Reader MG is a fan of the site and a public librarian and has written a list of 7 ways that your library can help you during a bad economy. Libraries are an excellent resource and they’re pretty easy to use. Don’t worry if you’re not a big reader, there’s lots more stuff to do at the library besides just checking out books.
- You can get pretty much any book at the library: A book habit can be expensive. Even second hand books can add up if you read a lot. Even the smallest library can access inter-library loan, Worldcat, OCLC and other library loan services to get you even the most obscure and out of print material.
- Yes, we have movies: Many libraries charge a nominal (1-2 dollar) fee for renting recent or “popular” titles. It’s something of a controversy in the profession, one side arguing all library services should be free, the other saying “We’re not a video store!”. I tend to fall on the side of free for all. In any case, the fee is often far less than what you’d pay for a rental at a chain video store, and the fees to to cover costs of processing and growing the video collection. If you’re looking for a rare film, perhaps older or on an obscure format (Betamax tapes are out there still) libraries can save you a ton compared to buying it on Ebay.
- Kids Activities: Any library worth it’s salt offers a summer reading program for kids. Often with prizes, programs and events all summer long. Libraries also offer storytimes, arts and crafts, computer classes, movie nights and reading clubs for kids of all ages.
- Save Money and maybe your life!: Libraries offer seminars in home buying, estate planning and even purchasing electronics and other big-ticket items. Libraries also offer free blood pressure screenings, programs about weight loss and exercise.
- Make new friends: Library book clubs and book discussion groups are great ways to meet people. Some libraries even offer “mingling” events for single patrons.
- Find a new job!: I can’t tell you how many times local employers have come in asking to post job listings or drop off materials about open positions. Many libraries offer resume writing workshops, computer training and even job fairs. College and University library job fairs are often open to the public.
- Libraries listen to consumers!: We like to call them patrons, but we really do listen. Do you want a storytime for kids after 5pm? Ask for it! Want more books about home finance or budgeting? Just ask! Libraries often go to great pains to suss out what the community wants, letting us know directly is great. The complaint or suggestion of a patron carries a lot of weight with library directors and boards, so you are being heard.
(Photo: Getty)
More From Consumerist
-
Man Booted From New York Public Library For Excessive B.O. Wants $5.5 Million
-
San Francisco Library Providing Helpful Privacy Screens For Online Porn-Viewing Comfort
-
Whew: Study Reveals The Internet Generation Still Knows What A Book Is
-
Book Returned To New York Public Library Almost 55 Years Overdue
-
Chicago Public Library's Amnesty Period Prompts Woman To Return Copy Of 'Dorian Gray' Overdue By 78 Years
And they have databases where you can find investment info, info about a company you might want to work for, and even databases of car repair information.
You can even get software from some libraries – programs that will help you build a deck, for example.
You forgot one of the best ones! Free computers and internet use! I saved $50 a month for a year by not giving into Comcast and using the internet only at work and, when needed, the library.
I have since given in, but still use the couple free pages you can print, whenever my home printer is out of ink or paper.
Using my local library has been one of my resolutions for 2008 and I can report that its going great. I’ve saved a ton of money by reading books from my library vs. Amazon.com. I use Amazon.com to research and keep track of titles and when I’ve read one of those titles from the library I check the “I own it” so I can get better recommendations. I can search my local library, which is tiny, via the internet and I also get e-mail reminders when books are due and I can renew books over the internet.
This needs one big caveat. If you live somewhere that has a big, well funded library system.
Ours won’t interlibrary loan outside of their own group of library branches. They won’t ILL anything remotely academic.
Our local library quit buying how to type books in the 70′s. If your looking for some good throwback hippie source material they are great. Forget finding anything remotely new. They do have probably the world’s largest collection of those pink paperback romance novels though! Ugh. The homeless seem to love it though. All of the seats are usually taken up by them napping. So um, yea I kinda gave up on our library system.
I gotta say though that Hennepin County libraries in Minneapolis rock. You name it they have it.
“Libraries listen to consumers!”
One of my very best memories from high school was a project we did for English class. We’d been reading literature from the Far East, and a couple kids commented on how most of it wasn’t in the library. So our teacher said, “You know what? Let’s fix that.” She broke us up into groups and assigned us all research tasks. We discovered there was a large and growing Korean immigrant population in the area (well, we knew that, but we did demography about it), some of whom spoke English, but some of whom did not. We researched classics of Korean literature and what the most popular modern authors and magazines were. We researched what English-speaking Koreans and Korean-speaking Koreans would want to see in the library and what they’d find helpful. And then she invited the library board and librarians to our class and we presented our findings to the library …
AND THEY BOUGHT BASICALLY EVERYTHING WE RECOMMENDED.
They set up a Korean lit in English section, a Korean language section, and added a lot of resources for recent Korean immigrants; they started getting Korean-language periodicals, even bought Korean films, the whole nine yards. And it was ENORMOUSLY popular with the Korean community in town, who suddenly became massive library patrons and supporters. And then there were all these intercultural programs and Korean-lit reading lists … it was awesome.
I still feel friggin’ PROUD when I visit my parents and drop by the library and see the Korean-language shelves.
You forgot about one GREAT resource: http://www.netlibrary.com
It allows you to access some books that libraries only have online with netlibrary. You can even print out pages, though you have to do that page by page, and your session will expire if you don’t click to go to the next page of the book every few minutes.
You usually have to create a ‘free’ account IN the B&M library first. However, after that you can use that account from ANYWHERE!
@bohemian: “Ours won’t interlibrary loan outside of their own group of library branches. They won’t ILL anything remotely academic.”
If you’re near a state U branch, citizens of the state typically have some form of borrowing privileges from the state U libraries, as you are a taxpayer and own the darn thing.
Most private colleges have a town-gown arragement, too, where if you live nearby you can borrow from the college.
Sometimes there’s a fee, and typically the borrowing periods are relatively short for non-students, but it’s a good way to get your hands on things.
My library is part of a regional network and I can order videos online and have them delivered to any library in the network. (I call it “Netflix for Free.”) And I can return books and videos to any library in the network, so I don’t have to make an extra trip.
“If you’re looking for a rare film, perhaps older or on an obscure format (Betamax tapes are out there still) libraries can save you a ton compared to buying it on Ebay.”
Just wanted to say that many libraries also have an inter-library loan program. If you’re willing to ask a librarian for help you can probably track down what you need no matter how obscure it is.
Also, seconding that libraries are awesome for job hunts. Wanted ads on bulletin boards, every classified ad available in your area, and a computer for Craigslist all in one location. Plus, it’s a free place to read a good book and kill some time while you wait for a potential employer to call back. What more can you ask?
Libraryelf.com can help you keep track of what you borrow and request, and give you email reminders so you don’t rack up fines.
Most of the Cleveland-area libraries let you check out movies, kid’s toys (puppets and the like), and CDs for free; I’ve always wondered why the RIAA was so up in arms about filesharing when anyone with a library card and a little patience could do the same thing for free at their library.
My local library also lets you “check out” videos and movies online (through participation with various websites, almost all of which require special software and Microsoft Windows. Ugh).
The selection isn’t super great, but there are some gems.
Also if one does not have a computer or broadband access – the libraries can be a great way to job hunt online.
They also provide and escape from the humid, hot weather of July and August for those without air conditioning
@bohemian: Amen to that. Moving from an area served by the Los Angeles City Library system to one served by the Los Angeles County Library system was a jarring experience.
@HeartBurnKid, creepy morbid freak: I have both cards (I live near County, go to school near City) and I find county to be better. What, in particular, makes county worse than city, for you?
FYI, the county system recently changed. Now it’s 50 items instead of $500, and the computer system is a LOT better (the catalog used to be down all the time).
Some comparisons:
DVDs: County 7 days & renewable, city 2 days
Both have free wireless
county has a huge system w tons of branches, and easy reserving online (from another library to be delivered to your local branch)
county usually has better parking
new bks: county depends, city sometimes better b/c they have the weekly nonrenewable shelf
cds def better thru county b/c you can get it from another branch, whereas city refuses to do that, you have to go in person
you might also want to try local city libraries: eg Long Beach, Irwindale, Monterey Park, and Arcadia all have their own library systems, just to name a few
New item limit: 50 now
Much love for the public libraries. I resolved a year ago to stop buying (even second-hand) books and start borrowing. It’s awesome. Our entire state is on ILL, so I can get just about anything I want/need. You can renew online or by phone, which basically gives you six weeks to read a book if you need that long (except for the newest books which are limited to two or three weeks).
It’s a good way to download music free, too, if your library loans CDs. (Most do.)
One of the first thing we did when each of our kids could walk was take them to the library branch and get a library card. And, man, those cards were well used!
Oh– and many public libraries have free day passes to local attractions such as zoos, aquariums, museums, etc. I haven’t paid to get into the Boston Museum of Science in years. You can reserve the passes ahead of time.
@SwatLax: I used my public library for all my internet needs during my very poor college years. It was actually closer than the campus library and much less crowded, plus I saved a TON of money. I’ve been meaning to get a library card here in my new town, this was just the post I needed to remind me.
@bohemian: Same here. I hate the public libraries. Computers are always in use by homeless checking Adultfriendfinder and the books are not up to date (which is ok if you are looking for general lit). If you have an academic library, they will usually let you check out if you pay a fee. My old grad school’s library has improved by leaps and bounds in the way of academic and general interest books.
Oh and Worldcat is not a lending system. If you are looking for a specific book, it can help you find it in your general and surrounding areas.
I’m an avid reader so the library has saved me thousands of dollars over the years. One thing I don’t see on this list that I have been a huge fan of for the last few years (maybe not many libraries are offering it) is my library allows me to download audio books in windows media format. It’s kind of a pain since they are DRM’d and won’t play on your CPU after 10 days (the check out period), but if you transfer it to your MP3 player or burn it to CD (both of which are allowed by the DRM), the 10 day license no longer applies and you can keep it and listen for as long as you like. I do a lot of extended driving and find these audio books a great way to pass the time without having to spend the $30 to $40 most places charge to buy new release audio books.
@thelushie: World cat is the interface used to search the OCLC catalog – if you’re a librarian, you CAN use it to request books directly from another library. I don’t think the general public has access to the lending tools, though.
And just remember, please be nice to your public librarians and library assistants. They’re not there to babysit your kids, but they’ll be glad to help you find child care resources if needed.
Also -if you’re in NC, you can access (via your public or academic library’s library card) a collection of databases (including audio books) at NClive.org. For free.
@TangDrinker: Thanks for the info, I’ll have to check out NClive.org since I recently relocated to NC, I’ve still been using my old MI library card to access the online audio books (since I still own my home there and can’t sell it)
Which brings up a good question, do library cards expire? Can I continue to use my MI library card online or will I need to re-verify my address at some point?
@BytheSea:
My library system does this as well through their online system automatically. You just have to sign up online, link an email address to your card number, and you’re golden.
I use my local libraries all the time–books, audio books, DVD’s, all sorts. I’ve rarely discovered a book I wanted that none of the libraries in my area own.
I haven’t taken advantage of the seminars and clubs they offer, but probably will when I’m older.
Great post! I am still getting used to the minuscule-by-comparison public library by my house, but it does the job. Although, I do miss the huge, modern 3-story public library I had back in high school in suburban Chicago.
Glad they listen…that’s what I my taxes go towards. Now the government listening. That’s another matter altogether.
The New York Public Library system is so impressive that I feel bad for the rest of the country.
For those of you who don’t live near a major city, Eyebrows McGee nailed it. Check your nearest public university or community college. I grew up in a small town with a crappy library, but I was a short drive to two excellent college libraries that would lend to anyone with a driver’s license.
The vast majority of my needs are met by the library, but I often read unusual subjects, which means I have to buy the books because they are not available at my local library. I really only read books once, so I have been looking into donating the odd books I have to buy to the local library. That way, if someone else ends up interested in 19th century female explorers, they can have access right there at the library.
I love the library.
I <3 the library–even though it usually COSTS me to rent things there. Kinda like Netflix. Maybe they know I’ll pay the late fees and won’t ask questions… I wish they still stamped books with their due dates instead of having to rely on a pile o’ receipts! But LA library, I will always rent books from you (*even if you’re not as good as Milwaukee’s library system).
I would point out that the size of the town may not matter. It may be more a matter of library policies which can change. (Consult your library board and your city/town/village councils.) They may be open to doing more with a fee attached. (Ie, interlibrary loan an unusual book for a 2 fee. Which is cheaper than getting it online if it’s rare. (I once ILLed a book that retails for about 500.)
Remember, the more people that ask for a service, the more it may happen.
I’m a librarian and this article made me very happy.
any library worth ITS salt. GREAT article. bad grammar.
It depends a lot on how libraries are funded in your state and where you live. During college, I lived in a town that had a couple great library plus ILL. Now, I’m in an area where the local libraries are not that great by my standards. Neither of the ones closest to me actively buy popular CDs and charge for DVD rental.
One factor that irritates me is their collection development policy. One local one simply refuses to buy popular CDs and buys a lot of inspirational Christian fiction, something I have complained about to the director of that library. I feel that they buy for one demographic at the expense of another.
Plus, they take longer to get popular newer fiction in the system. As a result, I’ve been buying a lot more books than I used to.
Libraries are worthless to anyone that’s not a hobo.
I love public libraries! Never understand why I needed to buy a book that I would only read once when I can just check it out at the library.
Orlando’s library is great. They have a wide selection of movies, including foreign films, that are all free. Plus they offer a system where they will mail you any book, cd, dvd you request through the internet directly to your house. It’s a public version of Netflix/Amazon!
They also have lots of CDs, and sometimes you can be surprised at what they might have re popular music. These are great for ripping to your iPod.
@SadSam: Heh. I do the exact same thing with my Amazon list. BIG SHOUT OUT to using the library; I’ve been going around two times a month for the past two years. I check out books, DVDs, CDs, audio books, you name it. And everyone is so helpful and willing to answer any questions you might have. I can’t imagine how much money I’ve saved on not buying books. Now, I only buy the nice, coffee-table type of books that I know I will thumb through a lot. After all, what percentage of your personal library do you actually read over and over and over again? For me, it’s a very small percentage.
I love my small local library! It has a huge selection of all the newest DVDs and rents them for 3 days for free. Not many people rent from them, so there’s almost no competition for the popular titles. Except for late fees, I haven’t paid for a movie in two years… I love the idea of walking away from the counter with an armful of free books and movies and getting thanked for it.
@consumersaur: You have to be kidding me. Libraries are wonderful–they let me read books first, decide if I like them, and then, if I feel the book is worthy, I buy a copy of it to place in my home library. Buy a book before reading it? A fool and his money are soon parted.
1. Yeah, after you read the whole series, the library gets them. Or, they don’t. No library within 50 miles (that I can search, anyway) carries my last foray into the book store. The sad part when it comes to cheapness? All but maybe 30 pages of well over 600 can be accessed free on the ‘net…it’s not the same thing, though…
2. I have yet to see a public library with more than a handful of documentary videos. A library with a real video collection would rock. Especially if they carried stuff that wasn’t popular (FI, I recently bought my first full retail priced new in the plastic movie of 2008: Metropolis—would that be library fodder or what?).
3. Mmm-hhmmm.
4. Really? All I knew of was SSA and voter stuff. I’ve never asked or looked at bulletins or anything, so chances are some around here do most of that stuff…
5. Hope for us lost geeks?
6. Huh, never heard of that, either.
7. Yeah, but I can only wait so long before I just go to the book store. Wouldn’t the local public library be like the perfect place for the new Penguin Lovecraft books, which account for most every bit of fiction he wrote?
IoW, YMMV.
@consumersaur: Dreadfully wrong.
Over my lifetime, I’ve read thousands of dollars worth of books from the library- probably easily over $20k. I love the library.
These socialist library institutions must die!!! We killed off the Savings and Loans, are working hard on Social Security and putting a lot of energy into resisting single payer healthcare – why allow Reagan’s Cadillac-wielding welfare queen have FREE reading material for her 82 children? Godless!
Purchase, read once, then throw out. Repeat. Do it for the economy.
Let the free market $ell us any information we need – companies like Borders Books and TV news should be the sole sources of information materials. Remember: if there’s no meter attached to it, it has no value and the “economy” suffers.
Sharing freely with your neighbor via a library only kills innocent kittens. Before you visit a library, PLEASE think of the innocent children that will be harmed if they can’t peruse the “books by price” shelf at a local Borders.
@consumersaur: Yeah, a lot of losers think that way.
There’s a saying that goes “Libraries will get you through times of no money far better than money will get you through times of no libraries.”
Just be grateful with all your heart that the public library was invented before the RIAA came along.
@HeartBurnKid, creepy morbid freak: Agreed. I could get an LA County library card to go with my LA City, Glendale/Pasadena, and Burbank cards… but it’s not worth it.
@infmom: totally worth it for me…but I’m a library junkie. I do use county & city a lot.
I replied to heartburnkid’s comment in detail over there though.
@cerbie:
Are you kidding? Even our smaller city/town libraries in Rhode Island have extensive collections of current and some esoteric DVDs for loan. East Providence’s main library is terrific in this regard; also Barrington, Warwick, the main Providence library, and even the smaller Rochambeau branch of PPL.
Those must be some retrograde libraries you’ve visited!
My library in Manchester, NH has framed pictures and computer games to rent out, plus all the stuff mentioned above. Its great for my kids, and I have became a better cook, Thank you Library!
Unfortunately we only have one decent library in this city and it’s a good 25 minute drive for me into a rather bad area of town to get to it (although the police station is literally right across the parking lot, so there is that).
It’s kinda sad considering Fresno has around 1 million people (probably more than that they just don’t report on the census). I remember our libraries when I was a kid being WAY better than they are now (and more of them too), thought that may just be the fog of age talking.
I am banned from my public library for “interfering in a security matter” when my friend was falsely accused of using the Women’s Room instead of the Men’s and also falsely accused of exposing himself to a woman while in there.
The woman happened to be the head of the library’s fiancee.
We were both falsely detained, had the police called and were threatened with arrest and banned from the library system in Lancaster, PA County for life because “library Authorities” didn’t/couldn’t get their Sh*t straight.
The kicker here? It was a homless man who really did it because my friend saw him while he was in the bathroom.
Jerks. I’ll get my information online.
@happysquid: Milwaukee’s library system rocked up until the city of Milwaukee libraries stop letting people put holds on popular music CDs and fiction DVDs. The suburban libraries in the system still let you do so, but you lose out on the Central branch’s awesome media collection and actually have to drive there to get something you want (and no guarantees it won’t be gone by the time you get there).
I’m currently in the process of getting my masters degree in library and information science (yes, we do need a Masters to get a job as a librarian, and we do more than just look stuff up on Google for you) and I’ve worked in libraries on and off for the last eight years, so I have (almost) nothing but love for libraries in general.