Barnes & Noble Nook discussion

Do you borrow e-books from your local public library? | Pew Internet Libraries http://bit.ly/Iquhlb

by Kathryn Zickuhr

As you know, we are in the midst of a multi-year study of the changing role of public libraries in the digital age. For our next report, we’re supplementing our usual nationally representative phone surveys with non-scientific, non-representative online surveys. These surveys help us draw out deeper, richer stories about the experiences of library users that can be used to illuminate the findings of our nationally representative surveys. If you check out or download e-books from your local public library, please take the survey below and tell us about your experiences!

The survey will be confidential and we will not share your identity, although your answers may be quoted anonymously in the report. The survey should take about 15 minutes.

Thank you for passing this along!

I have yet to borrow ebooks from my library. I love to read paper books, still buy them, and really rely on the library for those! Thanks for posting about the survey though, I'm glad someone's looking into this.

done. Thanks for posting it, it was interesting.

Does anyone find the system cumbersome to use? I've rented a few e-books from the library and it was. I wrote the directions down for my Mom and she still was lost and couldn't do it.

I use the Overdrive system from my libraries so much that I no longer notice how cumbersome the process can be. However, when I was responding to the survey, I had to think about all the steps it takes to get an ebook to my iPad. Then I thought about the steps it takes to checkout a physical book. Not really all that less complicated. Makes me wonder why we assume that technology should equal less complicated. It is just another access point to information.

Once you have Overdrive set up and remember the basics, it doesn't feel that cumbersome. There are some other library systems, such as NetLibrary, that are simply insane. NetLibrary's help files just take you in never ending spirals, and their search function is practically non-existent. I was so glad when my public library stopped wasting money on them.

Ugh! I cannot STAND NetLibrary. For as long as it has been around, it's been a pain to use. Now that Ebsco owns it, I keep hoping it MIGHT get better; but Ebsco is an evil empire, so no bets on NetLibrary getting any better.

Lesli wrote: "I use the Overdrive system from my libraries so much that I no longer notice how cumbersome the process can be. However, when I was responding to the survey, I had to think about all the steps it ..."

I prob do need to use the system more, but then again I've never used the library online system for anything other then checking if a branch has a book.

I love using the library for ebooks, I just wish they had more available! Although I just read on NPR that Seattle has a bigger amount of ebooks than the New York Library!

Erin, check out whether you can get free cards in neighboring areas. I have 6 cards in total and access to far more ebooks than I can ever read!

Lesli wrote: "Do you borrow e-books from your local public library? | Pew Internet Libraries http://bit.ly/Iquhlb

by Kathryn Zickuhr

As you know, we are in the midst of a multi-year study of the changing role ..."

Nope, I never have, and probably never will..

I haven't borrowed books from my local library. The instructions were so convoluted I never did figure it out.

Jeanine wrote: "I haven't borrowed books from my local library. The instructions were so convoluted I never did figure it out."

I had to take a little info class at B & N because the pamphlet from the library was confusing. Check if your local B&N has any.

Erin wrote: "I love using the library for ebooks, I just wish they had more available! Although I just read on NPR that Seattle has a bigger amount of ebooks than the New York Library!"

In NY we can get a library card for our local library system and for the NY City library for free. I live about 7 hours from NY City. I don't know about other libraries in the state, but I do know that some of the big cities (ex. Philedelphia) will let you buy a library membership for a small fee even though you don't live there.

I agree with Erin. I love downloading from the library system, but there are so few! I live in a small town and the system they use is Neibors (yes, the GH are missing). Mostly other small town libraries. My sister has a son living in Chicago, so she uses his PW and downloads from his library system - all the way to little Iowa. It is a GREAT system - I just wish some larger library system would agree to hook into ours so I could download more.

Results of the ebook survey!
http://libraries.pewinternet.org/2012...

12% of readers of e-books borrowed an e-book from the library in the past year. But a majority of Americans do not know that this service is provided by their local library...