E-books are growing in popularity and UCM librarians are working to help the campus community navigate these resources.

Anthony Kaiser, associate professor and humanities librarian, is scheduled to present a workshop regarding the use of e-books from 3 to 4 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 28. in the James C. Kirkpatrick Library, Room 2441.

Kaiser said the library has a number of different vendors and platforms that provide e-books, but the platforms are not very user-friendly. He said a common question people have is how to use the e-books.

“I think it can be a little intimidating at first but usually once you’ve done it a few times, once you’ve actually looked at one and downloaded one, it’s pretty simple,” he said.

Kaiser said the point of the e-book workshop is to walk people through the different e-books the library provides.

“Hopefully that will make them more comfortable with them down the road,” he said.

Kaiser said he will be demonstrating the main platforms, EBSCO, ProQuest, JSTOR and Safari during the workshop. The workshop will demonstrate how to access and download books.

“Most of the academic presses now produce both print and e-books,” he said.

Kaiser said he believes the number of e-books will continue to expand because it is cheaper to produce from a publisher standpoint and will last longer than a print book.

He said e-books are convenient because multiple users can access the books simultaneously.

Deepti Shapuri, sophomore interior design major, said she likes e-books because they are cheaper than paper books and, depending on costs, would prefer an e-book because it is one less thing to carry.

Laura Horne-Popp, assistant university librarian, said the library plans to offer workshops once a semester.

“There is a need to offer the same workshops on a routine basis to ensure we provide instruction on research practices and tools that fit with student and faculty schedules,” she said.

Horne-Popp said workshops are good ways to teach students and faculty new skills and information.
She said workshops are important for covering different areas of the research process and providing time outside of class for students and faculty to learn how to practice those skills.

“Being able to learn something new and then apply that practice in real time is a very successful form of learning,” she said.

Kaiser said he thinks e-books will become more popular as people get comfortable with living in a digital age and will open up space for students to come in and work.