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How to download eBooks
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How to download eBooks
What’s the difference between the E Books and the downloadable
Audio Books?
- ebooks are downloadable text versions of ordinary books that
look and operate a bit like a PDF file
- Audio books are spoken word versions of books that are read out
to you on a portable mp3 player or on your computer.
Where can I find the ebooks and audio books?
- Check out the
ebooks and audio books catalogue to see all the titles we
currently hold
- From here, find an item you wish to download and then follow
the instructions.
What do I need to make the files work on my computer or smart
phone?
- Whether you download ebooks or audio books you will first need
the correct piece of free software
- This can be accessed on the site by going into ‘Getting
Started’ on the left of the catalogue home page screen, then ‘Quick
Start Guide’ from the pop up menu
- You need the Adobe Digital
Editions software to be able to view ebooks, and the
Overdrive Media Console
software to listen to audio books
- All the software works on either PCs or Macs, just download the
relevant version
- Overdrive Media Console is also available as an ‘App’ for
Apple, Windows and Blackberry Smartphones
- Search for Overdrive Media Console in your App Store. This
allows you to download audio books direct to your smart phone.
How many items can I download?
- You can download up to 5 titles at a time from the large
selection available.
What do I find what I want and download it?
- You can search for books by title or author in the ‘quick
search box’
- To only see titles that are available straight away perform an
advanced search by as title, author/narrator, subject or
format
- When you have chosen a title to download add it to your
Basket
- Up to 7 titles can be held in the Basket at any one time. They
are only held for 30 minutes, after which time they are released
back to the site and become available for other users
- Follow the instructions to download the title
- You may be prompted to install or upgrade free software if you
haven’t done so already.
What happens at the end of the loan period?
- Items are available for 7 days or 21 days depending on the
format
- At the end of the loan period, titles will expire
- At this time borrowers can delete the expired files from their
computer or device.
Why aren’t all titles available to check
out now?
- This service works just like a library shelf, with a limited
number of copies available of each item
- If the item you want to check out is only offering you the
option of placing a hold, this means it is in use by somebody
else
- If you place a hold, you will be sent an email when the title
is available to download
- You then have three days to download your held item, after
which it will be released for other users to download and you will
need to reserve it again.
- Items are not renewable, but can be checked out again after
they’ve ‘expired’.
More information on the checkout process
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