WARRENSBURG — Even in a new world of e-readers, libraries are hardly being left in the dust. On the contrary, libraries are helping blaze trails by bringing material that patrons can access on
e-readers such as Nook and Kindle.
While some people buy electronic books through retail book dealers, Library on the Go, a program available at many Central Illinois libraries, allows patrons to download books for free.
Economic conditions have increased the use of the program.
“People are watching their money more closely. Five dollars here and there add up,” said Lacey Wright of the Barclay Library in Warrensburg, which has Library on the Go.
Aric Monkman, former circulation desk worker at the Vespasian Warner Public Library in Clinton, is now the technological educator who gives one-on-one classes. “People get a Nook, Kindle or iPad, and they don’t know what to do with it.”
People are also reading…
“I love my Nook and Kindle,” Maria Dent, director of the Mount Zion District Library, said. “With weight limits on planes, when I go on vacation, I want to take books, so I load up several (on my e-reader) and can slip it into my purse. Libraries need to embrace new technology.”
When an e-book is checked out, it is downloaded to the patron’s e-reader. When the book is due, it disappears from the e-reader thus, no overdue fines. Only one person can read a book from Library on the Go at a time. People can be put on a waiting list just as with real books.
Library on the Go is just one of the many collective offerings of a few of the libraries in the Illinois Heartland Library System, formerly known as the Rolling Prairie Library System.
E-reader circulation has nearly doubled for the library in Clinton over the past year. But it is not alone in the dramatic jump in readership. Warrensburg’s circulation has gone up 158 percent, whereas Mount Zion’s District Library has jumped 377 percent from 139 to 534.
In addition to Library on the Go, some area libraries offer Universal Class, another subscription service that enables patrons to choose from more than 500 courses of study.
Brandee Jones, a patron of the library in Warrensburg, chose sociology as her subject.
“I was thinking of going to school to get a degree for social work,” she said adding that she could use the computer at the library or work from home. While not all libraries have this subscription service, it is growing more popular.
Other technology is cropping up. Books can be stored on one CD, as opposed to changing out a 10-CD version of something such as “The Partner” by John Grisham.
Playaways are iPod-sized devices on which a book can be loaded and listened to with earbuds. Blu-ray movies, documentaries, magazines, newspapers and music are constantly being updated, though there is still plenty of material on VHS for people who don’t have DVD players.
Although the Elizabeth Titus Memorial Library in Sullivan and a few other libraries in the Heartland Library System do not have Library on the Go or Universal Class, library director Clem Uptmore has seen the response at other libraries. By attending quarterly conferences with other librarians, he has an opportunity to see what others are doing.
“We plan to join the consortium; we have included LOG in this year’s fiscal budget.” Uptmore said. “As long as technology keeps changing, we’ll keep changing with it.”
plarson@herald-review.com|421-6983
