29% of Adults Own E-book Reader or Tablet

According to the latest study from Pew Internet, the number of Americans owning either an e-book reader or tablet jumped from 18% in December to 29% in January this year.

That's amazing growth for these devices. 

I've had a Kindle for a few years now.  But when I saw a terrific close-out deal on an Android tablet last month - a Motorola Xoom - I decided that the time was right to get one.  

I've been enjoying it ever since, with all of my apps from my Android smartphone syncing up right away with the Xoom.  I quickly found myself downloading books, viewing Internet sites, shopping and requesting library books all from the comfort of a chair in our family room.

Many of our library users are also among those who are now trying these gadgets out for the first time.  If you find yourself lost in the weeds trying to figure out how to download a book, our reference librarians may be able to help you.

In fact, Fredricksen Library in Camp Hill now has an eBooksHub that will help you navigate your way through the library eBook download process.  We'll be happy to answer your questions and point you in the right direction.

Droid is a Game Changer

At one point, I thought I wanted an iPad. However about a month ago, I took the plunge and traded in my tried and true Blackberry for an Android (or Droid) and got an HTC Thunderbolt.

What fun I've been having since then! And, even more importantly, I don't think I 'need' that iPad anymore (or at least, not right now).

There is so much that the Droid can do. The list is almost endless. Beyond keeping up-to-date with email, my calendar, contacts and phone calls, there are so many apps out there - both free and for fee.

I've easily borrowed and downloaded both eBooks and eAudios from the Capital Area Library District web site. (This required a simple download of Overdrive application to my Droid, plus registration on the Adobe site for an ePub id. If you are having trouble, try using the Quick Start Guide).

I also have the Amazon Kindle app and the Audible app, and can read books that I've purchased from Amazon or listen to books that I've purchased from Audible.

It's fun to see the new apps that are coming out everyday for the Droid. (Check out the Amazon Droid marketplace...it features a different paid app each day that users are permitted to download for free).

Library eBooks Coming to Your Kindle!

Yesterday, Amazon.com announced that later this year Kindle's would be able to borrow eBooks from libraries using OverDrive as their digital platform for lending eBooks and eAudios.

This has been one of the critical missing links for libraries that were developing eBook collections. Until this announcement, we weren't able to tell Kindle customers (like me) that library eBooks would work with their devices.

For the past several years, the Cumberland County Library System has been working with libraries in Dauphin and Perry County to develop a three-county digital collection.

We started with eAudios that you can download to your MP3 player (or iPod) and late last year we launched a new eBook collection that now has several thousand titles.

So, now as we continue to develop our digital collections, we know that we'll eventually be meeting the needs of all of our customers.

This is great news!!

eBooks are Here

In recent blogs, I have said a lot about how the Cumberland County Library System has no plans to offer eBooks anytime soon.

Well, here's some good news.

Through a partnership with the Dauphin County Library System, we now have a small collection of eBooks available from our website.

The collection has about 350 popular titles. More will be added as funds allow in 2011.

These eBooks are only compatible with Adobe EPUB readers (not Kindles). Unfortunately, licensing and format restrictions prohibit libraries from buying Kindle compatible eBooks at this time.

We're excited to begin offering this service and look forward to your comments.

eBooks Coming Soon?

Like many of you, the Cumberland County Library System is closely watching the eBook market to see how quickly our community adopts Kindles, Nooks, Kobos and Sony eReaders. Right now, eBook sales make up about 5% of the total market. And, we expect that number to grow after this year's holiday gift-giving season is over.

So, what are we doing about eBooks? Well, right now, the library system has no immediate plans to begin purchasing them. This is caused by two reasons.

First, the commercial e-book market for libraries is evolving — almost daily — and right now vendors can't sell us eBooks that could be used by all types of eBook readers. For example, libraries can't buy eBooks that are compatible with the most popular reader on the market, Amazon's Kindle. So, if we were able to buy eBooks right now, we'd be frustrating a lot of people who are using Amazon's Kindle.

Second, continued state budget cuts have reduced our new materials budget significantly. This year alone we lost 20% ($142,000) from our new book budget. With the loss of 11% more of our state support in 2011, we expect even more cuts for new materials next year. And, investing in eBooks isn't cheap. It would require at least $20,000 to get started. This is money that we don't have on hand right now.

However, the news is not all bleak.

If you have an eReader that is compatible with library eBooks, you can still get eBooks from the Free Library of Philadelphia at no charge! They can provide this service because they receive state funding to be one of our Statewide Resource Centers.

To make this happen, just register online for a free library card from the Free Library of Philadelphia.

In a week or so, you will receive your card in the mail, and then you can begin downloading Philadelphia's eBooks (and eAudios too!)

Let me know how you like them!

Time for a Kindle or a Nook?

It looks like the price wars have begun, and consumers who haven't yet purchased a Kindle or Nook ebook reader will benefit.

CNN reported this week that Barnes and Noble's reduced its 'Nook' price to $199, and also introduced a low-cost, Wi-Fi-only version for $149.

This was quickly followed by Amazon reducing its 'Kindle' price from $259 to $189.

CNN goes on to say that prices as low as $99 could be in our future by the end of 2010.

So, if you have been on the fence about taking the plunge, this may be the beginning of a great opportunity to try one out.