Read an eBook Day 2023
Today is Read an eBook Day! The idea for a day to celebrate eBooks started back in 2014 by Overdrive, which is celebrated on this day each year.
Did you know that the concept for the eBook was born in 1930? Rob Brown watched his first "talkie" (movies with sound after the silent film era) and introduced the idea of "readies" in his manifesto, his idea of the future of books. The first book reader was invented in 1949 by Angela Ruiz Robles, who desired to lessen the load of books students had to carry each day. The device, called the Enciclopedia Mecánica, used spools and operated with compressed air. The device was never mass produced, but you can see the prototype at the National Museum of Science and Technology in A Coruña, Spain.
The first eBook, though, did not appear for 22 years. Michael Hart, in what led to Project Gutenberg in 1971, typed his copy of the Declaration of Independence into a computer in plain text. That was then shared to ARPANET for anyone to freely download. Then in 1993, BiblioBytes made eBooks commercially available through their website.
While I'm sure most people that visit us here at the library prefer a physical copy of a book, there are some benefits to eBooks:
It helps to lessen the need to cut down trees because no paper is needed.
Storage! Whether it's just around your home or you're planning on traveling, eBooks make it easy to have a "stack" without taking up extra space. Readers can easily fit on a nightstand or in a carry-on while holding as many books as your storage capabilities will allow. No more room on your shelve? Get eBooks (or get eBooks along with another shelf).
They're accessible. Did you finish your book and realize late at night you need the next read? Instantly download an eBook even when the stores or libraries are closed.
You have freedom in print and font. With eReaders, you can change a lot of settings. Need a different size print? Easily change it to something larger or smaller, depending on your needs. Maybe you need a different font; another easy change in your settings. You can even can even change your brightness or set your reader to "night mode." These accessibility options can be really beneficial to those with vision disabilities or dyslexia, plus those that are neurodivergent (autistic, ADHD, etc.). It also helps if you're switching between reading environments.
With your library card, you have a couple options for downloading eBooks. First, there's Libby (through Overdrive). Your card gets you access to everything available through the Ohio Digital Library, which includes books that we have purchased along with books purchased by other libraries in our system. Like with physical books, there are only so many "copies" of titles, but you can always place holds on popular items! Once available, you'll get an email. From there, you can decide if you want to borrow the book or let it go to the next person while still being next in line after that. Or you can set it up to instantly borrow when it's available.
The other option is hoopla. The great thing about hoopla is that if you see it, you can borrow it. A good portion of the content on hoopla is provided by the company and their partnerships, so it will always be available. No waiting for a copy. Recently, though, we did switch to their Flex program, meaning that we also supply titles to the database for our patrons. Similar to Libby, there are copies of these titles, but if the copy is unavailable, it won't show up while you're searching. Think of it like our physical Browsing collection here at the library, if you see it, grab it while you have the chance!
Both of these resources can be accessed a couple different ways. You can download the app on any supported device or you can access materials on your computer. With the Ohio Digital Library, you can also access on the computer and send to your Kindle via Amazon.
There are also other forms of media on each platform as well. Everything from audiobooks, magazines and comic books to music, movies, and tv shows.
And of course, if you have any trouble, you can stop by the library for help! It's much easier for us to help if we're able to see what issues you're having, so it's best to stop in with your device. Quick help can be given at the check out desk when we're not busy. Or if you're needing more comprehensive help, sign up for one of our tech classes through Ida Rupp or Marblehead! At Ida Rupp, you can call or stop in to see what we have available. For Marblehead, you can do the same or sign up on our website via our calendar.
If you haven't tried eBooks, today is a great day to start!
