Library Checks Out Virtual Books [AUDIO]

As a sign of the times, the Natrona County Public Library now offers electronic books for check out by download. Library Community Relations Coordinator Brenda Thomson says people have been asking for e-books and the library is now happy to oblige.

Library keeps pace with new media:

"To get them from the library, you go to the library website, natronacountylibrary.org, and you go to our virtual library, which you'll see on the front page, and then you can download those books to your computer, to a mobile device like an android phone or iphone, and then you can download them also onto an e-reader like the Nook or the Kobo."

Ms. Thomson says plans are in the works to also to make e-books compatible with the Kindle and those will probably be available next year. And with an e-book, you'll never get a library fine for an overdue book.

No more overdue books:

"One of the things that is really exciting about this is that you check it out for one week or two weeks, download it to your device, and then when your check-out period expires, it just goes away. It makes it so that you can't use the file any more, and then if you want it again, then you can check it out again."

Another advantage with e-books, says Thomson, is mobility. You can bring the reading equivalent of a suitcase full of books in your computer or handheld device.

For those who like old fashioned books, Thomson says, they'll have those available for as long as people still want them.