Story by Franklin Fisher
franklin.s.fisher2.civ@mail.mil
CAMP RED CLOUD – Whether you've only heard of eBooks or are already a fan, Area I libraries are ready to be your digital-age gateway to the world of books you can download and read on your computer or other digital device.
The libraries will do that by helping you register to use the Army Digital Media Library, which allows military ID card holders -- U.S. service members, KATUSA Soldiers, civilians, family members, contractors and retirees -- to download books, videos and music for use on their computers and other digital devices.
The Army Digital Media Library offers free access to more than 25,000 eBooks and audiobooks.
Using it is easy; all you need is a library account with any Army library worldwide, the kind that allows you to check out books from the libraries, and a pin number for the Army Digital Media Library. The library will give you a pin number if you ask for one.
Then you just log on to the Army Digital Media Library website, insert your pin number, and you can browse their varied offerings of eBooks, videos and downloadable music.
You can use them on computers and major devices including iPhone, iPad, Nook, Android phones and tablets, and Kindle.
"When the eBooks first started becoming popular I didn't think that I would like them," said Tracey Klippert, Supervisory Librarian for the Casey Enclave libraries.
"Because I was thinking 'A computer screen with the white background, Why would I want to stare at that?'" she said. "I preferred a regular book where you could flip the pages."
But Klippert gave eBooks a try, reading them on an electronic device known as a Kindle. Kindles are available at the Camp Casey Library in Dongudcheon and the Camp Red Cloud Library in Uijeongbu, she said.
"Once I used eBooks I really liked them," said Klippert. "And you can take it anywhere. If you're traveling, you can load your device with three or four books. And I quite like it."
When you see the items you want, you select them and then download them.
If all the digital copies of the book you want to read are already signed out by other readers, the website will tell you that.
And the rules for checking out an eBook are the same as for printed books and other library materials.
"They're just like library books," said Klippert. "If somebody has it checked out, you'll have to put a hold on it."
"When your checkout period expires, you won't be able to access it any longer," Klippert said. "The titles will automatically expire at the end of the lending period."
And, there are no late fees.
Ebook categories are Art & Culture, Biography & Autobiography, Business & Careers, Children's eBooks, Comics, Computer Technology, Cooking & Food, Educational, Family & Relationships, Finance, Health & Fitness, Historical Fiction, History, Home Design and Décor, Horror, Humor, Language Learning, Legal, Literature, Management, Military, Mystery & Thrillers, Nature, Pets, Philosophy, Poetry & Short Stories, Politics & Current Events, Psychology, Religion & Spirituality, Romance, Self-Improvement, Sociology, Science, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Travel, and True Crime.
The selection of audiobooks offers many of the same categories as that of eBooks.
Video categories are Action & Adventure, Cartoon, Children's Video, Classic Film, Comedy, Cooking & Food, Documentary, Drama, Feature Film, Foreign Film, Health & Fitness, History, Horror, Instructional, Nature, Politics, Romance, Science, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Technology, Travel, and TV series.
Music categories are Country, Hip-Hop, Pop, Rock, and Soundtrack.
In addition, the Army Digital Media Library offers featured collections, whose categories include, for example, holiday titles, relaxation and stress management, and the U.S. Army Chief of Staff's Professional Reading List.
For more information, call the Camp Casey Library at 730-4563 or the Camp Red Cloud Library, at 732-6723, or visit: http://army.lib.overdrive.com.
