Chapter 11

At the start of this blog I mentioned talking about books and writing on/for the web, and have spent some time talking about all different kinds of writing and communication on the web, and now I'm coming back to books.

The world wide web has made books more accessible. There are numerous websites that post books online in full text, most for free. An example is Page by Page Books.

There are also sites like Amazon.com and Barnes and Noble online that sell books and also offer a preview of most books, as well as customer ratings and reviews.

Libraries have more of a web presence now than they had before. People with a library card can log set up login information through their library's website and have access to their accounts to see what they have out, due dates, and if they have a balance. The other benefit of this is that users can search the library's catalog to see if their library has a certain book, which they can request (or be put on a waiting list if it is out). If the library is part of a system of libraries, such as the Dauphin County Library System, if your home branch doesn't have a book, it can be requested from another library and picked up at the branch of choice.

Lastly, and probably the greatest little-known resource for books, the swapping sites like Paperbackswap.com. People that would use a site like this are those that have a big collection of books that they want to get rid of or share with others, and at the same time, get books in return. The way this site, and others like it, work is simple. You create an account, follow the wizard to create the list of books you want to make available to swap (usually by entering the isbn). With this specific site, once you post 10 books, you get 2 free credits. Credits are used to "purchase" books from other users. You earn additional credits each time you send a book to someone who requests your listed book, once they mark it received, a credit gets added to your account. No actual money is exchanged, each person only pays the cost of postage, usually media rate. You spend credits by requesting books from others. Its a good way to keep your collection of books fresh, and maybe not spend as much.

Personally, if I'm not sure I'll like a book enough to want to keep it, I look for it on one of the swap sites I have an account with. I can spend a credit, read the book, if I like it, I'll keep it, if not, I can repost it and possibly earn a credit for something else. There will always be certain authors, certain books, that I will spend the money to buy new - and never get rid of.