Project Gutenberg --> more eBooks than you can handle!

If you’re craving e-books and want to be able to download until the memory on your reading device is full, checkout Project Gutenberg.

Project Gutenberg as a nonprofit business entity was officially created in 2000, but the premise behind it has been developing since the creation of the first e-document in 1971. Michael Hart the founder and creator of that first document wanted to make eBooks accessible to as many people as possible. The project aims at providing free access of eBooks to over 33,000 titles of books whose copyright date has expired. These items can be downloaded to your Nook, Kindle, Android, or other mobile devices.

Three portions of the Project Gutenberg Library, basically can be described as: (from Project Gutenberg's website)

Light Literature; such as Alice in Wonderland, Through the Looking-Glass, Peter Pan, Aesop's Fables, etc.
Heavy Literature; such as the Bible or other religious documents, Shakespeare, Moby Dick, Paradise Lost, etc.
References; such as Roget's Thesaurus, almanacs, and a set of encyclopedia, dictionaries, etc.” (Project Gutenberg website).

Your first time downloading items directly from Project Gutenberg can be a little difficult, especially if you new to eBook devices. The best way to access a selection of these titles is through Overdrive. Recently they have added 15,000 titles selected from the Project Gutenberg Collection. When you checkout or download these items from Overdrive they won’t count towards the number of items you are allowed to checkout! To access Overdrive go to our subscription database page and log in. To find the Project Gutenberg eBooks search under the “Browse” page and look under the heading “Browse Public Domain eBook”. Here is a little sample from a neat cooking magazine I found from 1921!

I suggest checking out this neat neat collection, especially through Overdrive. If you have any questions please don't hestitate to contact us!

Gizmo, Gadgets, and Downloading…Oh My!

Did you find a Nook, Kindle, Ipod, Sony e-Reader, or other digital device under your tree this year? Are you wondering what type of free downloads the library can offer for your gadget? Welcome to the quick Q & A session that will hopefully leave you as technologically savvy as your new gizmo!

What services are available?

The library offers audio books, e-books, music, and videos. These resources are available through two different subscription databases: Overdrive and NetLibrary. Many titles in the Netlibrary collection are now available to be downloaded to an ebook device. There is a feature in advanced search where you can look for downloadable titles only.


Overdrive is a subscription database that can include Adobe PDF eBooks, audiobooks, MP3 audiobooks, Music, and Video. Unlike NetLibrary these resources can be downloaded so there are different file types and compatibility depending on devices. Check out time is usually 7 or 14 days.

NetLibrary is subscription database, which can include eBooks, eJournals, audiobooks, and reference resources. Patrons can search for and read full-text eContent (eBooks or eJournals) or listen to audiobooks. Now there are many titles that can be downloaded, there is a feature in advanced search where you can look just for those downloadable titles.

Do these services work with my device?

Each subscription database has different compatibility needs. In a nutshell the Barnes and Noble Nook works with both databases and at this time the Kindle does not work with either database. The details of other devices can be found on the NetLibrary and Overdrive wesbites. There is also a cheatsheet provided by Waukesha County Library System for Overdrive.

But Kindle users fear not, if you know other people with Kindles, you can borrow their e-books from them for up to two weeks through Amazon.

How can I get my device to work with these services?

OVERDRIVE

Because Overdrive has more devices that are compatible with it and options for downloading, learning how to use your device can be a little bit more difficult. The first thing you should do is check the link of devices that has some information on what you may need to download before using your device.

1. Have your current library card handy.


2. From a computer go to the library website, click on subscription databases, and select Overdrive.


3. Sign in, your library system is Waukesha County Federated Library. Then enter your library card. From there you have access to the entire system.


4. Remember some of your devices need specific software that you can download for free from their website. Check out their getting started guide.


5. Fill your cart with items you want, and check out. Check out days are either 7 or 14 days depending on the item. There will pictures that indicate what type of item you are checking out (e-book, audio book, etc).


6. After checking out you will be able to download these items to your computer. After downloading them, plug in your device to the computer.


7. Once your computer recognizes your device, you should be able to move files from the computer to the device. It will take awhile the first time you try, so don't get discouraged. I have to be honest the first time I tried out these items it took me 45 minutes to get everything going. Your device should have an informational website where people have posted answers to problems you might be having. A trick I use is typing the question in Google. For example "How do I make my Nook work with Overdrive.

NETLIBRARY
To access NetLibrary your device has to be able to access the internet and surf websites. Like the Nook. Here are the steps on how to use your device:

1. Sign up for an account in a Waukesha County Federated Library System library. You must be in the library to sign up for the account for the first time. Ask for library staff help at the reference desk. Once you have an account you can use your account from anywhere with internet access.


2. Go to NetLibrary.com from your device and sign in. Most devices have the option of adding webpages to your favorites list, and saving your sign in information. This is really handy, especially for devices that are a little difficult to navigate on the web. It saved me at least 4 minutes every time I logged in using the Nook.


3. Read away! There are two different types ways to access resources. The first is resources that cannot be checked out or downloaded, but viewed 15 minutes at a time. The second are resources that can be downloaded. There is a feature in the advanced search where you can look only for downloadble titles. Remember if you have any questions ask at the library! You can call us at (262) 363-6411 or stop in.
   

Update as of 01/13/2011 - For detailed download instructions for your Nook to your PC check this link.

Update as of 01/17/2011 - There are downloadable titles available for your device from Netlibrary. The blog was updated to explain.

Books on DS

A strange, yet intriguing, concept. Hopefully they do a little more than just transfer the text to the screen-- the interactive capabilities of the DS is really a large part of its charm. With the stylus and touchpad technology, it would be possible to allow the reader to be a bit more "active" in the story.

Thinking about it, the "ideal" book to put on a DS or other handheld would seem to be the Choose Your Own Adventure books. I loved those books as a kid, but the DS format would allow more seemless adventuring and also potentially some great graphics and mini-games to further immerse the reader.

Still, intriguing. We do check out DS games at the library, so I think we'll have to purchase a few of these when they come out to see how well they work and how much demand there is for them.

Rant or Rave: The Amazon Kindle 2

E-books have been the "new thing" for many years now-- much in the way of Dippin' Dots, the self-proclaimed "ice cream of the future". Dippin' Dots have bee the "ice cream of the future" for over two decades, yet they have steadfastly not been able to replace ice cream, the ice cream of the past, as the frozen treat of choice anywhere but at overpriced amusement parks and sporting events. Similarly, as long ago as the 1980s, society was going to become paperless. No more bulging folders and overstuffed filing cabinets. And books were doomed.

Fast-forward two decades and finally traditional paper publishing seems legitimately threatened by digital formats and electronic access. Newspapers are dying across the country and around the world as online access to news, information and opinion continues to replace the standard newspaper because it is easier, faster and cheaper. On the book and magazine front, reference materials are rapidly dwindling (I would not want to be the purveyor of encyclopedias these days, though the electronic versions of Brittanica, World Book and other popular paper encyclopedias will likely keep them viable for a while), and much of the words technical and scientific output is now published first, sometimes exclusively, in digital format.

But what of the novel? This has been the one significant hold out-- reading for pleasure, reading on the go-- how to replicate the ease, familiarity and inexpensiveness of a paperback? While I may be quite willing and able to read about trends in librarianship, or articles about my favorite sports teams online, I don't want to read John Steinbeck, Christopher Moore or Stephen King on my computer screen. For a number of reasons, including the fact that I spend enough time in front of my computer already, the fact that I need a power supply (though the new batteries in laptops are reducing this concern some) and the fact that computers, even laptops, aren't easily carried about and opened and browsed in the manner of a book.

Enter the Kindle, or other similar products, like Sony's Reader. Though pricey up front, the cost of titles to add to these products is low (many of the titles you can download onto your Reader are free via Google Books or other sources), and once purchased a title can be read on several Kindles simultaneously. Long-term then, the pricing becomes competitive with traditional formats, especially since newspaper and magazine subscriptions on the products are also cost-effective compared to print pricing.

But are they comparable on a "qualitative" basis? Would you like to "curl up with a good Kindle"? In a word, yes. The size is comparable, the weight is comparable, the text is comparable and, in many ways, the Kindle is superior. Reading John Steinbeck and wondering what in the world a "welkin" is, or why you would ever want to make it ring? Simply bring up the pre-installed dictionary and discover that a welkin is, "the sky". Or, alternatively, "heaven" and that to make the welkin ring is to make a "very loud sound." Then back you go to your book (the Kindle pops you right back to where you left off-- no need for bookmarks!).

Shazam. Reading on the couch or in bed is as good, nay better, than with a book because the Kindle is easily held with one hand. Unlike most books, where either the size or the tightness of the binding make it difficult to hold one-handed for any length of time. Additionally, the Kindle does have a text to speech function (albeit, not a great one), the ability to increase or decrease the font-size (no need for Large Print editions) and the ability to make notes or highlight sections of the book without actually defacing the text itself. You can add bookmarks, or search within a book for a particular word or phrase. And the wireless access allows you to use your Kindle to connect to google and wikipedia, though navigating those sites through the Kindle interface is clunky (and that's being overly kind-- it is very awkward).

The big downer-- the Kindle is proprietary. Books purchased via Amazon for your Kindle are not transferable to your PC or your Sony Reader. Digital books via Google can not be added to your Kindle (unlike the Sony Reader, which is more flexible, though not exactly open source). So, though cheap, you must purchase your book content for your Kindle from Amazon-- there's always a catch, eh?

Still, despite the DRM (Digital Rights Management) complaints, and the large initial cost for a Kindle, I found myself becoming a Kindle fan. So, a pretty solid Rave for the Kindle. I hope that Amazon realizes that their proprietary approach is a longterm loser (or, perhaps, I hope that their proprietary approach is a longterm loser), but I think the library will have to explore some e-reader options.

Stay Tuned!