Showing posts with label e-books. Show all posts
Showing posts with label e-books. Show all posts
EBSCO E-books: Public Library Subscription Collection Webinar
EBSCO E-books: Public Library Subscription Collection Webinar
Important to know before commencing:
Before commencing users will need:
- An EBSCO account up and running (to do this just access the EBSCO E-books database and click 'sign in' in the top right hand corner then click 'create new account'.)
- To have downloaded and installed Adobe digital editions (only if viewing on PC or laptop)
- To install Adobe Digital Editions go to http://www.adobe.com/products/digital-editions/download.html
- -Click the Download Now link found on the page linked above.
- Select Install.
-Select Yes
-Follow prompts until installation is complete.
OR
- Have the latest version of Adobe Digital Editions installed (1.7.1. or higher) (PC/laptop only)
- Have the latest software updates done on user's device ( i.e. latest apple updates)
- Have a internet application other than Google chrome (i.e. Safari, Explorer or Firefox)
****Downloads cannot be accessed through Google Chrome**** - The Bluefire app downloaded for mobile devices (see below for instructions)
General information on EBSCO E-books:
- Provides access to 41 thousand e-books which have
been chosen specifically for public libraries
- Collection suitable for
both children and adults (art, cooking, self help etc)
- Unlimited user access/licensing
- Titles are regularly
added to the collection
- Loan period= 21 days
- Kindle not compatible
- Items
download to Adobe digital editions
- Google chrome will not work to view the EBSCO e-book
collection use safari/explorer/firefox
Searching for items:
- Truncation available for searching
- Browse by category or search for
specific items
- Able to view detailed record of
items
Viewing the item and checking out:
- Similar to other EBSCO
databases – can save to folder etc
- As in all EBSCO databases the
dictionary, citation, permalink, bookmark and export options are all available
- Option to open/save
when downloading
- View
items online either through:
o PDF
o
E-pub format (text can be formatted to
fit screen only in this option)
- Patrons can view the item offline
by checking out and downloading the item
- 95% of resources can be downloaded
offline – the 5% that cannot are mostly published by Cengage Learning
- Option to search within the full
text of the article/book – may be useful for patrons searching a particular
paragraph or recipe etc
- Can also email/save certain pages
(up to around 60 pages) which may be useful for patrons wanting to share
certain information (i.e. recipes for the recipe club)
- Table of contents allows users to
jump to certain sections etc- contents has hypertext links
- Same as other e-book databases –
right click to return items
o PDF
o E-pub format (text can be formatted to fit screen only in this option)
Viewing from a mobile or tablet device?
- If viewing on the mobile- users
will need the ‘bluefire reader’ app
- Bluefire reader app is compatible
on both Iphones and androids
- With the app you can:
o
Download books offline
o
Easily return books and auto delete
(just like overdrive)
o
Customise the reading experience (i.e.
adjust the font etc)
- Sample book will appear in the
reader app – good to know as some patrons might get confused and think they
downloaded it
- Trash can option allows you to
delete certain items.
- Make sure the bluefire app and your
device is on the latest versions
- Error message may occur on
downloading the bluefire app and this is usually because the software is not up
to date
To transfer an e-book from your laptop or personal computer to mobile
device:
-
Open your downloaded eBook in Adobe Digital Editions. If you have not authorized Adobe Digital Editions, you will need to complete that step first. An Adobe ID is not required for authorization. Simply select I want to authorize my computer without an ID and click Authorize.
However, if you have an Adobe ID and would like to synchronize your reading across multiple devices, you can elect to authorize the app using your existing Adobe ID, or create a new one at the following link:
-
Connect your portable device to your computer with a USB cable.
-
Turn on the eReader. If the reader offers an option to Recharge or Connect to the computer, choose the “Connect” option.
-
Open Adobe Digital Editions – it automatically detects the presence of your device and offers to authorize it.
Just as the Adobe Digital Editions software must be authorized, the portable device must also be authorized to be able to transfer protected content to and from the device.
-
Click Authorize Device in the resulting window.
-
Click Finished after your device is authorized.
-
After authorization, the device appears as a new bookshelf in your library. Transfer items to and from the device bookshelf by clicking on the book title, then dragging and dropping the title into the device bookshelf.
Note: Do not disconnect the device while you are in the process of transferring a title to the device.
o Download books offline
o Easily return books and auto delete (just like overdrive)
o Customise the reading experience (i.e. adjust the font etc)
- Open your downloaded eBook in Adobe Digital Editions. If you have not authorized Adobe Digital Editions, you will need to complete that step first. An Adobe ID is not required for authorization. Simply select I want to authorize my computer without an ID and click Authorize.However, if you have an Adobe ID and would like to synchronize your reading across multiple devices, you can elect to authorize the app using your existing Adobe ID, or create a new one at the following link:
- Connect your portable device to your computer with a USB cable.
- Turn on the eReader. If the reader offers an option to Recharge or Connect to the computer, choose the “Connect” option.
- Open Adobe Digital Editions – it automatically detects the presence of your device and offers to authorize it.Just as the Adobe Digital Editions software must be authorized, the portable device must also be authorized to be able to transfer protected content to and from the device.
- Click Authorize Device in the resulting window.
- Click Finished after your device is authorized.
- After authorization, the device appears as a new bookshelf in your library. Transfer items to and from the device bookshelf by clicking on the book title, then dragging and dropping the title into the device bookshelf.Note: Do not disconnect the device while you are in the process of transferring a title to the device.
For more details on how to check items out, save pages and downloading Adobe Digital Editions visit:
https://help.ebsco.com/interfaces/eBooks_Audiobooks/eBooks
Or visit the tutorials online at:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBC_CPlZqhatEZJN_oIldtg
~Sophie
https://help.ebsco.com/interfaces/eBooks_Audiobooks/eBooks
Or visit the tutorials online at:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBC_CPlZqhatEZJN_oIldtg
~Sophie
Picture Books on Overdrive
If you get patrons asking for picture books in an ebook format we now
have a large collection in Overdrive.
A number of these also have
embedded audio so they can listen as they read.
I have been testing out a number of these with my kids and
they love them.
As the bulk of these are in the Overdrive Read format they
do require an internet connection. They are also too large to cache to look at later.
How to find them
Choose the browse option for searching,
Then scroll
to Picture Book Fiction you will see there are 237 titles
If you then want to see which of these titles have audio
embedded click on Overdrive Readalong and this will show the 85 titles with
this feature.
I haven’t had the best success using Overdrive Read at work
either on the council network or the public one but it seems to work really well at home,
although better on my laptop than iPad.
Give it a go and let me know what you think. Kids ebooks are proving to be a difficult one to push, but I think these could get a bit of use.
Just to give an idea of some of the titles
Celeste
Virtual Library Launched in a Philadelphia Train Station
Pictures and story here:
http://www.the-digital-reader.com/2013/04/05/virtual-library-launched-in-a-philadelphia-train-station
I can even see this sort of approach working in the library. A wall of book covers from Overdrive with QR codes to the record. Perhaps some instructions on using eBooks via the Overdrive App or even help from staff?
What do you think?
Martin
http://www.the-digital-reader.com/2013/04/05/virtual-library-launched-in-a-philadelphia-train-station
I can even see this sort of approach working in the library. A wall of book covers from Overdrive with QR codes to the record. Perhaps some instructions on using eBooks via the Overdrive App or even help from staff?
What do you think?
Martin
NSW.net eResources Seminar 2011
Last week I attended and spoke at this seminar. It was organised by NSW.net for libraries to get together and talk about what's new in digital resources. It included a couple of speakers who talked about the various NSW.net provided resources, but was not limited to them. The discussions were wide ranging and covered such topics as eBooks, databases, federated search and discovery layers and website design (including mobile).
To a flavour of the day I captured the twitter stream from the day using Storify. An online tool that lets you curate content from the social web into a linear storyline. If the embedded stream below doesn't work you can view it on the Storify website under the title NSW.net eResources Seminar.
Martin
To a flavour of the day I captured the twitter stream from the day using Storify. An online tool that lets you curate content from the social web into a linear storyline. If the embedded stream below doesn't work you can view it on the Storify website under the title NSW.net eResources Seminar.
Martin
New Online Resources Wrap Up
See below for a summary of new additions to our collection of online resources in the last couple of months.
Once federated searching becomes available in the near future, searching our wide range of online resources will be much easier for everyone.
Until then, familiarise yourselves with these resources, and keep them in mind when assisting patrons.
Gale Virtual Reference Library
Complete Dictionary of Scientific Biography - very good for long articles on famous scientists. See blog post here.
Gale Encyclopedia of Genetic Disorders 3rd ed.
Gale Encyclopedia of Medicine 4th ed. - new print ed. also coming to most branches soon!
Gale Encyclopedia of Children's Health, Infancy through Adolescence 2nd ed.
Encyclopedia of Sports Medicine
Environmental Encyclopedia 4th ed.
Princeton Companion to Mathematics
Greenwood Encyclopedia of Global Medieval Life and Culture
Greenwood Encyclopedia of Homes through World History
Infobase E-book Collection
Encyclopedia of Judaism
Encyclopedia of Protestantism
Salem History - A suite of ebooks that came free with print purchase.
Great Events from History Ancient World
Great Lives from History Ancient World
Great Lives from History Twentieth Century
Great Lives from History Notorious
Great Lives from History Inventors
Milestone Documents World Religions
Britannica Online Library Edition
Includes Student and Junior content. Try it next time instead of World Book Online.
Britannica Image Quest
Get students onto this instead of google images.
Who Else Writes Like...? - see blog post here.
Websites
Wars, Conflicts and Peace Operations - Educational Resources
- under Australian History, excellent material from Dept. Veterans' Affairs.
Bibilography of Slaving and World Slavery
- under History. Extensive coverage of slavery scholarship.
Australian Poetry Library
- under Literature. See blog post here.
The Conversation
- under News. Launched in 2011, independent news analysis from the Australian university and research sector.
Once federated searching becomes available in the near future, searching our wide range of online resources will be much easier for everyone.
Until then, familiarise yourselves with these resources, and keep them in mind when assisting patrons.
Gale Virtual Reference Library
Complete Dictionary of Scientific Biography - very good for long articles on famous scientists. See blog post here.
Gale Encyclopedia of Genetic Disorders 3rd ed.
Gale Encyclopedia of Medicine 4th ed. - new print ed. also coming to most branches soon!
Gale Encyclopedia of Children's Health, Infancy through Adolescence 2nd ed.
Encyclopedia of Sports Medicine
Environmental Encyclopedia 4th ed.
Princeton Companion to Mathematics
Greenwood Encyclopedia of Global Medieval Life and Culture
Greenwood Encyclopedia of Homes through World History
Infobase E-book Collection
Encyclopedia of Judaism
Encyclopedia of Protestantism
Salem History - A suite of ebooks that came free with print purchase.
Great Events from History Ancient World
Great Lives from History Ancient World
Great Lives from History Twentieth Century
Great Lives from History Notorious
Great Lives from History Inventors
Milestone Documents World Religions
Britannica Online Library Edition
Includes Student and Junior content. Try it next time instead of World Book Online.
Britannica Image Quest
Get students onto this instead of google images.
Who Else Writes Like...? - see blog post here.
Websites
Wars, Conflicts and Peace Operations - Educational Resources
- under Australian History, excellent material from Dept. Veterans' Affairs.
Bibilography of Slaving and World Slavery
- under History. Extensive coverage of slavery scholarship.
Australian Poetry Library
- under Literature. See blog post here.
The Conversation
- under News. Launched in 2011, independent news analysis from the Australian university and research sector.
Harper Collins and eBooks
Thought staff might be interested in what's happening in the world of eBook publishing. It seems one of the big publishers, Harper Collins, has instucted libraries it will be selling eBook licences that expire after 26 loans. They also want to have a say in who has the right to borrow a library's eBooks, wanting libraries to tighten up their membership policies.
Libraries are understandably up-in-arms about the whole thing. Have a look at comments from the Library Journal, and a librarian's blog which has lots of other interesting links.
Barb
Libraries are understandably up-in-arms about the whole thing. Have a look at comments from the Library Journal, and a librarian's blog which has lots of other interesting links.
Barb
New Databases January 2011
In December 2010 and January 2011, we subscribed to a whole lot of new databases. I've added information about most of these to the public blog, but I thought I'd provide a list of the newbies so you all know exactly what's there in case you want to recommend them to any Patrons:
Carter's Price Guide to Antiques and Antiquities
Formally printed in hard copy, Carter's Price Guide to Antiques and Antiquities is an online valuation service containing over 75000 items dating from 1500 BC to the present. The web version contains items from the last 5 year's publications plus new items. Older items, with 'less relevant' prices (publishers blurb) have been removed. Items are sourced from dealers in Australia and New Zealand.
Each entry includes a photograph, description and price. You can browse, search and advance search for items as well as share/email information about them (I just shared a vintage Ken Doll on Facebook). There's actually some pretty interesting products on here. My favourites are the costume jewellery but there's something for everyone.
InfoBase E-book Collection
This collection of e-books can supplement our reference collection and is great for HSC students. The E-books are easy to use and can be viewed straight from the PC (no software download required). Patrons can jump to pages and chapters, make notes, get citation information and search within the E-books. There is also a dictionary for those tricky words. Subjects covered include Ancient History, Literature, Medical and Health, Mythology & Paranormal, Religion & Philosophy and Science & Technology. I thought the literature study guides would be particularly useful for our Patrons.
Gale Virtual Reference Library
This is another set of reference e-books that are great for school students, uni students and general interest. We've had a few Gale e-book titles for a while but now we have a whole lot more. Titles are arranged under subject heading and you can click on a title to view bibliographic information, table of contents and the index. You can also search within an all titles or search within an individual title. Like the Infobase collection, Gale also has a dictionary and a citation service. The books are easy to view with no software to download. Subjects covered include arts, biography, business, environment, history, information and publishing, library science, literature, medicine, multicultural studies, nation and world, religion, science and social science. For anyone still studying Library science at uni or TAFE check out the E-book on Library research.
Cosmos Digital
We all know the popular magazine. Well now it's online in digital format. This means you can read it straight from your PC. It appears as it would in hard copy except you can zoom in and out if the text is too big/small. You can also search across all issues going back to July 2005 and share/email articles. Cosmos covers a wide range of subjects including astrononmy, biology and physics. It's written for the layperson so just about anyone can read and undestand the articles . Great for school projects! Right now it's only available from the Library but I should have it set up to be searched remotely by Monday afternoon (probably about the same time you're reading this).
Mango Languages
I sent an email out about this new language learning database. Mango Languages is a new interactive online language learning tool. It teaches grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation and cultural skills. Users can create their own profile or sign in as 'anonymous'. They have a choice whether to study the basic or in-depth course. When I last checked available languages included:
Arabic, Chinese (Mandarin and Cantonese), Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dari, Dutch, Farsi, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Haitian Creole, Hebrew, Hindi, Indonesian, Irish, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norweigian, Pashto, Portuguese, Russian, Slovak, Tagalog, Tamil, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian, Urdu, Vietnamese and English as a second language.
There's also a translation service using Google translate. I really think this database has the potential to be very popular so if you get a chance let your Patrons know about it. I'll be doing a blog post about it soon and we'll hopefully have some promotional handouts. Watch this space.
I'd love to hear what you think of these new databases. Please post any thoughts in the comments box. There's a lot more happening in the future as well. We should get a new platform for Proquest databases sometime next week, our blog and Overdrive and online collection pages are being revamped and there's more e-books coming soon . . . I'll keep you posted.
Carter's Price Guide to Antiques and Antiquities
Formally printed in hard copy, Carter's Price Guide to Antiques and Antiquities is an online valuation service containing over 75000 items dating from 1500 BC to the present. The web version contains items from the last 5 year's publications plus new items. Older items, with 'less relevant' prices (publishers blurb) have been removed. Items are sourced from dealers in Australia and New Zealand.
Each entry includes a photograph, description and price. You can browse, search and advance search for items as well as share/email information about them (I just shared a vintage Ken Doll on Facebook). There's actually some pretty interesting products on here. My favourites are the costume jewellery but there's something for everyone.
InfoBase E-book Collection
This collection of e-books can supplement our reference collection and is great for HSC students. The E-books are easy to use and can be viewed straight from the PC (no software download required). Patrons can jump to pages and chapters, make notes, get citation information and search within the E-books. There is also a dictionary for those tricky words. Subjects covered include Ancient History, Literature, Medical and Health, Mythology & Paranormal, Religion & Philosophy and Science & Technology. I thought the literature study guides would be particularly useful for our Patrons.
Gale Virtual Reference Library
This is another set of reference e-books that are great for school students, uni students and general interest. We've had a few Gale e-book titles for a while but now we have a whole lot more. Titles are arranged under subject heading and you can click on a title to view bibliographic information, table of contents and the index. You can also search within an all titles or search within an individual title. Like the Infobase collection, Gale also has a dictionary and a citation service. The books are easy to view with no software to download. Subjects covered include arts, biography, business, environment, history, information and publishing, library science, literature, medicine, multicultural studies, nation and world, religion, science and social science. For anyone still studying Library science at uni or TAFE check out the E-book on Library research.
Cosmos Digital
We all know the popular magazine. Well now it's online in digital format. This means you can read it straight from your PC. It appears as it would in hard copy except you can zoom in and out if the text is too big/small. You can also search across all issues going back to July 2005 and share/email articles. Cosmos covers a wide range of subjects including astrononmy, biology and physics. It's written for the layperson so just about anyone can read and undestand the articles . Great for school projects! Right now it's only available from the Library but I should have it set up to be searched remotely by Monday afternoon (probably about the same time you're reading this).
Mango Languages
I sent an email out about this new language learning database. Mango Languages is a new interactive online language learning tool. It teaches grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation and cultural skills. Users can create their own profile or sign in as 'anonymous'. They have a choice whether to study the basic or in-depth course. When I last checked available languages included:
Arabic, Chinese (Mandarin and Cantonese), Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dari, Dutch, Farsi, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Haitian Creole, Hebrew, Hindi, Indonesian, Irish, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norweigian, Pashto, Portuguese, Russian, Slovak, Tagalog, Tamil, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian, Urdu, Vietnamese and English as a second language.
There's also a translation service using Google translate. I really think this database has the potential to be very popular so if you get a chance let your Patrons know about it. I'll be doing a blog post about it soon and we'll hopefully have some promotional handouts. Watch this space.
I'd love to hear what you think of these new databases. Please post any thoughts in the comments box. There's a lot more happening in the future as well. We should get a new platform for Proquest databases sometime next week, our blog and Overdrive and online collection pages are being revamped and there's more e-books coming soon . . . I'll keep you posted.
Creating and sharing E-books
I was having a look at this blog post recently on creating and sharing your own books online. It is interesting to see how easy it is to self-publish now. Some of the recommended sites create e-books only while others will give you the option of creating an e-book or hard copy.
Sites such as BookRix and UDL Book Builder also allow users to view books online for free, rate them, comment on them, share the link to them etc. It is an interesting way to get published. I had a look at a couple of the books and while they are clearly missing the skills of an editor, judging by the comments they are still quite readable and very popular. My goal this year will be to read at least one of them.
This is again opening a whole new chapter (so to speak) for Librarians to think about. For example, some of these books are non-fiction. Does this mean students could cite them in reports and assignments? If so, how do you verify an author's credibility?
Could book clubs use these in place of hard copy books, thus saving their members the time and effort in tracking down multiple copies of the same book?
Could HSC students use these books as related texts?
Just a few thoughts I'm having on the subject.
What does everyone else think?
Sites such as BookRix and UDL Book Builder also allow users to view books online for free, rate them, comment on them, share the link to them etc. It is an interesting way to get published. I had a look at a couple of the books and while they are clearly missing the skills of an editor, judging by the comments they are still quite readable and very popular. My goal this year will be to read at least one of them.
This is again opening a whole new chapter (so to speak) for Librarians to think about. For example, some of these books are non-fiction. Does this mean students could cite them in reports and assignments? If so, how do you verify an author's credibility?
Could book clubs use these in place of hard copy books, thus saving their members the time and effort in tracking down multiple copies of the same book?
Could HSC students use these books as related texts?
Just a few thoughts I'm having on the subject.
What does everyone else think?
Have you say on the future of the book!
Former Labor minister Barry Jones has written an article in today's Sydney Morning Herald encouraging interested parties to contribute submissions to the Book Industry Strategy Group's inquiry into the future of the book in Australia.
The BISG, Jones says, "is seeking ideas from writers, educators, librarians, publishers, retailers and - most importantly - readers about how to enhance the Australian publishing industry as an important sector of our economy, society and culture."
Ebooks and digital formats are of course a big part of this future, and Barry Jones includes the role of libraries in this change:
"Public libraries are starting to offer access to ebooks via downloads or by access to subscriptions taken out by the library. We want to hear about these initiatives and your experiences with them."
Read the article, then follow the link if you want to have your say. Submissions close 31st january, 2011.
The BISG, Jones says, "is seeking ideas from writers, educators, librarians, publishers, retailers and - most importantly - readers about how to enhance the Australian publishing industry as an important sector of our economy, society and culture."
Ebooks and digital formats are of course a big part of this future, and Barry Jones includes the role of libraries in this change:
"Public libraries are starting to offer access to ebooks via downloads or by access to subscriptions taken out by the library. We want to hear about these initiatives and your experiences with them."
Read the article, then follow the link if you want to have your say. Submissions close 31st january, 2011.
Sexy & Sexier?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/albaum/1356519239/
I came across this photo today. As you can see by the comments below the picture people are in two minds over whether this is an outrageously stereotypical ad that should be removed or whether it is a compliment to Librarians who are portrayed as 'sexy' - the Reader is just sexier.
What do you think? I personally think it's a funny ad and if you dig a bit deeper Sony are actually partnering with US libraries to create a Sony Reader Library Program powered by Overdrive. A supportive move I would say and not an example of a brand trying to supersede the Librarian - more promote them?
An interesting look at e-reader advertising. Have you noticed any advertising in Australia for e-readers other than online?
Why I chose a Sony Reader
Below is my response to Social Networking - Task 2 (it was easier to put links in a new post rather than in a comment).
After much research on forums like MobileRead and Whirlpool (a good Australian site), followed by an in-store demo, I decided on the recently released Sony Reader PRS650. This is a an e-book reader with a 6 inch e-ink screen, the same size display as the Kindle 3, Kobo, Kogan, and a host of other brands. 6-inch screens seem to be the industry standard these days, although Sony and BeBook, for example, also make 5 inch models, while Kindle and Sony have 7 inch readers as well.
Everyone who considers buying an e-reader will have different priorities, and mine were readability, portability, file formats and a touch screen.
Readability – The new batch of Sony Readers use E Ink Pearl, an e-ink screen that offers a 16 grayscale display with a contrast ratio of 10.1 (compared to 6.1 for most other e-ink readers). Simply put, the contrast and resolution is better, particularly in bright, natural light. The text appears blacker and sharper against the almost-white electronic page. At time of writing, the Kindle 3 is the only other e-reader using Pearl, so this was a big factor for me.
Portability – So why not choose the much cheaper Kindle, considering they both use E Ink Pearl? Well, despite the Sony and Kindle 3 both having 6 inch screens, the Sony is a smaller and lighter unit:
Sony = 168 x 119 mm, 215g
Kindle 3 = 190 x 123 mm, 246g
File Formats – In addition to PDF, DOC, RTF and Adobe DRM, Sony Reader supports the open-source EPUB format. I have a lot of public domain texts in this format on my PC ready to go. If created with care (like those available for FREE from epubBooks), EPUB texts read quite nicely on an e-reader. Kindle will not read EPUB. Also unlike Kindle, the Sony Reader is Overdrive compatible.
By the way, PDF can a tricky format for any e-reader and it is also the most difficult to convert to another format (like EPUB). Even though the Sony Reader can re-flow PDF text to fit the screen, the results are mixed. If you love your PDFs, maybe get an ipad, or a bigger e-reader.
Touch Screen – No clicking of buttons required to turn the page, just a light swish of the finger. You can even program which direction (right to left, or vice versa) to swipe to turn a page forward / backward. Includes the option of clicking buttons. Additionally, the touch screen is fantastic for quick access to the dictionaries – just tap twice on a word and your preferred dictionary supplies a definition.
You can also add notes, (with a keyboard or freehand with stylus), search text and the battery lasts for weeks and weeks. Above all, I suggest try before you buy. Happy (e) reading.
After much research on forums like MobileRead and Whirlpool (a good Australian site), followed by an in-store demo, I decided on the recently released Sony Reader PRS650. This is a an e-book reader with a 6 inch e-ink screen, the same size display as the Kindle 3, Kobo, Kogan, and a host of other brands. 6-inch screens seem to be the industry standard these days, although Sony and BeBook, for example, also make 5 inch models, while Kindle and Sony have 7 inch readers as well.
Everyone who considers buying an e-reader will have different priorities, and mine were readability, portability, file formats and a touch screen.
Readability – The new batch of Sony Readers use E Ink Pearl, an e-ink screen that offers a 16 grayscale display with a contrast ratio of 10.1 (compared to 6.1 for most other e-ink readers). Simply put, the contrast and resolution is better, particularly in bright, natural light. The text appears blacker and sharper against the almost-white electronic page. At time of writing, the Kindle 3 is the only other e-reader using Pearl, so this was a big factor for me.
Portability – So why not choose the much cheaper Kindle, considering they both use E Ink Pearl? Well, despite the Sony and Kindle 3 both having 6 inch screens, the Sony is a smaller and lighter unit:
Sony = 168 x 119 mm, 215g
Kindle 3 = 190 x 123 mm, 246g
File Formats – In addition to PDF, DOC, RTF and Adobe DRM, Sony Reader supports the open-source EPUB format. I have a lot of public domain texts in this format on my PC ready to go. If created with care (like those available for FREE from epubBooks), EPUB texts read quite nicely on an e-reader. Kindle will not read EPUB. Also unlike Kindle, the Sony Reader is Overdrive compatible.
By the way, PDF can a tricky format for any e-reader and it is also the most difficult to convert to another format (like EPUB). Even though the Sony Reader can re-flow PDF text to fit the screen, the results are mixed. If you love your PDFs, maybe get an ipad, or a bigger e-reader.
Touch Screen – No clicking of buttons required to turn the page, just a light swish of the finger. You can even program which direction (right to left, or vice versa) to swipe to turn a page forward / backward. Includes the option of clicking buttons. Additionally, the touch screen is fantastic for quick access to the dictionaries – just tap twice on a word and your preferred dictionary supplies a definition.
You can also add notes, (with a keyboard or freehand with stylus), search text and the battery lasts for weeks and weeks. Above all, I suggest try before you buy. Happy (e) reading.
iPad as e-book reader.
A few short weeks ago I posted on this blog that: The iPad is coming to a library near you, and I reported how the iPad is being touted as a ‘Game Changer’ for libraries.
Well the library now has an iPad and as you will soon see, it is a very good device on which to search the library catalogue, play videos from youtube, read email, play games, surf the net, do your social networking, view your photos etc, etc, etc.
No doubt it’s a class act which has already sold millions. My problems with it are that its dearer than a good laptop and does a whole lot less and it forces you into the iTunes sphere of influence if you want to put anything on it. But that’s just me.If Santa is going to bring you an iPad, you would be mad to stop him.
No one intended that the iPad would find a role as a dedicated e-book reader. There are lots of other devices such as the Amazon Kindle, Barnes and Noble’s Nook, Sony’s Reader, etc, which are designed specifically as e-book readers. What’s the difference, I hear you ask, Veronica?
Just like your laptop or desktop computer the iPad has a backlit LED display. Dedicated e-book readers use a screen which does not have its own light source. They use e-ink and ambient light to replicate the experience of reading a paper book. Well it seems that contrary to expectations, a lot of users are choosing to ignore the dedicated e-book readers and have instead taken to reading e-books on the iPad. And because the iPad offers users a variety of e-book reader applications, you may have a choice of how your e-book displays on the iPad. Writing in The Wall Street Journal , Walt Mossberg reviewed e-book apps for the iPad and reported his findings. Mossberg stresses that he is looking at iPad apps, not e-book reading hardware and he makes the very salient point that the price of dedicated e-book readers has dropped substantially whilst an iPad is still at its original, expensive retail price. Makes for interesting reading.
Well the library now has an iPad and as you will soon see, it is a very good device on which to search the library catalogue, play videos from youtube, read email, play games, surf the net, do your social networking, view your photos etc, etc, etc.
No doubt it’s a class act which has already sold millions. My problems with it are that its dearer than a good laptop and does a whole lot less and it forces you into the iTunes sphere of influence if you want to put anything on it. But that’s just me.If Santa is going to bring you an iPad, you would be mad to stop him.
No one intended that the iPad would find a role as a dedicated e-book reader. There are lots of other devices such as the Amazon Kindle, Barnes and Noble’s Nook, Sony’s Reader, etc, which are designed specifically as e-book readers. What’s the difference, I hear you ask, Veronica?
Just like your laptop or desktop computer the iPad has a backlit LED display. Dedicated e-book readers use a screen which does not have its own light source. They use e-ink and ambient light to replicate the experience of reading a paper book. Well it seems that contrary to expectations, a lot of users are choosing to ignore the dedicated e-book readers and have instead taken to reading e-books on the iPad. And because the iPad offers users a variety of e-book reader applications, you may have a choice of how your e-book displays on the iPad. Writing in The Wall Street Journal , Walt Mossberg reviewed e-book apps for the iPad and reported his findings. Mossberg stresses that he is looking at iPad apps, not e-book reading hardware and he makes the very salient point that the price of dedicated e-book readers has dropped substantially whilst an iPad is still at its original, expensive retail price. Makes for interesting reading.
Authors selling direct to their readers
In a recent article in the Wall Street Journal, author Seth Godin discusses how he plans to ditch his traditional publisher, Portfolio, and sell his future works directly to his fans.
If authors start selling e-books directly to their fans (to download and even print) via their online blogs, bypassing publishers, imagine the impact that would that have on library aquisition policies. Would collection development librarians need to follow 1,000s of blogs to find authors' latest books? Sounds like there will be a need for a new online business - a "middleman" to troll the blogs for new books and market to libraries. Its also another nail in the coffin of printed books and bookshops - no one is going to want to print out hundreds of pages on the home printer to read a novel.
If authors start selling e-books directly to their fans (to download and even print) via their online blogs, bypassing publishers, imagine the impact that would that have on library aquisition policies. Would collection development librarians need to follow 1,000s of blogs to find authors' latest books? Sounds like there will be a need for a new online business - a "middleman" to troll the blogs for new books and market to libraries. Its also another nail in the coffin of printed books and bookshops - no one is going to want to print out hundreds of pages on the home printer to read a novel.
E-Books from Gale - Free Trial to June 6th
Gale is providing more and more titles in an e-book format. Here are 3 they are allowing people to use free until June 6th, to trial how it works. Access them through the Resource Shelf site.
Did you know we already have 3 such e-titles Biology, Animal Sciences and Encyclopedia of Food & Culture? Has any of you ever used them. I have from home for a 'last minute' assigment or two. Though I do find it hard to remember they are there and it would be almost impossible to stumble over them on the webpage and someone using iPac still has to know what to do once they are taken to the Journal Search page, after clicking on the link provided in the record.
Using electronic versions is away that we could extend our reference collections into homes and make the more specialist encyclopedias etc. available for customers at branches. Do you find that people are using our reference print collections less and less? If so this may be a way of providing quality information in a form customers are willing to use.
The problem is making them easily accessible. The hope is that the new Library Management System will have a federated search cabability and so will provide a one stop search to locate catalogue items, journal articles, chapters from e-books, photos and anything else we have loaded to the system which is relevant to their query.
A trial of the Gale version of this software is soon coming our way so we can see in practice, how it would work for us. But in the meantime try Trove it is an indication of what is possible.
Did you know we already have 3 such e-titles Biology, Animal Sciences and Encyclopedia of Food & Culture? Has any of you ever used them. I have from home for a 'last minute' assigment or two. Though I do find it hard to remember they are there and it would be almost impossible to stumble over them on the webpage and someone using iPac still has to know what to do once they are taken to the Journal Search page, after clicking on the link provided in the record.
Using electronic versions is away that we could extend our reference collections into homes and make the more specialist encyclopedias etc. available for customers at branches. Do you find that people are using our reference print collections less and less? If so this may be a way of providing quality information in a form customers are willing to use.
The problem is making them easily accessible. The hope is that the new Library Management System will have a federated search cabability and so will provide a one stop search to locate catalogue items, journal articles, chapters from e-books, photos and anything else we have loaded to the system which is relevant to their query.
A trial of the Gale version of this software is soon coming our way so we can see in practice, how it would work for us. But in the meantime try Trove it is an indication of what is possible.
Legal books available online
Three titles from our collection are now available in full text online.
Defend Yourself: Facing a Charge in Court by Tim Anderson.
2nd edition, The Federation Press, 2008.
A practical guide to defending a criminal charge in court which covers arrest and questioning, bail, dealing with lawyers, court procedure, how to plead, hearings and trials, preparation, evidence, proof, examination in court, sentencing, and appeals.
Guilty Your Honour: Representing yourself in New South Wales Local Courts when charged with drink driving by Helen Walsh.
3rd edition, Walsh Publishing, 2006.
A practical guide to defending a drink driving charge. Examines the offence and penalties, whether to plead guilty, whether to get a lawyer, how to prepare for court, and what happens on the day of court.
Guide to Wills and Estates by Rosemary Long.
Published by the Legal Information Access Centre as an update of Rest Assured: a legal guide to wills, estates and funerals,(4th edition), a title previously published by Redfern Legal Centre Publishing, University of New South Wales Press, 2005.
A practical guide to the creation of wills, changing, revoking, or challenging a will, rights of creditors and beneficiaries to a will, probate and intestacy, and legal fees.
Find more legal resources online at http://www.legalanswers.sl.nsw.gov.au/
Defend Yourself: Facing a Charge in Court by Tim Anderson.
2nd edition, The Federation Press, 2008.
A practical guide to defending a criminal charge in court which covers arrest and questioning, bail, dealing with lawyers, court procedure, how to plead, hearings and trials, preparation, evidence, proof, examination in court, sentencing, and appeals.
Guilty Your Honour: Representing yourself in New South Wales Local Courts when charged with drink driving by Helen Walsh.
3rd edition, Walsh Publishing, 2006.
A practical guide to defending a drink driving charge. Examines the offence and penalties, whether to plead guilty, whether to get a lawyer, how to prepare for court, and what happens on the day of court.
Guide to Wills and Estates by Rosemary Long.
Published by the Legal Information Access Centre as an update of Rest Assured: a legal guide to wills, estates and funerals,(4th edition), a title previously published by Redfern Legal Centre Publishing, University of New South Wales Press, 2005.
A practical guide to the creation of wills, changing, revoking, or challenging a will, rights of creditors and beneficiaries to a will, probate and intestacy, and legal fees.
Find more legal resources online at http://www.legalanswers.sl.nsw.gov.au/
E-Book Reader Update
This is straight from Overdrive support
Overdrive have confirmed that currently, the
Sony Reader PRS-505 and 700 are the only readers that are compatible
with OverDrive Adobe/EPUB eBooks.
Unfortunately the only way to buy a Sony Reader is via the internet because Sony do not sell these devices on the Australian market.
Any improvement in the situation will be reported here.
Overdrive have confirmed that currently, the
Sony Reader PRS-505 and 700 are the only readers that are compatible
with OverDrive Adobe/EPUB eBooks.
Unfortunately the only way to buy a Sony Reader is via the internet because Sony do not sell these devices on the Australian market.
Any improvement in the situation will be reported here.
E-Readers and Overdrive
Good Morning all,
Yesterday I had an enquiry from a patron who was researching the purchase of an E-reader.
Before she committed to a particular model, she wanted to know can the ebooks on Overdrive be read by any of the popular ereaders (in particular the Amazon Kindle, iRex iLiad, and the Jinke Hanlin eReader).
Max has emailed Overdrive to confirm this, but, according to Adobe's Digital Editions FAQ, Sony Reader is the only portable device compatible with Adobe eBooks. Helpfully, Sony Reader is NOT available in Australia (which is a shame, as it appears to be one of the best).
From Adobe's website -
Which devices are compatible with Digital Editions?
Digital Editions supports the Sony® Reader. Visit the "Transferring items to a Sony® Reader" area of Adobe Digital Editions Help for more information on using the Sony® Reader with Digital Editions.
Adobe is actively working to support other platforms and devices. Further developments will be announced when available.
Keep in mind this only applies to Adobe Digital Edition pdf books, which have DRM attached to them. If Overdrive decides to add simple pdf (ie no restrictions attached) books in the future, then most e-readers can read a simple pdf file.
Of course, patrons can still read the Adobe eBooks from Overdrive on any PC, laptop, Mac, etc.
Regards
Brian
Yesterday I had an enquiry from a patron who was researching the purchase of an E-reader.
Before she committed to a particular model, she wanted to know can the ebooks on Overdrive be read by any of the popular ereaders (in particular the Amazon Kindle, iRex iLiad, and the Jinke Hanlin eReader).
Max has emailed Overdrive to confirm this, but, according to Adobe's Digital Editions FAQ, Sony Reader is the only portable device compatible with Adobe eBooks. Helpfully, Sony Reader is NOT available in Australia (which is a shame, as it appears to be one of the best).
From Adobe's website -
Which devices are compatible with Digital Editions?
Digital Editions supports the Sony® Reader. Visit the "Transferring items to a Sony® Reader" area of Adobe Digital Editions Help for more information on using the Sony® Reader with Digital Editions.
Adobe is actively working to support other platforms and devices. Further developments will be announced when available.
Keep in mind this only applies to Adobe Digital Edition pdf books, which have DRM attached to them. If Overdrive decides to add simple pdf (ie no restrictions attached) books in the future, then most e-readers can read a simple pdf file.
Of course, patrons can still read the Adobe eBooks from Overdrive on any PC, laptop, Mac, etc.
Regards
Brian
E-books
While the Kindle and its related services are not available in Australia, I thought staff might be interested in where e-Books are heading - books are a large part of the reason we're employed after all. The following article attempts to explain why e-books still aren't a patch on the printed word: Why E-Books Look So Ugly
Also, for a look at the new Kindle which was only launched in the US in the last couple of weeks, have a look at Hands-On: Kindle DX Is a Pricey Pleasure — Despite Many Flaws.
While I like the look and feel of a 'real' book, I can certainly imagine purchasing an e-Book reader sometime in the future when they've finally perfected the design (and deign to offer a decent one to the Australian market).
Barb
Also, for a look at the new Kindle which was only launched in the US in the last couple of weeks, have a look at Hands-On: Kindle DX Is a Pricey Pleasure — Despite Many Flaws.
While I like the look and feel of a 'real' book, I can certainly imagine purchasing an e-Book reader sometime in the future when they've finally perfected the design (and deign to offer a decent one to the Australian market).
Barb
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