News from Libraries

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 7, 2013

Contact: Tom Kern
Library Director, Wauconda Area Library
847-526-6225  x209  tkern [at] wauclib [dot] org

WAUCONDA – Free access to many of the latest bestselling eBooks just got a whole lot easier at Wauconda Area Library, the first library in Illinois to add the 3M Cloud Library to its online catalog.  The library’s catalog is no longer just for finding library materials, but can now be used by the public  to check out eBooks from the catalog itself.  Within seconds, any patron with Internet access can easily begin reading these books on their PCs, laptops, tablets, e-readers, or smart phones.

Integration of the 3M Cloud Library into the library’s automated catalog, designed and installed by Polaris Library Systems, was completed May 6.  This marked the culmination of the library’s technology plan for making access to all circulating library items – both print and digital – as user-friendly as possible, whether the user is in the library or is using the library remotely via the Internet.

The library started offering access to the 3M Cloud Library in 2012, knowing the day would come that these books could be listed within the regular library catalog.  Even back then, this service was ahead of its time because it enabled the library to purchase titles outright and add them to its online “shelves” for patrons to browse and borrow the titles they wanted – just as patrons have always done with library print materials.

The loan period for an eBook is two weeks, after which it is automatically “returned” to the library for the next patron to borrow.  Patrons can easily return their eBooks before their due date, if they wish.  3M’s use of cloud technology enables readers to borrow eBooks from the library, at home, or on-the-go.  Check out a book on an iPad, take notes while reading on a laptop, and finish the book on an Android smartphone. The bookmark feature works across all devices, so you never lose your place. You can read when, where and how you want.

When asked about the new eBook service, Library Director Tom Kern said, “If you own an iPad or some other tablet computer and have not yet used the 3M Cloud Library app, you’re missing out on one of life’s great pleasures.  I used to agree with anyone who said there’s nothing like a good old book.  I suppose I still feel that way once in a long while, but the library’s new 3M eBook service, along with my trusty iPad and aging eyes, has convinced me that there’s nothing like a good new eBook, as long as it’s as easy to access as the library’s eBooks are now.”

With the Polaris integration of the 3M Cloud Library, there is no easier way to get eBooks, and these eBooks are free for all Wauconda Area Library patrons. To begin reading,  all you need is the free 3M Cloud Library app that you can get just like any other free app.  Once you sign in using your library card number, you can select titles from the library’s 3M Cloud Library “shelves” or from your own personal “shelf” of eBooks you checked out using the library catalog. 

Take the simple example of a patron looking for a book about Disney World, regardless of format.  Let’s say the patron finds that the newest print books are all checked out.  However, there are some eBooks available on the subject.  The patron simply clicks the Check Out button for each one, and those eBooks are immediately available using the 3M Cloud Library app.  If an eBook  isn’t available, the patron can place a hold.   eBook hold notifications will be sent directly from the catalog – just as it would for any other item – using the notification preferences patrons have already selected. 

The 3M Cloud Library app is available from the iTunes Store, Google Play and the NOOK Apps Storefront, and its eBooks are compatible with PCs, Macs, iPads, iPhones, iPod Touch, NOOK Tablets, Android devices, smartphones and Kobo, Sony and NOOK eReaders.   However, they are not compatible with Kindle.  An instructive Frequently Asked Questions web page is available at the library’s website.

EBook demand at the library has been doubling each year since 2010.  Two years ago, Wauconda Area Library patrons checked out almost about 2,800 eBooks.  Last year, they checked out nearly 5,000, and this year, that number could reach 10,000.  Given the recent trends in eReader, iPad and tablet sales, this number is likely to continue doubling or even tripling each year for a while.  This is the main reason the library decided to add 3M Cloud Library  to its catalog, giving patrons user-friendly access to a growing number of titles from more than 300 publishers.   The library will also continue to provide free access to MyMediaMall, a popular service that provides access to eBooks shared with dozens of other libraries in Illinois.

In 2011, Wauconda Area Library became the first library in Chicago’s north/northwest suburban area to select Polaris as their library automation vendor.   After seeing presentations from the four leading vendors in this field, the library determined that Polaris seemed more forward-thinking and customer-oriented than the other companies.   Just a few months after going “live” with the its system in October of that year, the library learned that Polaris and 3M would jointly be the first to make full access to eBooks available to libraries within their Polaris catalogs.  Soon thereafter, the library started subscribing to the 3M Cloud Library in anticipation of integrating it with its Polaris system.  After the installation of an important Polaris upgrade to its software in April, 2013, the library moved quickly to integrate the 3M Cloud Library within its catalog.  The final touches of implementation were completed May 6, as scheduled.

The Wauconda Area Public Library District, located in Lake and McHenry Counties in Chicago’s northwest suburbs, serves a population of 27,246 residents, including all or portions of Island Lake, Lakemoor, Lake Barrington, Port Barrington, Volo, and Wauconda.