No matter how I try to access the site I get a "504 Gateway Time-out" error message. Are others having this issue?

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02-06-2018, 09:13 AM	#2
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 79,625 Karma: 145864617 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	FLP is working for me.Is this the URL you are using? https://freelibrary.overdrive.com/

02-06-2018, 10:08 AM	#5
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 79,625 Karma: 145864617 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	Try with your cellphone data. Maybe it's your ISP.

02-06-2018, 02:07 PM	#7
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 79,625 Karma: 145864617 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	Glad you got it fixed. I use Firefox 56.x until one plugin is written for the new Firefox. It will be eventually.

02-08-2018, 11:05 AM	#8
Hellmark Wizard Posts: 2,592 Karma: 4290425 Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Foristell, Missouri, USA Device: Nokia N800, PRS-505, Nook STR Glowlight, Kindle 3, Kobo Libra 2	If you have a malformed cookie for a website, that can cause problems. It isn't a common thing, but it does happen from time to time. Glad that it is working for you now.

02-10-2018, 12:47 AM	#9
haertig Wizard Posts: 1,893 Karma: 31522252 Join Date: Sep 2017 Device: PW3, Fire HD8 Gen7, Moto G7, Sansa Clip v2, Ruizu X26	I was going to explain some things can cause 504 errors, but I see you're already good to go. Bottom line: 504's are not something you can fix on your end, and they often resolve on their own (from your perspective). They are typically intermittent and short lived. If your browser cached a 504 page and was displaying that to you from cache and not going out to try to retrieve the actual current page, that would explain it. Although, a web browser should not cache an error page unless due to poor programming or a bug. Then I looked at the specific link you were asking about, freelibrary.overdrive.org, and thought - Neat! A free overdrive library I might be able to use in addition to my local overdrive one. Well, it looks like it's free as long as you consider $50 per year to be "free". Oh well, What the large print giveth, the small print taketh away.

03-15-2018, 03:47 AM	#13
steven168 Zealot Posts: 121 Karma: 5508 Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: Singapore Device: Kindle Paperwhite 1 & 3	how to apply free?

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