eBooks at ACPL

The Allen County Public Library loans Overdrive audiobooks and Adobe eBooks to ACPL library card holders.  According to the ACPL, “These eBooks are for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy them, give them away or re-use them under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with these eBooks or online at http://www.gutenberg.org/.”   A library patron is allowed to check out up to 10 eBooks/audio items at any one time.  On is also able place up to five print and five eBooks/audiobooks on hold.

To checkout and download, you need the following: 

• A valid library card
• Internet access
• A computer or device that meets the system requirements for the type(s) of materials you wish to download
• Free software for the computer or device on which you wish to use the materials available at this site

As my husband is in the car a great deal for work, he enjoys listening to audiobooks to help pass the time.  There are also Kid titles that you could use to calm the troops on a long car ride.  Besides being free to download, another frugal aspect of these eBooks is that there is no late fee.  At the end of the loan period, the titles expire and are automatically returned to the library.

ACPL: Free Music Downloads

I was greeted with a wonderful surprise when I logged into my ACPL account to renew my DVDs that were due today.  The ACPL is now offering each library card up to three free mp3 downloads per week (165 songs per year) that you keep for life!  They have thousands of different artists, tens of thousands of albums and hundreds of thousands of songs from many genres.  I was able to download songs by The Fray, Foster the People and Pitbull.  My husband has a library card as well, so he will be able to choose 3 of his own each week!  Here are the details.

• Go to http://acpl.freegalmusic.com/ with your library card and pin number in hand to login.
• Search for any song title or artist you would like.
• Click on the blue arrow to hear a small portion of the song.
• Click on DOWNLOAD NOW to save the song to the location of your choice.
• Keep in mind that even if you cancel the download after having clicked the download now button, it will still count toward your 3 song limit.
• Your count resets at midnight on Sunday.

ACPL: Grant Writing Assistance

The downtown library is offering a series of free classes for non-profit organizations.  These classes are for people seeking organization grants, not individual grants.  You must register as class size is limited.

• Grant Basics 1
• Grant Basics 2 (must have previously attended Grant Basics 1)
• Nonprofit Resources Fair
• After the Grant

The ACPL Has Gone Digital



photo credit

According to a flier that I picked up from the Georgetown Library you can now, "enjoy unlimited access to new and classic Disney books with just an Internet connection and library card!"

Follow this link to the spot on ACPL's website.  I checked this out (ha, ha) myself to make sure it was legitimate and it was a very pleasant experience.  Here are a few other helpful suggestions:

•  They have adult, children's and teen's books available. 
• You have to have certain computer capabilities (processor strengths, etc.).  They are delineated nicely on the site. 
• The library only has so many 'copies' available.  You can place items on hold, though. 

What a frugal way to get new ebooks on your kindle, iPad or Nook.  If you have one of these devices, this means never being without reading material.  Also, this is a great tool for kids.  Finally, what an advantage for those self-professed germ-a-phobes who don't go to the library because the books are dirty. 

I absolutely love, love the library as a great place for frugal reading material, entertainment and fun for kids.  I think it is great they are reaching out and adding new state of the art venues as well.  

Free Entertainment at ACPL

The Allen County Public Library is an excellent source of free entertainment.  Find fairly recent movie and music releases for both children and adults.  I recently borrowed Shutter Island and The Social Network.  I’ve also been able to borrow entire seasons of favorite TV series such as Psych, The Mentalist and Modern Family.  Most adult movies are due back in 3 days, but many of the children’s character videos such as Sesame Street, Bob the Builder and Dora are not due for 21 days.  Get them back on time to avoid late fees.  Search the catalog for your favorite music CDs of all genres for you and your children.