I have 50 holds at the library

[libertarian4321]

My wife used to spend waaaay too much at Barnes and Noble.  Not only did it waste money, we had books all over the house.  We gave a bunch to charity, but they still seemed to multiply faster than we gave them away.

3 or 4 years ago, I introduced her to the library.  Now she goes that 2-3 times per week for books/audiobooks/movies, etc.

And out bookshelves are no longer overflowing.

[Trudie]

I am a library lover and have proclaimed my love of libraries on this site and elsewhere.  Under Iowa's open access system I even have cards for the libraries in the cities where our families live so that I have a free entertainment option during long visits.  I also have access to the academic library affiliated with the college my husband works at.  I am an advocate for using them liberally and often.  In the past I've used them for books, DVDs, interlibrary loan... everything.

With that said, I have stopped using the local public library for the time being due to several mishaps largely having to do with the fact that they can't seem to accomplish simple circulation tasks properly.  In sum, these include:  (1)  Not checking my books back in before re-shelving them and telling me they're overdue; (2) Not re-shelving books properly so that they show up in system as "available" but really aren't -- may be related to problem #1; (3) Not informing me by email when my holds are in until they're expired.  Sadly, their statistics must be a disaster.

I'm acquaintances with the library director and have emailed her about such incidents -- trying to be even-keeled, but concerned about the level of basic service at our public library.  The response has sort of been, "Mistakes sometimes happen."  True.  But over the past 18 months I've had about 7-8 separate incidents (as described above) with our PL.

[FrugalShrew]

While at the branch library I also flip through a minimum of 5 magazines or heavily illustrated books and leave them on the table. Those get scanned before being re shelved.

And I've always thought I was "helpful" when I put materials back where others could find them when I was done with them. I never would have thought the librarians would tally the on site usage.

Libraries I've worked at haven't tallied on-site usage.  Some do, some don't.  When in doubt, you can ask to see how your branch/system treats these situations, or what specifically they track.

I just assumed I was being helpful, too! I will definitely ask about this when I'm at a library, and leave materials out or put them back accordingly.

[FrugalShrew]

I have learned so much about using the library from this thread. And here I thought I knew what I was doing as a library patron. I really love these forums!

I have been placing holds for awhile, although my holds tend to be books requested from other library branches, not popular books with really long waitlists. They therefore come in pretty quickly, so I usually only request 2-3 holds at a time. But after reading about the difference between placing holds vs. making a wishlist for later, I logged into my library account and scrutinized the webpage for a wishlist function, and lo and behold, it had one!

So after about 10 minutes, I have about 20 books on my wishlist, and I have a feeling this will reach 50 in no time at all. Thanks, guys, for turning me into an even bigger library nerd than I was before!

[Davids]

I love the overdrive app. Unfortunately i do not have time to go to my physical library branch but overdrive works for me.

[SpeedReader]

I have always loved libraries but digital lending takes it to the next level. Not only do I buy just a fraction of the books I used to, my Nook saves me from driving way across town for physical books. This is a substantial savings for me because I'm a constant reader (175+ books/year). 

Had to buy Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen, though.  :-)

[arebelspy]

(175+ books/year). 

Sheesh!  Your username is accurate. Well done!