Allegheny County residents are lucky to have a well-developed library system. Even though many communities have their own libraries, libraries throughout the county are connected to the Allegheny County Library Association. This consortium approach to lending has many benefits, including online card catalogs and entitling card holders to reciprocal benefits at libraries across the county. This means that the library card you got from the helpful librarians who staff the Bookmobile allows you to check out materials from Sewickley Library, Bayne Memorial Library in Bellevue, or Carnegie Library's Oakland branch (just to name a few). While this is a great resource, it's not a digital resource. But it can be if you get an app called Overdrive.
Overdrive, which can be downloaded onto iOS or Android devices or accessed through the web, is the conduit through which libraries lend digital materials. The Carnegie Library/Allegheny County Library Association offers digital materials in Kindle format (which can be read on Kindle devices or through the Kindle app on iOS or Android devices), EPUB format (which can be read through the Overdrive app or on Nooks, Kobos, or Sony Readers among others) or OverDrive .mp3 or .wma files. These audiobook files can also be played directly through the OverDrive app.
In short, Overdrive offers library members access to the entire combined digital collection of the Carnegie Libraries as well as all of the other member libraries of the Allegheny County Library Association (which is most if not all of the libraries in Allegheny County, including our local Sewickley, Bayne Memorial, Avalon, and Northland libraries). If you already have a library card, use it to start downloading library books today! The materials you get through OverDrive can be available on all of your different devices, PLUS you never have to worry about overdues since the files are automatically returned!
This screenshot is of the landing page for the Carnegie Library/Allegheny County Library Association OverDrive checkout system. You can browse the materials freely; you will need an active library card in order to check materials out or place holds on unavailable materials. One cool thing about placing holds is that you can opt to have the materials automatically checked out when they become available; you will still need to sign in to OverDrive in order to download the materials.
Where:
Cost: Free (active library card required to check out materials, no sign in required to browse the collection)
What: Digital material checkout service
Students! Try OverDrive if...
The library doesn't have the title you are looking for
You want easily-portable library materials
You love checking out materials but are bad at remembering to return them
You would like an audiobook to listen along to while you read for class
Teachers! Try OverDrive if...
You want to preview material before ordering it for your classroom
You want easily-portable library materials
You want easily-portable library materials
You want a newly published title (note: the library does have limited quantities, so you may need to wait for popular titles!)
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