This was in the comments to a story at Teleread.org
” I can assure you OverDrive is not interested in managing or having any say in your library policies and issues.”
Sounds like just the opposite to me.
My sister is legally blind, (she can read large print on her Kindle but cannot drive), and lives in a rural area where she does not have easy library access. I live in another county, but she frequently uses my library card to access my county library’s e-book collection as well as the library in Philadelphia. The libraries welcome her patronage, but it sure looks like Penguin is telling them that they should block her access since she doesn’t live, work or attend school “in service area, etc.”. If that isn’t having a “say in your library policies and issues”, what would you call it?
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Any issues for your library when people give friends and relatives their library account info so they can check out ebooks?
Wel…
They are not having a say in the libraries policies as the libraries have ‘bought’ the service under specific rules.If the libraries don’t want to have those restrictions then they can go somewhere else. Not like it’s compulsorary. They could always use another system, or have no ebooks atall.
And I should think that even though libraries don’t mind you borrowing someone elses card there is probably something in the rules you agree to saying that you shouldn’t be doing that anyway. Just because it’s not being enforced ridgedly doesn’t mean it’s not still against the policies or rules and regulations of the library.
Honestly, how would they find
Honestly, how would they find out if you don’t tell them? It is most likely against policy, so why would you even tell the library that you are doing that?
Tell
>> so why would you even tell the library that you are doing that?
You wouldn’t. This may be one of the reasons that Penguin currently pulled their books from the Overdrive program for Kindles.
One impact this may have for libraries is that publishers may require libraries to provide them access to internet logs if they want to provide ebooks. If your library is in New York for example and you have IP addresses hitting your ebook website that are from California then the publishers will take note of that.
Sure someone could be on vacation in California but if one library card keeps logging in from another state over an extended time it is pretty clear that the person is not on vacation and has shared their library account.
From a technical standpoint it is not difficult to track IPs and to connect them to users. Libraries may not want to do this. On the flip side publishers may not want to provide ebooks without this information being provided to them. Note what Penguin has just done.
out-of-state library cards
Sorry, but your scenario does not necessarily describe someone borrowing a patron’s card. We are on a state border, and are also a heavily used tourist area. We provide cards to people who do not live in our community as long as they are willing to pay the fee for an out-of-state card. There are a lot of people who spend two weeks or a month here in the summer, and are willing to pay the yearly fee for access to the library. They could easily be living in California, and have a perfectly valid card from our library, so IP address is no measure of whether the user is a valid card-holder or not.
Could be bad
>>Sorry, but your scenario does not necessarily describe someone borrowing a patron’s card.
Sorry but publishers do not have to care. If they restrict to out of state users; to bad if the library card is valid. The publisher is the one calling the shots. They own the material and they can put on any restrictions they want.
>>They could easily be living in California, and have a perfectly valid card from our library, so IP address is no measure of whether the user is a valid card-holder or not.
That is why it is going to be a pain for libraries if publishers mandate an IP check system.
Library services for visually impaired
Great library service is available through the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS) for people who can’t read standard print books. The national program offers audio and Braille books. The state and regional libraries offer additional books in those formats, as well as large print books. All services are available over the computer and through the mail, all funded by tax dollars. And all offer the traditional library respect for patron privacy.
The NLS home page offers links to the regional libraries so that all can find the appropriate point for service.
http://www.loc.gov/nls/