Summer has its own rhythm and heartbeat, both in nature, and here at the library.
Outside, our community bustles with activity as residents and vacationers delight in the charm of our small town businesses and play and relax in and around the many area lakes.
Inside, our library staff scurries to meet the needs of each patron. With smiles on their faces, they answer phones, fill requests, check out materials and pass out congratulatory prizes to the few hundred children and teens enrolled in the summer reading program.
During the month of July we will be joining Beagle Books and Bindery and several other local businesses in a celebration of the 20th anniversary of the "Where's Waldo?" books. We're excited to go Waldo wild! Rumor has it, there will even be a special appearance by a live Waldo at our story time Friday, July 20.
While much of our time is focused on the special programs and events during the summer, we continue working on projects and responsibilities that are not seasonal.
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It's easy to get caught in the current of increased patron numbers and material circulation, but it's important to find time to continue other work we've started.
With this in mind, I'd like to provide some updates and additional information on a couple of the topics I've covered in past articles.
In one of them, I explained how our library system is set up and stated that we were in need of volunteers for our local board. I'm happy to report that we are in the process of filling some of the vacancies.
I thank those who have stepped up and offered to help.
Most recently, I announced that KRLS (Kitchigami Regional Library System) plans to contract with 3M Cloud to provide e-books to our patrons. I'd like to expand on that information.
First, be assured that much thought and time were put into selecting a platform. After a side-by-side comparison of four providers, KRLS branch managers and administrators chose the one we felt would best serve our patrons.
3M Cloud is the provider used by the St. Paul Public Library. If you're interested, you can go to their website, click on the Books tab, and then on eBooks for more specific information about compatible devices and borrowing policies.
Currently, 3M Cloud supports Nook, Sony (older), 3M and Kobo via transfer to computer first. It also supports smart phones and ipads. It does not support Kindle, but is working on a system to make it compatible with Kindle Fire.
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People have different reasons for choosing a particular device. If you're considering purchasing an electronic reader, I encourage you to research which one would best fit your needs. The following link brings you to an article that might be helpful. http://news.cnet.com/8301- 17938_105-20009738-1/kin dle-vs-nook-vs-ipad-which-e-book-reader-should-you-buy/ I'm excited to travel this new path with you and know that we'll both learn along the way.
