In the digital age, it’s getting harder and harder to bring people to the local library. Thanks to a new breed of mobile apps, many libraries are moving beyond bricks and mortar, and onto their patrons’ tablets and cell phones.
Mobile apps, for use on many types of mobile devices, are everywhere and range from schedule-keeping to games like the ever-popular “Angry Birds.” Libraries are entering the apps race in hopes of keeping up with the demands of their patrons while staying relevant in the digital realm.
“The good thing about mobile apps is the library remains open online 24/7,” said Renee B. Swartz, chair of the Monmouth County, N.J. Library Commission.
On the Web
Hamilton County, Ohio and Cincinnati’s mobile app debuted Feb. 1 for their patrons. To learn more and view their app, visit http://cinn.boopsie.com.
Monmouth County, N.J. created a mobile app called “Library On the Go.” For more information and to view the app, visit http://monmouth.lib.overdrive.com.
For more information on Boopsie and how your county library can create a mobile app, visit www.boopsie.com/libraries.html.
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Monmouth County libraries launched “Library on the Go,” an app that allows library card-carrying county residents to check out and download digital media anytime anywhere. Cardholders browse their library’s collection of e-books and audiobooks, check out the titles with their library card and download them to their PC, Mac or any mobile smartphone. Titles expire at the end of the lending period and are automatically removed from the device or tablet. There are no late fees and patrons are limited to checking out five titles at one time.
The library system hopes to eventually incorporate printed books into the app so patrons can conveniently check out books and pick them up.
“We are pleased to offer this app and know it will improve access to the latest technologies,” Swartz said.
According to the American Library Association (ALA), people no longer view the library as a place to browse books with a hushed reverence. Fueled by the economic recession and the digital divide, patrons expect tools and services more appropriate for the technological age.
With the popularity of e-readers such as the Kindle and Nook, you would think things would slow down at the public library. But in places such as Hamilton County, Ohio, 2011 was a record-setting year. Patrons borrowed more than 17.6 million items, a 7.9 percent increase from 2010. E-books, audiobooks and other downloadable materials exploded in popularity with use increasing more than 500 percent in 2010.
That made it an easy choice for the county library to create a mobile app. The app, available for iPhone, Android, Blackberry and iPad, enables patrons to check out books by scanning them with their phones, search the catalog and event listings, download e-books and audiobooks and send the librarians questions. It also allows users to scan barcodes of any book and find out if it is available at a particular location. The app was developed by Boopsie, a Silicon Valley-based company most county libraries are using for their apps, which customized it for the Cincinnati-Hamilton County library system as it has for other libraries and universities around the world.
The cost to develop the app — $9,190 for a one-time implementation fee plus a $14,895 annual subscription fee — comes from operating funds in the library’s $59 million annual budget.
Using Boopsie and other digital app companies, more than 35 county-run public libraries have mobile apps with more being added weekly. In addition to Hamilton County, Boopsie currently has mobile library apps for Santa Clara, Los Angeles and Seattle county libraries. Other county library systems are choosing to create the mobile apps in-house to shore up costs.
Mobile technology holds great promise for enabling libraries to provide enhanced services in a form users increasingly are demanding. By working with technology-based companies, they can continue to find ways to stay relevant in the digital media world.