E-books flying off virtual shelves
The new, free e-books service from Warwickshire County Council Libraries is proving extremely popular.
Nearly half of the first batch of downloadable books were borrowed in the first two weeks after the 12-month trial service was launched on November 29.
So far, there are 188 different titles available to library members, but many more will be added in the weeks and months ahead, including a selection of audio e-books for those who would rather listen to stories than read them.
“The most popular downloads to date have been fiction and biography,” said Andrew Button, Virtual Access Manager for Warwickshire Library & Information Service. “The very first e-book to be borrowed was a biography about Britain’s Got Talent singer Susan Boyle.”
Andrew explained that e-books from Warwickshire Libraries can be used on most computers, laptops and notebooks, as well as some mobile phones and on special hand-held reader devices - with the exception of Amazon’s ‘Kindle’.
E-books are not a replacement for real books but an additional option for Warwickshire library members, giving them 24-hour instant access to an expanding catalogue of digital downloads,” said Andrew. “Many people are used to reading on-screen nowadays, for both work and pleasure, so e-books are a logical progression.”
Here’s what you need to know if you want to give e-books a go:
To access Warwickshire County Council’s free trial e-book service, first you will need a library card. Adults and children can join for free at any one of the county’s 34 libraries, or apply online at: warwickshire.gov.uk/libraries.
The Warwickshire Libraries homepage (as above) has a link to the free e-book service.
E-books can be borrowed for up to three weeks with an automatic electronic recall at the end of the loan period.
Borrowers will have the option to renew online if they haven’t finished reading their e-book, as long as no-one else has reserved the title.
E-book reservations, as well as loans, will be free during the 12-month trial.
E-book downloads will work on most modern computers using Windows XP or later operating systems - on imacs, some mobile phones and electronic ‘reader’ devices. File formats are as follows: ePub and PDF for e-books and WMA, MP3 for audio e-books.
Please note: ‘Kindle’ readers cannot be used to access Warwickshire County Council’s free e-book service.