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Student Orientation: Borrowing eBooks

Using eBooks at the Library

Library eBooks are convenient and a great use of your iPad. Most eBooks are available for you to download and keep as long as you need them. However, some will only allow you to download a small section, while others will only let you check them out for a limited period of time (usually 7 days). Most Hiram College Library eBooks are available for unlimited use, meaning that you and all of your classmates can use the same book at the same time. Sometimes your professor will use a library eBook as their textbook.

If you have questions about using the library or downloading eBooks, please ask. We are here to help you!

Find an eBook

Find an Ebook

Ways to Search

OneSource will search multiple resources at once! 

Tip: Use a keyword search instead of a whole question. Then narrow down the results with the filters on the side.

Search the Hiram College Library, OhioLINK, and many databases with one search.

Need help? Email us at library@hiram.edu

Database - a searchable index of reliable resources like academic journals, newspapers, and magazines. Some databases focus on specific subjects and may also include e-books and multimedia.

 

  • What if the "A to Z List" does not have the journal or magazine I am looking for? It is a lengthy list, but it does not have everything. However, there is another option! Fill out the InterLibrary Loan Form for Articles, and we will attempt to get the article for you.
  • What if I cannot find the Full Text of an article? We would be happy to help you find the article you are looking for. Visit the Ask Here desk to ask for a librarian or email us.
  • What types of materials can I borrow through SearchOhio and OhioLINK? You can request print materials, audiobooks, music, movies and other formats. 
  • How long before I receive my requested material? Most arrive within a week, but it depends on their availability. You’ll be notified by email when they arrive.
  • How do I return items? Drop them off at Hiram Library!
  • Are there different rules for borrowing? Yes. Items have different loan periods, renewal limits, daily fine rates and replacement costs than the items you borrow from Hiram College Library.

Find a Specific Journal

Browse Journals by Subject

Locate a particular article if you know the title of the journal it is in and discover new journals in a particular subject area.

 

  • What if I cannot find the Full Text of an article?

You will be prompted to login to the EJC when accessing from off campus. See Connecting from Off Campus for help with logging in. 

You will be prompted to login to the EBC when accessing from off campus. See Connecting from Off Campus for help with logging in.


The WorldCat Catalog

Search WorldCat if you have exhausted other options for locating the items you need (Hiram's Library Catalog, OhioLink/SearchOhio, OneSource, etc.). WorldCat is the world's largest network of library content and services. Currently, this shared catalog contains the collections of 72,000 libraries in 170 countries and territories. 

If you find something in WorldCat that you want but can't find it in the Hiram College Library collection or OhioLINK you'll need to fill out an InterLibrary Loan Form to request the item.

The time required to locate and obtain these materials can vary so please be proactive in your research. When in doubt please visit the library and talk to our librarians for help.

Tips:

Keyword Search Entering one or two specific words will find many results although some might be unrelated to your topic.

Subject Search Select "subject" in the drop down, then type baseball or more specialized terms, such as: planetary motionarmadillo diseasesetc.). The * at the end of a base word will find the different forms of a word, for example, use regulat* to find results with regulation, regulatory, regulators. Using "and" in between terms will ensure both words are found.

Title/Author Search Choose "Title" for specific works or "Author" for books by a particular author.

Material Type (book, eBook, etc.)
Select a material type from the dropdown to limit to a Book (physical item), eBook (digital item), musical recording, map, and more. 

Collection:
Select the Collection limiter to reduce your results to a particular part of the library, such as the film collection, juvenile collection, or government documents. Since the Government Documents collection is so large, it can sometimes overwhelm your results. Use the "All Collections Except Gov Docs" limiter to remove them from your search.


Find Books in the Juvenile Collection (2nd floor)

How it is Arranged?

The Juvenile Collection (also known as the Kids Books or the Children’s Collection) is actually four collections in one.  What they have in common is:

  • They contain books for pre-K through 12.
  • There is no breakdown on the shelves by age group, although picture books and board books are separated by format.

The four collections are called:

Juvenile, which is the location given in the brief catalog record below:

LOCATION CALL # STATUS
 JUVENILE 597.89 Jen    AVAILABLE

The Juvenile collection contains non-fiction books, such a books about animals, biographies, as well as counting books and alphabet books.  It is arranged by Dewey Decimal call numbers.

Juvenile Fiction, which is the location given in the brief catalog record below:

LOCATION CALL # STATUS
 JUVENILE FICTION JF Se81b 2011    AVAILABLE

Juvenile Fiction contains beginning to read, middle grade, and young adult fiction.  It is arranged alphabetically by the author’s last name.

Picture books (call number begins with PB) contains picture books and are arranged alphabetically by the author's last name.

Board books (call number begins with BB) are books with thick, cardboard pages, typically for younger children. They are arranged alphabetically by the author's last name and stored in bins below the picture books. 

How Do I Find Juvenile Books in the Online Catalog?

There are three tricks to finding fiction books (and sometimes non-fiction books) using the catalog.  Let’s suppose you are looking for books on frogs.  Here are two ways to find juvenile books on frogs:

  • Do a keyword search for frogs, but limit your search to the juvenile collection only. Your search would look something like this:

  • Do a subject search for frogs and use the phrase juvenile literature (to find mostly non-fiction books) or juvenile fiction (to find fiction books)

  • You may also search what the catalog calls genre/form using a keyword search.  The most common genre/form searches in the juvenile collection are for: picture books for children, board books, and stories without words.  This last one may retrieve items from the main collection or the fiction collection, so be sure to limit this search to the juvenile collection.

Using JSTOR eBooks

All JSTOR books have unlimited downloads, but they must be downloaded one chapter at a time.

  1. From the library's catalog, click "JSTOR View online."
  2. You will then be on the JSTOR website.
  3. Select Download below the chapter you want to download.
  4. Accept and download the Terms & Conditions of Use after reading them.
  5. The downloaded chapter will open in a new browser tab.
  6. Use the "Sharrow" to send your PDF to an app like notability or iBooks, or use the "Open in..." menu.
  7. If using Notability, you will be prompted to create a new note or add to existing note. We recommend either a new note and adding each chapter to a "Subject" you have named as the book title.

Using EBSCO eBooks

Most of our eBooks are hosted with the EBSCO platform. You can read an EBSCO eBook in your browser, but you may be asked to sign in before downloading the book if a download is available. This is because the publisher wants to preserve copyright and make sure that access is limited to authorized users (in this case, Hiram students). 

To read an EBSCO eBook in your browser:

Click on the preferred file format, typically PDF or ePUB (if available). You must be connected to the internet to read in your browser.

To download an unrestricted EBSCO eBook using your iPad:
  1. If an EBSCO eBook is available for full, unrestricted download, a Full Download link will appear.
  2. Click Full Download.
  3. Select PDF.
  4. Click Full Download again.
  5. Click Close
  6. Click Download in the small menu at the bottom of your screen.
  7. Click "Open in..."
  8. Select your app of choice, such as Notability or iBooks. 
Some EBSCO eBooks will only allow you to download a few pages. To read them offline, use the EBSCO mobile app.

 

Using the EBSCO Mobile App

The library's eBooks are always accessible, and many are available without any restrictions for download or usage. However, some eBooks provided by EBSCO have limits set to prevent downloading a PDF. These books can always be read in a browser, but did you know that you can download them for 7 days in the EBSCO Mobile App? 

To access the EBSCO Mobile App:

  1. Download the EBSCO Mobile App
  2. Open the App and click "Get Started."
  3. Search for Hiram College to connect to the content Hiram purchases on your behalf
  4. Click on the "Person" Icon in the lower right corner.
  5. Create a free EBSCO Account or Sign in to MyEBSCO using your existing EBSCO Account so that you can download, bookmark, and save content in the App.
  6. Once signed in, search for your book by title. 
  7. Use the Source Type button to limit to eBooks. 
  8. Click on the title of the book.
  9. Click "Access Now" to download the book or begin reading online. 

For complete information about using the EBSCO Mobile App, visit EBSCO's quick guide and view the video below.

O'Reilly/Safari eBooks

The library subscribes to the O'Reilly (formerly Safari) online library of eBooks. These books include a number of subjects from computer manuals to business resources. Accessing O'Reilly eBooks is a little bit different than standard library eBooks. You can find O'Reilly eBooks in the library's regular catalog, or you can search the platform directly using the first link below.

Library's Website

Additional information about the Library is available on the Hiram College Library website, library.hiram.edu.

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