What are eBooks?
eBooks are electronic versions of printed books. eBooks can be viewed online on any computer connected to the Internet. The Peninsula Library System, in partnership with Califa, is offering access to eBooks via the netLibrary company.

Is it free?
Yes, it's free to Peninsula Library System card holders. To apply for a card online fill out the form at http://www.plsinfo.org/access/library_card.htm.

What is available?
There are two collections available. Our collection includes titles purchased or leased by the participating Califa member libraries. This collection is primarily nonfiction titles, with an emphasis on business, career and technology, plus Cliff Notes. The other collection is netLibrary's "Public eBooks"; this collection is primarily classic works of literature and history whose publishing rights are now in the public domain.

Are eBooks the same as the print versions?
Yes, eBooks are exact reproductions of the print versions, including all illustrations.

How do I access eBooks?
You can access eBooks on an Internet station at your library or by visiting our web site (http://www.plsinfo.org/) from your home and clicking on the ebooks from netLibrary link (or just click here: netLibrary.)*You then have two options available.

• Option # 1 is Browsing a Book; you can look through the book as if you pulled it from the library shelves. If 15 minutes elapses without active use the book is "put back on the shelf" for others to access.
  
• Option #2 is Checking out a Book. If you are outside the library, you must enter your library card number to validate that you are an authorized user.  Then you can create an account with access to all of the e-books in the library's collection.

For more information on accessing and searching eBooks take a look at the "eBook Quickstart Guide" or check the "Help" pages on netLibrary's web site.

What is the checkout period?
24 hours, during which you have exclusive use of the book. Your borrowing privilege expires after 24 hours and the book is automatically returned to the library.

How many times can one renew?
There are no renewals, but once the book has expired and returned to the library, you may borrow it again immediately, as long as it is still available.

Can more than 1 person check out the same title at the same time?
No, but if a title is especially popular, there may be multiple copies available for checkout.

Can I place a hold on a title? No

Can a book be downloaded to a PDA (Palm, etc.)?
No, at this time the netLibrary software does not support PDA technology.

Can I check out an eBook on library Internet computer and send it to my home computer?
No. To read an eBook on your home computer you must 1) get to the netLibrary site from plsinfo.org (you can use this netLibrary link), and enter your library card number to validate that you are an authorized user or 2) already have a netLibrary account as a Peninsula Library System card holder. You don't need to create your account in the library and there is no downloading or offline viewing.

Can I save a book to a disk? No, when you checkout a book you will have the 24 hour loan period to read the book. You cannot download netLibrary ebooks.

Can parts/whole be printed out?
When reading an eBook online you may print or copy one page at a time by using one of two methods:

1. If the ebook you are reading is in PDF form use the ebook reader's print function (the icon is just to the right of the 'Hide Acrobat Tools' button.) This is the most reliable method.
2. You can also use your browser's Print or Copy functions.

Although you can print parts of an eBook, printing an entire eBook violates copyright laws. netLibrary takes precautions to protect copyright laws; if a suspicious usage pattern indicative of excessive printing or copying is detected, netLibrary logs the activity and sends the user a copyright warning.

How do you cite a specific page for a bibliography?
The pages you view are created from the published book; the page numbering of the eBook is identical to the print version, so the usual bibliography and footnote citation formats can be used.

How often are more titles added?
New titles are added quarterly.