BiblioTech (San Antonio)
BiblioTech is the first and only bookless, all-digital public library in the United States. It opened in the fall of 2013 and serves the City of San Antonio and Bexar County, Texas.[1]
Offerings
The library lends e-readers and digital content rather than physical media.[2][3] BiblioTech lends e-readers to those with a BiblioTech card; about half of the e-readers are on loan at any given time.[1] Each e-reader can hold up to five books.[1]
BiblioTech also offers online databases and educational resources,[4] a blog (BiblioTech Bytes[5]), a monthly enewsletter (BiblioTech In Motion[6]), Story Time,[7] and a book club which can participants can attend live (either in person or online via Google+ Hangout video chat), or view online (via a live feed or later on YouTube[8] or the library's Google+ profile[9]).[10] Additionally, onsite, patrons can visit the circulation desk as well as make use of the library's 48 iMacs, dozen iPads, two Xbox 360s with Kinect, and four Microsoft Surface touch-screen video tablets with interactive Kaplan Early Learning Company educational games.[11]
List of databases
As of 2014 the library arranges for its patrons access to digital content from several providers. Some resources are free of charge to the library, and some require paid subscriptions.[12][13][14]
| Title | Producer | Access |
|---|---|---|
| 3M Cloud Library | 3M Company | Library card |
| 92Y | Free | |
| Ancestry.com | Ancestry.com, Inc. | Library card |
| AR BookFinder | Free | |
| Atomic Training | Library card | |
| CK-12 | CK-12 Foundation | Free |
| Class Central | Free | |
| ComicsPlus | Library card | |
| Coursera | Coursera, Inc. | Free |
| Digital Public Library of America | Digital Public Library of America | Free |
| Directory of Open Access Journals | Free | |
| Duolingo | Free | |
| ERIC | U.S. Department of Education | Free |
| Heritage Quest | Cambridge Information Group | Library card |
| Hoopla | Midwest Tape LLC | Library card |
| Khan Academy | Free | |
| Learning Express Library | LearningExpress, LLC | Library card |
| LibriVox | LibriVox | Free |
| Mango | Creative Empire, LLC[15] | Library card |
| Medline Plus | Free | |
| Merriam-Webster Dictionary & Thesaurus | Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. | Free |
| NewsBank | NewsBank, Inc. | Library card |
| Newspaper Archive | Heritage Microfilm, Inc. | Library card |
| OneClick Digital | Recorded Books Inc.[16] | Library card |
| Project Gutenberg | Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation | Free |
| Project Muse | Free | |
| ProQuest | Cambridge Information Group | Library card |
| Purdue Owl | Purdue University | Free |
| SIRS | Cambridge Information Group | Library card |
| TEDtalks | Sapling Foundation | Free |
| TexShare Database Collection | Library card | |
| UTSA Digital Collections | University of Texas at San Antonio | Free |
| Zinio | Gilvest | Library card |
Cost, location, and demographics
The County-operated library cost $2.3 million (USD) and is located on the San Antonio's economically depressed South Side.[1] San Antonio is the second largest city in Texas and the seventh largest city in the U.S., but ranks 60th in literacy.[1] The library is likely to surpass 100,000 visitors in its first year.[1]
Comparison to traditional libraries
All-digital libraries have existed on college campuses for years, but this is the first all-digital public library.[1] Head librarian Ashley Eklof says that in her former librarian job at a traditional library, items would get misplaced, vandalized, and go missing altogether, but she hasn't had any problems with e-readers disappearing.[1] The county also saved millions on some expenses, the architecture, and furniture required to store books, as well as the infrastructure to bear the weight of the books.[1] The 10,000 volumes they offer cost about the same as the physical books.[1]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 Weber, Paul J., Associated Press (January 3, 2014). "Nation's first bookless library opens in San Antonio". Dallas Morning News.
- ↑ Stern, Joanna (January 14, 2013). "The First Bookless Public Library: Texas to Have BiblioTech". ABC News.
- ↑ Hidalgo, Jason (January 14, 2013). "San Antonio launching 'bookless' BiblioTech library in fall, places its eggs in digital basket". Engadget.com.
- ↑ "Resources". BiblioTech.org. Retrieved June 22, 2014.
- ↑ "BiblioTech's monthly blog". BiblioTech Bytes.
- ↑ "BiblioTech's monthly newsletter". BiblioTech In Motion.
- ↑ "Story Time". BiblioTech's YouTube Account.
- ↑ "BiblioTech's Book Club". BiblioTech's YouTube Account.
- ↑ "BiblioTech's Google+ Profile". Google+.
- ↑ "About & Join". BiblioTech Book Club. Retrieved June 22, 2014.
- ↑ Nawotkajan, Edward (January 18, 2014). "It’s Here: A Library With Nary a Book". New York Times.
- ↑ "Databases". Bexar County, Texas: BiblioTech. Retrieved October 7, 2014.
- ↑ "How it Works". Bexar County, Texas: BiblioTech. Retrieved October 7, 2014.
- ↑ "Resources". Bexar County, Texas: BiblioTech. Retrieved October 7, 2014.
- ↑ "Terms and Conditions". Farmington Hills, MI: Mango Languages. Retrieved October 7, 2014.
- ↑ "About Us". Prince Frederick, MD: Recorded Books Inc. Retrieved October 7, 2014.
External links
Coordinates: 29°20′39″N 98°30′18″W / 29.3442°N 98.5049°W