LIBRARIES EMBRACE DIGITAL AGE AS E-READERS BECOME MORE POPULAR
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OCEAN CITY--With the holidays fast approaching, it seems that e-readers like Kindles and Nooks are the popular electronic gifts to give this year, and most are reasonably priced. Because of the increased popularity, local libraries are adapting to keep up with the times.

The Ocean City Free Public Library has just about any kind of book you're looking for. "Everything from fiction to non-fiction to comedy to romance, yeah, it's a pretty big collection." A collection that can not only be found on the shelves, but also online, in eBook form, available for members to download free of charge. "Since 2007, we've been offering eBooks as a service here at the library," explained the Network Administrator, John Ruban, "it's become more and more popular now that devices such as the Kindle have become very competitively priced."

"Actually working on the budget for next year, we are putting more money into the eBooks than before," said Christoper Maloney, the library director.

That's because the downloads per-month there have increased by hundreds over the last couple of years. It works the same way as a traditional library book -you can only have it for a limited time, and there may be a waiting list for some of the more popular titles.

"I was stoked because I just got the kindle and I was like oh man, I can get all these great books and I don't have to pay for them," said e-reader user, David Miller of Somers Point, "which is fantastic." You don't even have to step foot inside the library to check out an eBook, as long as you're a member, you can download and access eBooks from your own personal computer. "There's been a few times where I've been home, it's like 2:00 in the morning and I really want to read this book, but I can't go to the library because it's closed, so I can go onto the website and check it out and it pops right on to my Kindle."

Re-kindling relationships with the library that had once faded and embracing technology in the digital age.

Most libraries now offer e-Book downloads for free, and some even offer tutorials on how to access them.

To learn more about Ocean City's program, click here.

To access the eBook download center, click here.