The Money Mustache Community
General Discussion => Share Your Badassity => Topic started by: lifejoy on October 23, 2015, 04:21:22 PM
-
This is how it works:
I make a list of books I want to read. It is an ongoing list.
I then put in a request (online at my local library website) to hold the books I want to read.
Over the course of days, weeks, and for some - months! - my books slowly arrive, and I pick them up just a 10 minute walk away from my house.
It is delightful, and free. I am so happy! Never buying books again! Woohoo! :)
(Did I mention I work at a bookstore? This probably saves me hundreds of dollars! And the more popular books can have 100+ holds on them, so I don't have to be worried about receiving 50 books at once. Also... they max out your holds at 50. I can't request more than that, or I probably would! Haha!)
-
Wow! I usually just request a few at a time! But then I don't read a lot of super-new things. We are limited to 30.
-
That's great! I do something pretty similar, but rather than put the book on hold, I put it on my "Wish List". It then shows which books are available, and I check out the next available book when I'm ready.
It's always nice to have something lined up! I always have a hard time picking between a lot of great options.
-
This is exactly what I do. If I ever run out (limit is also 50 here), I just start using my husband's account :)
CLEVER!!!!
-
That's great! I do something pretty similar, but rather than put the book on hold, I put it on my "Wish List". It then shows which books are available, and I check out the next available book when I'm ready.
It's always nice to have something lined up! I always have a hard time picking between a lot of great options.
I like putting holds on, because it replaces my Amazon habit ;)
This way I feel like new books are "arriving" for me.
-
I always have a long list of holds on ebooks and audiobooks. That way every week is Christmas when I get the notification that something I want is available.
-
I think our limit 10/25 around here.
-
You're lucky. Our limit is 30 holds. I frequently have to lop over onto my husband's card!
-
I do the same thing! Our limit is 50 too, which is nice. And I get all of our movie and TV show DVDs from the library as well.
-
So far, I have not run out of space. But we're only allowed 20 Overdrive checkouts (which can't be returned, and, cough, I may let my sister use my card for this, too) and I admit I've had the thought that if I started pushing it, I could open a card for one of my sons. Children: A whole new avenue for checkouts!
-
The library is awesome, I also take advantage of free kindle books from overdrive/my library, downloads in a few seconds.
-
I was really surprised to discover our limit for holds is 15. But our limit for books checked out is 50. So I guess they're encouraging you to read the more neglected books.
-
And if you really want more holds, just ask a librarian if they can override it for you.
I would do this for someone if they had a really good reason, like maybe they had a bunch of holds on upcoming titles.
-
Yeah, I always go to the same branch and the librarians know me and are nice, but I only hit the limit once so I haven't had an opportunity to bother. And that's only physical books, digital books I think are a ten book limit. Anyway, I was just trying to figure out the reasoning behind the policy, especially now when I see it's so much higher at other libraries. Maybe it's because there are so many people in the nyc system and we're so trendy, they're trying to force people to prioritize which new high-demand books we really want so the waiting lists aren't like a thousand deep.
-
I'm excited to see what the Yellowknife library is like. (So far all I know is that it's only a 15 minute walk from my new apartment.) I love requesting books and really need to start reading more (less screen-time).
-
I do this but it never fails that they all arrive at about the same time.
-
That happens to me too, some weeks I have six books show up at my branch reserved for me. Many of the new books have hundreds of people put them on hold, so it might take months to get to me. However I usually don't have more than 10 or 12 books on hold.
I need to try the electronic list again. The first time I tried it they had too many holds on those books as well. Living near the state capital is a good thing with sooooo many library branches in the area. But a bad thing with soooooo many people reserving the same books I want.
-
Christmas came early:
The following items are being held for you. Please come to the library listed
to check them out.
1 $2.00 a day : living on almost nothing in America / Kathryn J. Edin, H.
Luke Shaefer.
Edin, Kathryn J.,
call number:339. 460973 EDI copy:1
Pickup by:11/2/2015
2 A discovery of witches : [a novel] / Deborah Harkness.
Harkness, Deborah E., 1965-
call number:FICTION HAR copy:1
Pickup by:11/2/2015
3 A monster calls : a novel / by Patrick Ness ; inspired by an idea from
Siobhan Dowd ; illustrations by Jim Kay.
Ness, Patrick, 1971-
call number:J NES copy:1
Pickup by:11/2/2015
4 An astronaut's guide to life on earth / Chris Hadfield.
Hadfield, Chris,
call number:629. 450092 HAD H copy:1
Pickup by:11/2/2015
5 The little prince / written and illustrated by Antoine de Saint-Exupery
; translated from the French by Richard Howard.
Saint-Exupery, Antoine de, 1900-1944.
call number:J SAI copy:3
Pickup by:11/2/2015
-
I do this but it never fails that they all arrive at about the same time.
#realtalk
-
....
It is delightful, and free. I am so happy! Never buying books again! Woohoo! :)...
That's funny because today for the first time, I bought an book to read on my IPAD because I am tired to trying to start this book (All the LightWe Cannot See) and not getting through it because I have to return it to the library. There are looooooong waiting lists at the library and I've been trying to get this for months.,usually I wait, don't mind waiting.
I go to the library 1x weekly and pick,up all of my holds. The hold system is a wonderous thing.
I hate buying physical books because I don't want more physical junk around, but an occasional book is an ok purchase.
-
....
It is delightful, and free. I am so happy! Never buying books again! Woohoo! :)...
That's funny because today for the first time, I bought an book to read on my IPAD because I am tired to trying to start this book (All the LightWe Cannot See) and not getting through it because I have to return it to the library. There are looooooong waiting lists at the library and I've been trying to get this for months.,usually I wait, don't mind waiting.
I go to the library 1x weekly and pick,up all of my holds. The hold system is a wonderous thing.
I hate buying physical books because I don't want more physical junk around, but an occasional book is an ok purchase.
Mr. FP sometimes buys books for the same reason. Can't always finish them in the time allotted. I don't mind him buying the occasional quality book that takes him a while to finish.
-
I usually only have 10 or so on my hold list - I once had over a dozen books that I was dying to read come in at the same time so I try and limit what I put on there. It's the coolest thing to read a best seller without having do spend money or have another thing in my house.
-
These days I exclusively read on my Kindle, and our Overdrive system only allows 10 checkouts and 10 holds. It works for me, but I wish the selection of ebooks was better.
I think it's hilarious that you work at a bookstore! That's some serious self-control.
-
....
It is delightful, and free. I am so happy! Never buying books again! Woohoo! :)...
That's funny because today for the first time, I bought an book to read on my IPAD because I am tired to trying to start this book (All the LightWe Cannot See) and not getting through it because I have to return it to the library. There are looooooong waiting lists at the library and I've been trying to get this for months.,usually I wait, don't mind waiting.
I go to the library 1x weekly and pick,up all of my holds. The hold system is a wonderous thing.
I hate buying physical books because I don't want more physical junk around, but an occasional book is an ok purchase.
Side note: that's a solid book choice.
-
Our library has finally pre-ordered Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen and I am 23rd in line! The temptation to pre-order it at Chapters was strong, but now I can hold out.
-
Our library has finally pre-ordered Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen and I am 23rd in line! The temptation to pre-order it at Chapters was strong, but now I can hold out.
Yaaaaay! Totally worth the wait.
And getting books from her library prevents me from developing a hoard of books at home :)
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
-
As president of our library board, let me also say that having books checked out is absolutely the best thing you can do for the library. So many people think checking books out just makes "more work" for the library, while the fact is that our funding is largely based on circulation (at least for us it is), so increasing circulation actually increases funding and is our life blood. Eventually library funding may adapt to the new age, but for now circulation is a large part of our funding and circulation is going down, so anything you can do to increase circulation will likely make your local library very happy.
-
We have a 25/10 list for things on hold --- but in the KCLS system we have places where we can bookmark things to place in a list from which you can then put them on hold. And there is no limit on bookmarking at least not that I have found yet. I have over 300 e-books bookmarked for later reading and over 100 items in my regular list.
It's a never ending cornucopia!
-
As president of our library board, let me also say that having books checked out is absolutely the best thing you can do for the library. So many people think checking books out just makes "more work" for the library, while the fact is that our funding is largely based on circulation (at least for us it is), so increasing circulation actually increases funding and is our life blood. Eventually library funding may adapt to the new age, but for now circulation is a large part of our funding and circulation is going down, so anything you can do to increase circulation will likely make your local library very happy.
Good to know!
-
As president of our library board, let me also say that having books checked out is absolutely the best thing you can do for the library. So many people think checking books out just makes "more work" for the library, while the fact is that our funding is largely based on circulation (at least for us it is), so increasing circulation actually increases funding and is our life blood. Eventually library funding may adapt to the new age, but for now circulation is a large part of our funding and circulation is going down, so anything you can do to increase circulation will likely make your local library very happy.
Yep. I'm a retired librarian.
I goto my neighborhood branch once a week and check out at least five books.Often they are ones I flip through ( like home decor books) or skim (like political opinion or pop psych or true crime books.)
So, I may only read from beginning to end one book a week, but I like to,have several around to dip into.
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. They get at least ten incidents of materials use from me per week. I also renew everything obsessively, even if I am going to return a book the next day.
All of those use statistics count.
During the winter when I Have hours to kill indoors, I'll go to the bigger regional libraries as well as the downtown library. I wil probably look 25+ books or journals on those days.
-
....
It is delightful, and free. I am so happy! Never buying books again! Woohoo! :)...
That's funny because today for the first time, I bought an book to read on my IPAD because I am tired to trying to start this book (All the LightWe Cannot See) and not getting through it because I have to return it to the library. There are looooooong waiting lists at the library and I've been trying to get this for months.,usually I wait, don't mind waiting.
I go to the library 1x weekly and pick,up all of my holds. The hold system is a wonderous thing.
I hate buying physical books because I don't want more physical junk around, but an occasional book is an ok purchase.
Mr. FP sometimes buys books for the same reason. Can't always finish them in the time allotted. I don't mind him buying the occasional quality book that takes him a while to finish.
I have a bad habit of never reading/finishing books that I own or have borrowed from friends, because it always takes a lower priority than the books that have a due date at the library. So I tend to just plow through the due date. It's 25 cents a day, so even if I need it for another week, that's only $1.75, much less than I'd have spent on a copy. Perhaps unethical because the fines don't make it up to the next person on the hold list who then waits longer.
I do still buy books if 1. I particularly want to support a new or mid-level author, 2. the library just doesn't have it, which is rare, but some older specialized books have been lost to attrition and not replaced, or academic ones and cartoon/graphic ones aren't acquired at all, or 3. I need it in time for book club.
As president of our library board, let me also say that having books checked out is absolutely the best thing you can do for the library. So many people think checking books out just makes "more work" for the library, while the fact is that our funding is largely based on circulation (at least for us it is), so increasing circulation actually increases funding and is our life blood. Eventually library funding may adapt to the new age, but for now circulation is a large part of our funding and circulation is going down, so anything you can do to increase circulation will likely make your local library very happy.
Yep. I'm a retired librarian.
I goto my neighborhood branch once a week and check out at least five books.Often they are ones I flip through ( like home decor books) or skim (like political opinion or pop psych or true crime books.)
So, I may only read from beginning to end one book a week, but I like to,have several around to dip into.
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. They get at least ten incidents of materials use from me per week. I also renew everything obsessively, even if I am going to return a book the next day.
All of those use statistics count.
During the winter when I Have hours to kill indoors, I'll go to the bigger regional libraries as well as the downtown library. I wil probably look 25+ books or journals on those days.
Nice! So those times I reserve multiple editions of a book to see which one will come in first and then forget to cancel the ones that didn't, I'm actually helping! Though, again, that ethics thing about the other people trying to get the books...
-
....
It is delightful, and free. I am so happy! Never buying books again! Woohoo! :)...
That's funny because today for the first time, I bought an book to read on my IPAD because I am tired to trying to start this book (All the LightWe Cannot See) and not getting through it because I have to return it to the library. There are looooooong waiting lists at the library and I've been trying to get this for months.,usually I wait, don't mind waiting.
I go to the library 1x weekly and pick,up all of my holds. The hold system is a wonderous thing.
I hate buying physical books because I don't want more physical junk around, but an occasional book is an ok purchase.
Mr. FP sometimes buys books for the same reason. Can't always finish them in the time allotted. I don't mind him buying the occasional quality book that takes him a while to finish.
I have a bad habit of never reading/finishing books that I own or have borrowed from friends, because it always takes a lower priority than the books that have a due date at the library. So I tend to just plow through the due date. It's 25 cents a day, so even if I need it for another week, that's only $1.75, much less than I'd have spent on a copy. Perhaps unethical because the fines don't make it up to the next person on the hold list who then waits longer.
I do still buy books if 1. I particularly want to support a new or mid-level author, 2. the library just doesn't have it, which is rare, but some older specialized books have been lost to attrition and not replaced, or academic ones and cartoon/graphic ones aren't acquired at all, or 3. I need it in time for book club.
As president of our library board, let me also say that having books checked out is absolutely the best thing you can do for the library. So many people think checking books out just makes "more work" for the library, while the fact is that our funding is largely based on circulation (at least for us it is), so increasing circulation actually increases funding and is our life blood. Eventually library funding may adapt to the new age, but for now circulation is a large part of our funding and circulation is going down, so anything you can do to increase circulation will likely make your local library very happy.
Yep. I'm a retired librarian.
I goto my neighborhood branch once a week and check out at least five books.Often they are ones I flip through ( like home decor books) or skim (like political opinion or pop psych or true crime books.)
So, I may only read from beginning to end one book a week, but I like to,have several around to dip into.
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. They get at least ten incidents of materials use from me per week. I also renew everything obsessively, even if I am going to return a book the next day.
All of those use statistics count.
During the winter when I Have hours to kill indoors, I'll go to the bigger regional libraries as well as the downtown library. I wil probably look 25+ books or journals on those days.
Nice! So those times I reserve multiple editions of a book to see which one will come in first and then forget to cancel the ones that didn't, I'm actually helping! Though, again, that ethics thing about the other people trying to get the books...
Generally speaking, no. Holds don't count as circulation activity in any library system I know. My library sometimes ran reports on the number of holds but it's not usually a statistic that determines resource allocation.
Certainly there is a count for holds, but unfilled holds are an area of concern and unfilled holds are not a statistic my library wanted to grow. It's labor intensive to pull a book in from another location only to see the library user fail to check it out.
For this discussion "unfilled hold" means a hold that was made available to the user, but the user didn't pick it up.
Some libraries charge the user for unfilled holds.
-
Nice! So those times I reserve multiple editions of a book to see which one will come in first and then forget to cancel the ones that didn't, I'm actually helping! Though, again, that ethics thing about the other people trying to get the books...
Generally speaking, no. Holds don't count as circulation activity in any library system I know. My library sometimes ran reports on the number of holds but it's not usually a statistic that determines resource allocation.
Certainly there is a count for holds, but unfilled holds are an area of concern and unfilled holds are not a statistic my library wanted to grow. It's labor intensive to pull a book in from another location only to see the library user fail to check it out.
For this discussion "unfilled hold" means a hold that was made available to the user, but the user didn't pick it up.
Some libraries charge the user for unfilled holds.
Library hacking. I love this. Okay well some of the times, I'll be at the library for something else so I'll go ahead and get the book from the hold shelf and bring it over to the desk to tell them I don't actually need it. I had assumed they registered it as though I had checked it out (however briefly) and returned it. I should ask. And then if that's the case I should make a better effort in the future to stop by just to get the book off the hold shelf.
-
As president of our library board, let me also say that having books checked out is absolutely the best thing you can do for the library. So many people think checking books out just makes "more work" for the library, while the fact is that our funding is largely based on circulation (at least for us it is), so increasing circulation actually increases funding and is our life blood. Eventually library funding may adapt to the new age, but for now circulation is a large part of our funding and circulation is going down, so anything you can do to increase circulation will likely make your local library very happy.
+100000000000!!!!!
I sometimes feel badly that I'm making work for the library, but then I give my head a shake: it's good for their statistics!
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
-
I definitely have proper motivation for picking up my holds!
-helping library stats
-gaining reading material
-trying to keep my name in the good books, because I'm a librarian looking for work!
I want to be known as the gal that picks up ten books each week, not the gal that created a ton of work and never showed up ;)
Did you know that you can recommend books for purchase if the library doesn't have it?
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
-
Re holds - I can't always predict how a book will come in, so I may have the same book on hold as a book, a large print book, and an e-book. It is very rare to be able to renew an e-book, so there are times that the e-book goes back and then the print book comes available, and I can finish it. Sometimes both print and large-print become available at the same time, so I check them both out, then return one of them. One of these days I am going to prefer the large print, so I am glad to encourage the library to get them. Of course if I finish a book and still have other versions on hold, I cancel my hold, so others can have them.
-
Jealous - we're limited to 10 eBooks and 20 holds on physical books. My problem has always been that I put in a half-dozen holds for various books and they all seem to become available in the same week. With a 21 day checkout period I can't possibly read that many, so I wind up re-holding the same books over and over.
1st world problems I guess...
-
I definitely have proper motivation for picking up my holds!
-helping library stats
-gaining reading material
-trying to keep my name in the good books, because I'm a librarian looking for work!
I want to be known as the gal that picks up ten books each week, not the gal that created a ton of work and never showed up ;)
Did you know that you can recommend books for purchase if the library doesn't have it?
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
I recommend quite often. When you recommend a book you are usually one of the first to receive a copy when/if the item is ordered.
-
My library allows me to freeze my hold position. So if it looks like a few books will be arriving at the same time, I'll freeze a couple once I'm in the first position. That allows me to delay the arrival of the book by a bit.
-
My library allows me to freeze my hold position. So if it looks like a few books will be arriving at the same time, I'll freeze a couple once I'm in the first position. That allows me to delay the arrival of the book by a bit.
Yeah, this is one of two features I wish my library would have. Right now you have the option of "freezing" a hold for 7 days, but only one time. I still wind up with the same problem.
The other feature I'd like my library to implement is a reservation system (vs a hold system) more akin to how a restaurant works. Essentially, I would like to be able to go online and sign up for the time period I would like - even if that's a few months down the road (like for my summer vacation to the beach). It would be far more useful than the current "hold" system where you get the next book available, regardless of when that is. Just my dream - I plan on bringing them up at the next library meeting.
-
Recently rediscovered the joys of the library. As a kid I would check out 5-6 books at a time. Recently I discovered that my library system did not own "Early retirement extreme" or "Your money or your life" a quick stop at the desk and a week later I get an email that they are both on hold for me!!
-
I am trying to break my husband of his book-buying habit. Easier said than done. Once a year I cull our shelves (he hardly notices) and haul books to the Friends of the Public Library book sale. They usually get a little more money for good books (than the thrift store does) and I feel like I'm supporting a service I use.
Will keep working on my husband about the book buying!
-
Recently rediscovered the joys of the library. As a kid I would check out 5-6 books at a time. Recently I discovered that my library system did not own "Early retirement extreme" or "Your money or your life" a quick stop at the desk and a week later I get an email that they are both on hold for me!!
Why haven't I thought of this before!?! :D
-
I don't know if my library has a limit to the number of holds one can have (I've never had more than 20 myself), but it does have a great feature where you can "freeze" your hold so that it does not come to you when you are first in line. If others have holds on the book, then they'll get their hold fulfilled while your hold waits at the front of the line for you to unfreeze the hold. I do believe that the frozen hold gets cancelled if you let it sit too long (months) with nobody behind you, so it doesn't quite work as the "wish list" someone else mentioned (I'd like my library to add that feature). Currently I have 7 holds, I'm first in line for 5 of them and one of those is available. (I also have 5 books due this Saturday and I'm only done with one of them.)
-
We also use the library for ALL of our book needs. We pretty much stopped buying books once we learned how place a hold and have books sent to my local branch. Now the only problem I have is finishing all the awesome books I have borrowed.
-
We also use the library for ALL of our book needs. We pretty much stopped buying books once we learned how place a hold and have books sent to my local branch. Now the only problem I have is finishing all the awesome books I have borrowed.
+1!
-
We also use the library for ALL of our book needs. We pretty much stopped buying books once we learned how place a hold and have books sent to my local branch. Now the only problem I have is finishing all the awesome books I have borrowed.
+1!
+2
I had a 4-500$ a year Amazon habit that has now been cured via library use. Plus it's so much less wasteful. Plus I find new books that I'd never have tried out before. We've got about 30 holds coming in at the moment.
-
Well - boo:) Our library only allows 4 holds and 6 checkouts on line - total of ten.
At the real library it may be 50 or more, so maybe I'll try that route one day - it's just that I'm not great about returning books on time.
-
The other feature I'd like my library to implement is a reservation system (vs a hold system) more akin to how a restaurant works. Essentially, I would like to be able to go online and sign up for the time period I would like - even if that's a few months down the road (like for my summer vacation to the beach). It would be far more useful than the current "hold" system where you get the next book available, regardless of when that is. Just my dream - I plan on bringing them up at the next library meeting.
My library has a lot of shortcomings, but just this idea has actually been implemented. Next to the "reserve" button is a date - you can change it to any date you wish both before and after making the reservation. Excelent for holidays or reserving whole book series (it's at times very hard to make sure you get book 2 before book 3 without moving dates).
-
I do a hold only when I want to read a book, and it isn't available. Otherwise I just check it out.
I typically have 0 holds at a time.
I also do most of my reading on a Kindle now.
The idea of having so many books on hold is weird to me. What do you do if they don't have a book you want to read? You'd have to keep a separate list anyways.
Why not just check them out and read them? Or are the books you want to read that popular, or your library system that small? I feel like I'd put a hold on 50 books and the next day I'd have emails that 45 of them were ready for pickup.
-
Jealous!! Each hold we place costs $3 here on my edge of the world. I feel sad. :-(
-
I do a hold only when I want to read a book, and it isn't available. Otherwise I just check it out.
I typically have 0 holds at a time.
I also do most of my reading on a Kindle now.
The idea of having so many books on hold is weird to me. What do you do if they don't have a book you want to read? You'd have to keep a separate list anyways.
Why not just check them out and read them? Or are the books you want to read that popular, or your library system that small? I feel like I'd put a hold on 50 books and the next day I'd have emails that 45 of them were ready for pickup.
I regularly browse through the library's list of new books and see things that look interesting. There might be five or ten copies in circulation and 300-400 people who have holds on the books. I stick the hold on them so that in a couple months I'll be able to read the book. You don't have to keep a list of books on hold, the library does that for you online. We seem to keep a more or less constant backlog of holds and average about three or four books a week steadily coming in.
-
I do a hold only when I want to read a book, and it isn't available. Otherwise I just check it out.
I typically have 0 holds at a time.
I also do most of my reading on a Kindle now.
The idea of having so many books on hold is weird to me. What do you do if they don't have a book you want to read? You'd have to keep a separate list anyways.
Why not just check them out and read them? Or are the books you want to read that popular, or your library system that small? I feel like I'd put a hold on 50 books and the next day I'd have emails that 45 of them were ready for pickup.
Almost all of the books I have on hold are because there's a list of people who are also waiting for that book. #356 on 29 copies for one I put on hold a week ago. The other reason I put them on hold is because the book is not at the library nearest me. I put it on hold and they transfer it to my library within 2-3 days.
-
Well - boo:) Our library only allows 4 holds and 6 checkouts on line - total of ten.
At the real library it may be 50 or more, so maybe I'll try that route one day - it's just that I'm not great about returning books on time.
It sounds like you're talking about digital download checkouts. I think most libraries place stricter limits on the number of media items you can check out at a time than they do on regular books. One thing I'm not a fan of about digital download checkouts at my library is that they cannot be returned early; so you have to wait for your checkouts to expire before you can check out anything new if you have reached your limit. I assume that the DRM used to prevent access to the media after the checkout expires cannot be revoked in some cases, so allowing early "returns" might provide a way that multiple people could use the same "copy" concurrently - violating the copyright holder's interests.
-
I do a hold only when I want to read a book, and it isn't available. Otherwise I just check it out.
I typically have 0 holds at a time.
I also do most of my reading on a Kindle now.
The idea of having so many books on hold is weird to me. What do you do if they don't have a book you want to read? You'd have to keep a separate list anyways.
Why not just check them out and read them? Or are the books you want to read that popular, or your library system that small? I feel like I'd put a hold on 50 books and the next day I'd have emails that 45 of them were ready for pickup.
Almost all of the books I have on hold are because there's a list of people who are also waiting for that book. #356 on 29 copies for one I put on hold a week ago. The other reason I put them on hold is because the book is not at the library nearest me. I put it on hold and they transfer it to my library within 2-3 days.
Sure, same for me. That just happens like once a month. To have that with 50 books simultaneously, constantly, seems pretty wild to me.
-
I have to pay € 0.50 for a hold,
but our library is very big and includes a good co-operation with other libraries. I almost never need to request a book on hold! And when I do, I gladly pay and wait, which they maximize at 6 weeks. If it takes longer, they buy a new copy!
I still buy books, not the popular ones, but the ones I know I would like to re-read or if I want to support a certain writer or publisher.
-
I do a hold only when I want to read a book, and it isn't available. Otherwise I just check it out.
I typically have 0 holds at a time.
I also do most of my reading on a Kindle now.
The idea of having so many books on hold is weird to me. What do you do if they don't have a book you want to read? You'd have to keep a separate list anyways.
Why not just check them out and read them? Or are the books you want to read that popular, or your library system that small? I feel like I'd put a hold on 50 books and the next day I'd have emails that 45 of them were ready for pickup.
Almost all of the books I have on hold are because there's a list of people who are also waiting for that book. #356 on 29 copies for one I put on hold a week ago. The other reason I put them on hold is because the book is not at the library nearest me. I put it on hold and they transfer it to my library within 2-3 days.
Sure, same for me. That just happens like once a month. To have that with 50 books simultaneously, constantly, seems pretty wild to me.
Wild and awesome! I expect my holds will continue to trickle in over the next six months or so :D
Also, I'm a voracious reader, and tend to pick up about ten holds at a time. I work at a bookstore so I'm always getting ideas about what to read.
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
-
If you have a chance, the previous translation of The Little Prince by Katherine Woods is better. I've read both. My neighbor, who is French, indulged me and also read all three (the original French - hadn't read it since a child - plus the two English versions), and agreed that Woods' version is closer to the French and better overall.
Christmas came early:
The following items are being held for you. Please come to the library listed
to check them out.
1 $2.00 a day : living on almost nothing in America / Kathryn J. Edin, H.
Luke Shaefer.
Edin, Kathryn J.,
call number:339. 460973 EDI copy:1
Pickup by:11/2/2015
2 A discovery of witches : [a novel] / Deborah Harkness.
Harkness, Deborah E., 1965-
call number:FICTION HAR copy:1
Pickup by:11/2/2015
3 A monster calls : a novel / by Patrick Ness ; inspired by an idea from
Siobhan Dowd ; illustrations by Jim Kay.
Ness, Patrick, 1971-
call number:J NES copy:1
Pickup by:11/2/2015
4 An astronaut's guide to life on earth / Chris Hadfield.
Hadfield, Chris,
call number:629. 450092 HAD H copy:1
Pickup by:11/2/2015
5 The little prince / written and illustrated by Antoine de Saint-Exupery
; translated from the French by Richard Howard.
Saint-Exupery, Antoine de, 1900-1944.
call number:J SAI copy:3
Pickup by:11/2/2015
-
Well - boo:) Our library only allows 4 holds and 6 checkouts on line - total of ten.
At the real library it may be 50 or more, so maybe I'll try that route one day - it's just that I'm not great about returning books on time.
It sounds like you're talking about digital download checkouts. I think most libraries place stricter limits on the number of media items you can check out at a time than they do on regular books. One thing I'm not a fan of about digital download checkouts at my library is that they cannot be returned early; so you have to wait for your checkouts to expire before you can check out anything new if you have reached your limit. I assume that the DRM used to prevent access to the media after the checkout expires cannot be revoked in some cases, so allowing early "returns" might provide a way that multiple people could use the same "copy" concurrently - violating the copyright holder's interests.
Are you sure about that? If your library uses Overdrive for ebooks (as most seem to do), there's likely a way to do it. See this help page (http://help.overdrive.com/customer/portal/articles/1481263?Sup=http://ebook.trlib.org/Support.htm&nextgen=true&_ga=1.139068019.1945443805.1447799502) for more info. How to return the book (or if you can) seems to depend partly on what file type it is and whether or not you've downloaded it already. If you got a Kindle book, you have to return it through Amazon, for example.
-
I'm currently a member of 4 different library systems. All of them limit digital holds to 5. One of them charges for holds (even for physical books). I don't know if there are limits to physical book holds. I've only checked out digital books with 2 (via Overdrive) and both allowed me to return when I was done. Mine are Kindle format.
-
If you have a chance, the previous translation of The Little Prince by Katherine Woods is better. I've read both. My neighbor, who is French, indulged me and also read all three (the original French - hadn't read it since a child - plus the two English versions), and agreed that Woods' version is closer to the French and better overall.
Christmas came early:
The following items are being held for you. Please come to the library listed
to check them out.
1 $2.00 a day : living on almost nothing in America / Kathryn J. Edin, H.
Luke Shaefer.
Edin, Kathryn J.,
call number:339. 460973 EDI copy:1
Pickup by:11/2/2015
2 A discovery of witches : [a novel] / Deborah Harkness.
Harkness, Deborah E., 1965-
call number:FICTION HAR copy:1
Pickup by:11/2/2015
3 A monster calls : a novel / by Patrick Ness ; inspired by an idea from
Siobhan Dowd ; illustrations by Jim Kay.
Ness, Patrick, 1971-
call number:J NES copy:1
Pickup by:11/2/2015
4 An astronaut's guide to life on earth / Chris Hadfield.
Hadfield, Chris,
call number:629. 450092 HAD H copy:1
Pickup by:11/2/2015
5 The little prince / written and illustrated by Antoine de Saint-Exupery
; translated from the French by Richard Howard.
Saint-Exupery, Antoine de, 1900-1944.
call number:J SAI copy:3
Pickup by:11/2/2015
Good tip, thank you!
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
-
Well - boo:) Our library only allows 4 holds and 6 checkouts on line - total of ten.
At the real library it may be 50 or more, so maybe I'll try that route one day - it's just that I'm not great about returning books on time.
It sounds like you're talking about digital download checkouts. I think most libraries place stricter limits on the number of media items you can check out at a time than they do on regular books. One thing I'm not a fan of about digital download checkouts at my library is that they cannot be returned early; so you have to wait for your checkouts to expire before you can check out anything new if you have reached your limit. I assume that the DRM used to prevent access to the media after the checkout expires cannot be revoked in some cases, so allowing early "returns" might provide a way that multiple people could use the same "copy" concurrently - violating the copyright holder's interests.
Are you sure about that? If your library uses Overdrive for ebooks (as most seem to do), there's likely a way to do it. See this help page (http://help.overdrive.com/customer/portal/articles/1481263?Sup=http://ebook.trlib.org/Support.htm&nextgen=true&_ga=1.139068019.1945443805.1447799502) for more info. How to return the book (or if you can) seems to depend partly on what file type it is and whether or not you've downloaded it already. If you got a Kindle book, you have to return it through Amazon, for example.
For the kindle, you go to your amazon account page -> manage your content and devices, and then you can return the book.
-
As president of our library board, let me also say that having books checked out is absolutely the best thing you can do for the library. So many people think checking books out just makes "more work" for the library, while the fact is that our funding is largely based on circulation (at least for us it is), so increasing circulation actually increases funding and is our life blood. Eventually library funding may adapt to the new age, but for now circulation is a large part of our funding and circulation is going down, so anything you can do to increase circulation will likely make your local library very happy.
My mother is a retired high school librarian. She loved it when students checked out books! She had this great library and she wanted students to enjoy it and make use of it. Librarians aren't gatekeepers to keep people out, they are hosts to let people in.*
*exceptions of course, but that really is the way most librarians feel about it.
-
I do a hold only when I want to read a book, and it isn't available. Otherwise I just check it out.
I typically have 0 holds at a time.
I also do most of my reading on a Kindle now.
The idea of having so many books on hold is weird to me. What do you do if they don't have a book you want to read? You'd have to keep a separate list anyways.
Why not just check them out and read them? Or are the books you want to read that popular, or your library system that small? I feel like I'd put a hold on 50 books and the next day I'd have emails that 45 of them were ready for pickup.
A hold pulls the first available book from another location to my branch where I want to pick it up. Their gas, not mine.
-
Libraries are such a gift. Free internet (all the stations are filled it seems whenever I go). I wish libraries could be like coffee shops offering coffee and food.
What I like about putting books on hold is not only do they go outsided my own library to find the book, even if my library has it, I'll order a hold so I don't have to bother finding the book.
And if I don't finish book on time, renew from the internet.
-
I do a hold only when I want to read a book, and it isn't available. Otherwise I just check it out.
I typically have 0 holds at a time.
I also do most of my reading on a Kindle now.
The idea of having so many books on hold is weird to me. What do you do if they don't have a book you want to read? You'd have to keep a separate list anyways.
Why not just check them out and read them? Or are the books you want to read that popular, or your library system that small? I feel like I'd put a hold on 50 books and the next day I'd have emails that 45 of them were ready for pickup.
A hold pulls the first available book from another location to my branch where I want to pick it up. Their gas, not mine.
Sure, but that doesn't explain having 50. "I feel like I'd put a hold on 50 books and the next day I'd have emails that 45 of them were ready for pickup."
-
I do a hold only when I want to read a book, and it isn't available. Otherwise I just check it out.
I typically have 0 holds at a time.
I also do most of my reading on a Kindle now.
The idea of having so many books on hold is weird to me. What do you do if they don't have a book you want to read? You'd have to keep a separate list anyways.
Why not just check them out and read them? Or are the books you want to read that popular, or your library system that small? I feel like I'd put a hold on 50 books and the next day I'd have emails that 45 of them were ready for pickup.
A hold pulls the first available book from another location to my branch where I want to pick it up. Their gas, not mine.
Sure, but that doesn't explain having 50. "I feel like I'd put a hold on 50 books and the next day I'd have emails that 45 of them were ready for pickup."
It never seems to work out that way though. Half of the books I want to read have a million holds and half just need to switch branches. It is a bit like natural selection - the books that come quickly get removed from the hold list quickly. By the time you get to a limit of 50, most of the books on the list have long hold times and will come unpredictably.
If you put 50 books on hold at the same time....well, then 25 might show up at once!
-
Glad to see that many are using the hold system! I work in my local library, and I love ILL - we are a small branch, but we can get a much larger selection of books for our patrons than we have space for (or funds).
We can suspend individual holds for a period of time (set a beginning and end time) to keep your place in the queue without getting too many books at once. We tag the newest books as "new", which treats holds slightly differently based on your home library and ownership of the book. Essentially, a "new" book is reserved for "our" patrons' holds. Your place in the general queue may be 98, but for our copy you are 3. Only after the "new" tag is removed at 6 months will our copy go out on ILL holds. This is why the newest best sellers have such a long wait time. Personally, I have such a long mental wish list that I'm willing to wait to read newly published books, until the first rush of demand subsides. Books and other items that are not brand new may have their holds filled in a day or two, just as long as it takes the owning library to pull it, and the delivery guy to get it to us on his route. We get 3 deliveries a week, larger libraries are daily.
We are actively taking requests - we'd rather purchase books our patrons are interested in, rather than guess.
Some libraries in our system do not allow holds on certain materials, one in particular will not do DVD ILL, because their extensive collection means that they'd be inundated with requests, and would need to hire another staff member just to fill all those holds. It is frustrating to smaller libraries like mine, since we freely fill holds for their patrons, and that big library often has the only copy of unusual titles.
Our Overdrive checkouts in the past could not be "returned" early, and we initially had a low limit of 2 checkouts, so I would suggest to quick readers that they could change the default 14 day checkout to 7 day to be able to get to more books quickly. Our limits increased to 5 and now 10, and early return IS now possible on our system, so things are always evolving. The availability of ebooks and audiobooks thru Overdrive depends on your system, and your library, and publishers. Our system has items available for everyone, but individual libraries have the option to add more titles/copies for their patrons only. Certain publishers refuse to release titles to library lending groups like Overdrive, so that limits titles available for free. I've never seen the same thing for print titles. It is an evolving field.
-
Our Overdrive checkouts in the past could not be "returned" early, and we initially had a low limit of 2 checkouts, so I would suggest to quick readers that they could change the default 14 day checkout to 7 day to be able to get to more books quickly. Our limits increased to 5 and now 10, and early return IS now possible on our system, so things are always evolving.
My experience with Overdrive is from a few years back, and on a Mac - which I learned from a link above does not have the early return feature that other implmentations have.
Certain publishers refuse to release titles to library lending groups like Overdrive, so that limits titles available for free. I've never seen the same thing for print titles.
With physical media, publishers cannot prohibit libraries from obtaining and lending copies - the first sale doctrine of copyright ensures this (they might refuse to sell to libraries directly, but they can't prevent the purchaser of the media from selling or donating the copy to the library later).
While the first sale doctrine in principle should also apply to digital files, there is no way to distinguish between the original and a copy. To deal with this in a legal sense, publishers came up with the idea that they do not sell "copies" of digital files, but rather they sell licenses to use the digital file - and language of the license may be able to restrict the uses beyond the basic protections of copyright. Indeed this is an evolving thing where the public interest side of intellectual property is often unheard - only libraries and a few non-profits make much effort to prevent abusive expansion of copyright.
-
I early return on a Mac, via Amazon for Kindle. Works like a charm!
-
As an avid reader, this discussion is fascinating. I moved into a new apartment that is right across the street from a library about four months ago and proximity has done wonders for my reading. I haven't hit the max check-out limit yet, but did learn that the max hold limit is 30, the max Overdrive hold limit is 10, and the max Overdrive checkout is 10.
I've never quite understood how libraries define success (patron visits? books checked out?) and would be interested in hearing more from mustachians with such insight. What are the best ways, as a patron, that I can support my local library through my usage habits? Often, if there is a book I want to check out that is present at my local branch, I will still put it on hold so that it is pulled off the shelf and easier for me to pick up. Is this better, worse, or the same as plucking it from the shelf myself? When my holds come in, I have seven days to pick them up --- does it make a difference to the library if I pick it up on the first day or the last day of my hold period? Is renewing checked out items bad or good from the library's perspective?
-
As an avid reader, this discussion is fascinating. I moved into a new apartment that is right across the street from a library about four months ago and proximity has done wonders for my reading. I haven't hit the max check-out limit yet, but did learn that the max hold limit is 30, the max Overdrive hold limit is 10, and the max Overdrive checkout is 10.
I've never quite understood how libraries define success (patron visits? books checked out?) and would be interested in hearing more from mustachians with such insight. What are the best ways, as a patron, that I can support my local library through my usage habits? Often, if there is a book I want to check out that is present at my local branch, I will still put it on hold so that it is pulled off the shelf and easier for me to pick up. Is this better, worse, or the same as plucking it from the shelf myself? When my holds come in, I have seven days to pick them up --- does it make a difference to the library if I pick it up on the first day or the last day of my hold period? Is renewing checked out items bad or good from the library's perspective?
It varies by library. (I'm currently a library student.) Checkouts are one metric. Others track reference desk questions, attendance at events, books loaned out to other libraries/systems, and more. I doubt they get more "credit" for a hold than for a check out of the same book from the same library. It does make a little more work for the librarian, but I wouldn't worry too much about that. Days before pick up wouldn't matter in any system I've seen. Systems I'm familiar with haven't tracked renewals, either, though I can see where some might.
You can also support them by donating time, money (if they take it) or books. When in doubt, you can ask at your library, but in general, check outs, reference questions, visits, and attendance at events are the most common things tracked.
-
As an avid reader, this discussion is fascinating. I moved into a new apartment that is right across the street from a library about four months ago and proximity has done wonders for my reading. I haven't hit the max check-out limit yet, but did learn that the max hold limit is 30, the max Overdrive hold limit is 10, and the max Overdrive checkout is 10.
I've never quite understood how libraries define success (patron visits? books checked out?) and would be interested in hearing more from mustachians with such insight. What are the best ways, as a patron, that I can support my local library through my usage habits? Often, if there is a book I want to check out that is present at my local branch, I will still put it on hold so that it is pulled off the shelf and easier for me to pick up. Is this better, worse, or the same as plucking it from the shelf myself? When my holds come in, I have seven days to pick them up --- does it make a difference to the library if I pick it up on the first day or the last day of my hold period? Is renewing checked out items bad or good from the library's perspective?
It varies by library. (I'm currently a library student.) Checkouts are one metric. Others track reference desk questions, attendance at events, books loaned out to other libraries/systems, and more. I doubt they get more "credit" for a hold than for a check out of the same book from the same library. It does make a little more work for the librarian, but I wouldn't worry too much about that. Days before pick up wouldn't matter in any system I've seen. Systems I'm familiar with haven't tracked renewals, either, though I can see where some might.
You can also support them by donating time, money (if they take it) or books. When in doubt, you can ask at your library, but in general, check outs, reference questions, visits, and attendance at events are the most common things tracked.
Yes, I'd include all of the above. The only comment I'd make on the holds pickup issue is that the longer a book sits on the holds shelf, the longer it is out of circulation. If another patron further down the queue decides to buy the book rather than wait, that is one less circ. Generally our rule is if the list of our patrons on hold for a title exceeds 7, it is time to get another copy. Unfortunately, that can take time if copies are on back-order.
We do track renewals, but I'm still trying to find out whether they count as equivalent to a checkout, or perhaps at some reduced rate. I'm also trying to find out how ILL circs are counted - credit to owning library, to checkout library, some of each? My system is 3 counties of independent libraries of various types, with a central "system library" that has no patrons but serves the member libraries and provides centralized services like our database, Overdrive, Zinio, ILL delivery, LP circulating collections, etc. So different member libraries have different policies and structures, but we coordinate, too.
-
I do this but it never fails that they all arrive at about the same time.
I added 30 to my request list and 25 came in at once. Then the librarian showed me you can place a request and check Freeze next to it and the request won't be sent until you Unfreeze it. Greatest thing ever.
-
Thanks Villanelle and teen persuasion. Always fascinating to know more about the inner workings of things.
Hopefully knowing that check out numbers are important will encourage me to pick up more books in volume a wider variety of books in general.
-
I do this but it never fails that they all arrive at about the same time.
I added 30 to my request list and 25 came in at once. Then the librarian showed me you can place a request and check Freeze next to it and the request won't be sent until you Unfreeze it. Greatest thing ever.
Yep, good tip. I find it's pretty easy to self-regulate. Number 98 on the hold list? Request it now. Number 1 on the hold list, aka get the book in two days? I would asses how many books I'm already reading, and either request the hold, or put it on my digital "shelved for later reading" option that my library website gives me :)
Also... Since I get to have books out for three weeks, with possible renewals, it's all pretty darn good! Loving having a full bookshelf for FREE and no risk of clutter! :D
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
-
no risk of clutter!
Don't discount mental clutter--having to keep track of your list, when to freeze/unfreeze stuff, or which items to switch from the later digital shelf to the holds list, which books to read next on your shelf, when certain ones are due, going to return some, but not others, etc. etc.
I like the simplicity of having one list of books I want to read. When I finish a book, I decide on the next one, and then read that.
Keeping my mind as clear as possible is important to me, and this system (and having a bunch of stuff checked out at once), wouldn't allow that, for me.
If it works for you, great! Just throwing my opinion in too as something for you to consider. :)
-
no risk of clutter!
Don't discount mental clutter--having to keep track of your list, when to freeze/unfreeze stuff, or which items to switch from the later digital shelf to the holds list, which books to read next on your shelf, when certain ones are due, going to return some, but not others, etc. etc.
....
I've got a huge number of books out from the library for both the kids and me (Something ridiculous like 30-40). The books just all stay in one place. We go each week, and the kids pick out which books they want to keep and which they want to take back. There is a bag with the books for returns. If a book needs to be returned, the library emails me. The mental overhead is surprisingly low once the system is in place. :)
I haven't hit 50 holds at the library, but I have hit the maximum digital holds - which is something in the range of 20. I need to set up my kids account to go to my kindle and phone....audiobooks for the kids on our holiday drive FTW.
-
Call me a saddo but cultivating my ebook and e-audio wish and hold lists is something I enjoy. I do get some satisfaction when a book becomes available just as I finish one. It's minor art!
-
no risk of clutter!
Don't discount mental clutter--having to keep track of your list, when to freeze/unfreeze stuff, or which items to switch from the later digital shelf to the holds list, which books to read next on your shelf, when certain ones are due, going to return some, but not others, etc. etc.
....
I've got a huge number of books out from the library for both the kids and me (Something ridiculous like 30-40). The books just all stay in one place. We go each week, and the kids pick out which books they want to keep and which they want to take back. There is a bag with the books for returns. If a book needs to be returned, the library emails me. The mental overhead is surprisingly low once the system is in place. :)
I haven't hit 50 holds at the library, but I have hit the maximum digital holds - which is something in the range of 20. I need to set up my kids account to go to my kindle and phone....audiobooks for the kids on our holiday drive FTW.
Yep! The reminder emails for returns make it pretty easy. And as my main hobby, I don't mind a little cultivation :)
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
-
I've been getting college textbooks from my library. Talk about savings!
-
no risk of clutter!
Don't discount mental clutter--having to keep track of your list, when to freeze/unfreeze stuff, or which items to switch from the later digital shelf to the holds list, which books to read next on your shelf, when certain ones are due, going to return some, but not others, etc. etc.
....
I've got a huge number of books out from the library for both the kids and me (Something ridiculous like 30-40). The books just all stay in one place. We go each week, and the kids pick out which books they want to keep and which they want to take back. There is a bag with the books for returns. If a book needs to be returned, the library emails me. The mental overhead is surprisingly low once the system is in place. :)
I haven't hit 50 holds at the library, but I have hit the maximum digital holds - which is something in the range of 20. I need to set up my kids account to go to my kindle and phone....audiobooks for the kids on our holiday drive FTW.
Yep! The reminder emails for returns make it pretty easy. And as my main hobby, I don't mind a little cultivation :)
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
+1 on pretty much all counts.
We go to the library every week on Saturday. Every Friday I get an email with the books that need to be returned and the books available for pickup.
-
I do a hold only when I want to read a book, and it isn't available. Otherwise I just check it out.
I typically have 0 holds at a time.
I also do most of my reading on a Kindle now.
The idea of having so many books on hold is weird to me. What do you do if they don't have a book you want to read? You'd have to keep a separate list anyways.
Why not just check them out and read them? Or are the books you want to read that popular, or your library system that small? I feel like I'd put a hold on 50 books and the next day I'd have emails that 45 of them were ready for pickup.
A hold pulls the first available book from another location to my branch where I want to pick it up. Their gas, not mine.
Sure, but that doesn't explain having 50. "I feel like I'd put a hold on 50 books and the next day I'd have emails that 45 of them were ready for pickup."
Well, 50 is a lot. But holds are as much of an art as a science. And for people who,use music CDs, 50 probably isn't that much. You can put on a CD while cleaning the house, cooking dinner, etc. I suppose you could even play a library CD while reading a library good.
I may have up to 25 holds at any one time, and that includes 5 - 10 for items that will come in no sooner than 3 months.
Others holds come in within a few days, and at my library holds are kept for a week for me to pick up.
In one week I may have 10 books that are DIY or cook books, and all I do with those is flip,through them, not reading them from cover to cover.
Another 3 - 5 will be for DVDs that I may actually not watch when I get them depending on how they strike me.
I'll have 5 novels on hold at any one time and I won't read them all, my average is about 1 in 5 read from beginning to end. I skim 2 others, and ignore the other 3 after trying a few pages. I am constantly in search of a decent novel.
I consume, I mean actually use, 5 -10 books a week and the others I haul home and back to the library after taking a cursory look.
-
Thanks Villanelle and teen persuasion. Always fascinating to know more about the inner workings of things.
Hopefully knowing that check out numbers are important will encourage me to pick up more books in volume a wider variety of books in general.
Also, and this depends on the library, taking books and magazines off the shelf, using them, and leaving them on table can earn a use chit on the record of each of those items. Some libraries scan the bar code to capture an "in house" use.
I make an effort to use at least 5 items in this way in my local small public library branch. It tells the manager of that branch which items she has selected that I like enough to take off the shelf and look at. Usually, those are magazines, but there are some craft and decorating books Imflip throough each week while in the library.
Someone asked about renewals: in my library system renewals absolutely counted as circulation.
-
no risk of clutter!
Don't discount mental clutter--having to keep track of your list, when to freeze/unfreeze stuff, or which items to switch from the later digital shelf to the holds list, which books to read next on your shelf, when certain ones are due, going to return some, but not others, etc. etc.
I like the simplicity of having one list of books I want to read. When I finish a book, I decide on the next one, and then read that.
Keeping my mind as clear as possible is important to me, and this system (and having a bunch of stuff checked out at once), wouldn't allow that, for me.
If it works for you, great! Just throwing my opinion in too as something for you to consider. :)
For me, to make it work, I have to go to the library once a week. That way I am always picking up my holds and returning the items that MUST be returned. It's really only DVDs with a one week check out period that trip me up. Currently
I owe $9 in fines.
-
I have going to the library every week my entire life. It is a habit, started my Mother. She would take us all every week to pick books every Friday afternoon. When you do something every single week your whole life, it is a tough habit to break!
My library also allows me to order books from the 12+ other libraries in their circle- they arrive in a few days. I don't buy books. Ever. I usually order 1 or 2 at a time, but have been known to order 10+ at a time when I am researching a trip or something else. :-) My librarian genuinely seems delighted that I take advantage of this opportunity! I love my library! I am considerate though, and don't keep books out of circulation for excessive periods of time. I have been on the waiting end, I don't want to do that to someone else....
I have an Ipad, and have been known to download books from the library for free. However, with our library system, the waiting list for books I want to read is usually quite lengthy (100 deep is not unusual). Inevitably I am in the middle of a real book, when I come up in the queue! And the book usually has to be checked back in before I can finish it.
I walk to the library (it is 20 minutes each way) or bike there. My neighbors make fun on me. I don't care!
-
...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....I also renew everything obsessively, even if I am going to return a book the next day.
Thank you for these additional tips about helping our libraries. I'll start doing the same.
Like you, I check out and renew. I also, make a point of checking out favorite books of mine so that their value shows up in the library statistics. (I got the idea from Connie Willis' Bellwether in which the main character checks out library books she fear will otherwise be culled form the library due to lack of use.)
-
Sure, but that doesn't explain having 50. "I feel like I'd put a hold on 50 books and the next day I'd have emails that 45 of them were ready for pickup."
The reasons my holds are at fifty:
- Desiring multiple angles on a topic (e.g., particular event, person from history, etc.)
- Researching an upcoming trip
- Learning something brand new
- Having a wide range of interests
- Films/documentaries
- Picture books
Right now my holds list looks like this:
- Multiple angles=> 12 - overview of US history, history of immigration to the US
- Upcoming trip => 5 - Arizona history, hiking, flora/fauna, etc.
- Brand new => 3 - co-housing, building small houses, making cards
- Wide range => 15 - frugal living, meditation, poetry, WA state history, mystery novel, natural journals
- Films/documentaries => 3
- Picture books => 12 (I group these by theme for reading to my young niece; right now it's airplanes)
Note 1: Very few of these books are brand new. Often they're simply excellent books that many people in my library system want to read and re-read. I appreciate being able to indicate my interest and then wait for my turn to read the book. I want everyone to have access to these items and am happy that we have an excellent method to share the books.
Note 2: For some of the holds (e.g., picture books, learning something new), I wait until I'm able to check out all the books on a topic at the same time. This allows for me to use them in the way that I need.
-
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.
-
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.
Yes, we do. Leaving items on the table is perfectly acceptable; so is handing them to a staff person at a service desk or, at least at our branch, placing them on a cart. We always scan the items as in-house check in so we can tell what's getting used.
-
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.
-
no risk of clutter!
Don't discount mental clutter--having to keep track of your list, when to freeze/unfreeze stuff, or which items to switch from the later digital shelf to the holds list, which books to read next on your shelf, when certain ones are due, going to return some, but not others, etc. etc.
I like the simplicity of having one list of books I want to read. When I finish a book, I decide on the next one, and then read that.
Keeping my mind as clear as possible is important to me, and this system (and having a bunch of stuff checked out at once), wouldn't allow that, for me.
If it works for you, great! Just throwing my opinion in too as something for you to consider. :)
For me, to make it work, I have to go to the library once a week. That way I am always picking up my holds and returning the items that MUST be returned. It's really only DVDs with a one week check out period that trip me up. Currently
I owe $9 in fines.
Yes, me too. The branch I use only has free parking on Saturdays, which made it easy to settle into a weekly routine. Takes five minutes before I leave to gather up what's due and renew what I can online. When I first moved to my current city, the city budget was still hurting after the Recession and they had cut nearly all Saturday library hours. I racked up a ton of fines because I never had the same time available week-to-week to get there. The current routine takes up no brain space at all. In my case, I use the holds system a lot because our city has a bunch of small branches scattered around with the collection divided among them, and a lot of the central library's books are on closed shelves and have to be specially requested. So holds are the only way for me to get hold of most of what I want to read--relatively few books are available at my neighborhood branch, especially older books.
-
...
Yes, me too. The branch I use only has free parking on Saturdays, which made it easy to settle into a weekly routine. Takes five minutes before I leave to gather up what's due and renew what I can online. When I first moved to my current city, the city budget was still hurting after the Recession and they had cut nearly all Saturday library hours. I racked up a ton of fines because I never had the same time available week-to-week to get there. The current routine takes up no brain space at all. In my case, I use the holds system a lot because our city has a bunch of small branches scattered around with the collection divided among them, and a lot of the central library's books are on closed shelves and have to be specially requested. So holds are the only way for me to get hold of most of what I want to read--relatively few books are available at my neighborhood branch, especially older books.
Are you me? This has been my exact experience. Saturday library hours are wonderful! :) A few years ago my neighborhood library was only open during hours I was at work.
-
I have going to the library every week my entire life. It is a habit, started my Mother. She would take us all every week to pick books every Friday afternoon. When you do something every single week your whole life, it is a tough habit to break!
I walk to the library (it is 20 minutes each way) or bike there. My neighbors make fun on me. I don't care!
+1 for starting the habit as a child
you have very small minded neighbors!
my library is lacking in the e-book dept. I haven't looked at this thread in a while, someone probably mentioned getting a library pass for $20 a year to use Philly's awesome e-library. I have not done that in years, but the years I did it, the book selection was more my taste and way more readily available.
-
Also, and this depends on the library, taking books and magazines off the shelf, using them, and leaving them on table can earn a use chit on the record of each of those items. Some libraries scan the bar code to capture an "in house" use.
I make an effort to use at least 5 items in this way in my local small public library branch. It tells the manager of that branch which items she has selected that I like enough to take off the shelf and look at. Usually, those are magazines, but there are some craft and decorating books Imflip throough each week while in the library.
I had no idea about this and I always neatly put every item back. Good info.
-
This makes me very very happy to hear, I am a public librarian of many years and I get immense pleasure hearing, reading and seeing people enjoying their local libraries and the delights contained therein!
-
I, too, often have 50 holds in the Library. AND DO YOU KNOW WHY? It is all YOUR FAULT. You guys recommend books, and I put them on hold. You guys talk about stuff, and I look up the library catalog for that topic, and put books on hold. Most of the books you recommend have 120 or so people wanting to read them, so I am way down the queue, and when I finally get them, I wonder why I am reading them, so I have to search the forum and find out. Sometimes they're financial, sometimes philosophical, sometimes they are just standard books that every American has read, but aren't in our syllabus. But there is ALWAYS a waiting period for them!
It's a real problem!
-
I, too, often have 50 holds in the Library. AND DO YOU KNOW WHY? It is all YOUR FAULT. You guys recommend books, and I put them on hold. You guys talk about stuff, and I look up the library catalog for that topic, and put books on hold. Most of the books you recommend have 120 or so people wanting to read them, so I am way down the queue, and when I finally get them, I wonder why I am reading them, so I have to search the forum and find out. Sometimes they're financial, sometimes philosophical, sometimes they are just standard books that every American has read, but aren't in our syllabus. But there is ALWAYS a waiting period for them!
It's a real problem!
This. So much this! Every time I go look at the 'What are you reading now' thread I suddenly have 2-5 more books in my hold list! It's a big problem :) I've had to start putting some in my 'for later' list instead so I don't get too many books in at once.
-
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.
It depends on the library.
-
Same here - too many MMM people in Ottawa.
I just went online to check my current status:
19 checked out - 17 real (including a DVD) and 2 virtual. A large proportion of the 17 are knitting books - this is the season for knitting, right?
46 on hold - 5 are ready now, 4 are in transit, and the rest have waiting lists, so I could see them in a few weeks to a few months.
Darn library - I would hardly drive anywhere if I didn't have to go to the library.
I, too, often have 50 holds in the Library. AND DO YOU KNOW WHY? It is all YOUR FAULT. You guys recommend books, and I put them on hold. You guys talk about stuff, and I look up the library catalog for that topic, and put books on hold. Most of the books you recommend have 120 or so people wanting to read them, so I am way down the queue, and when I finally get them, I wonder why I am reading them, so I have to search the forum and find out. Sometimes they're financial, sometimes philosophical, sometimes they are just standard books that every American has read, but aren't in our syllabus. But there is ALWAYS a waiting period for them!
It's a real problem!
-
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.
-
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.
-
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.
-
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!
-
I love the overdrive app. Unfortunately i do not have time to go to my physical library branch but overdrive works for me.
-
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. :-)
-
(175+ books/year).
Sheesh! Your username is accurate. Well done!