One Click Digital offers a quick connection to ebooks and audiobooks
Published 12:00 am Sunday, January 15, 2017
By Gretchen Beilfuss Witt
Rowan Public Library
An often-overlooked resource, One Click Digital is another way that the library provides materials to patrons electronically.
Ebooks and audiobooks are both available on One Click. You may be able to locate materials on One Click that you thought the library did not have available. While there is some overlap of available books from Overdrive and One Click, the collections are not the same for the most part.
Recently, I discovered the entire collection of Isobelle Carmody’s “Obernewtyn Chronicles” on One Click, a fantastic find for those who follow the series but are unable to find the “next” one in physical library holdings.
The physical circulating collection has only one of the books, and Overdrive has only two of them. One Click gives another option to find books that may not have been added to the physical collection or to the Overdrive collection.
There are several ways to use One Click. You do have to set up an account to use it, but you have several access points. Both Android and Apple have apps for the program, so you can go directly to the App Store or Google Play to acquire the app for your tablet, Kindle Fire, iPad or phone.
You can set up an account on a desktop computer, but you need to download the files to another device in order to listen to the book. Once the app is downloaded, the application walks you through setting up your account — choose the country, then enter your library card number at the prompt, etc.
There are a variety of preferences in One Click. For instance, you can set the application to download only through a wi-fi connection rather than using a telephone data plan or automatically download when a book becomes available. There are tutorials with simple instructions and pictures.
Another feature for many of the audiobooks included in One Click is the option to listen to part of the book before actually checking it out. Patrons also can search by narrator as well as by the usual author and title.
There are two distinct tabs in One Click, one for ebooks and one for audio. That differs from Overdrive, which requires filters to distinguish types of materials. One Click was originally set up for audiobooks but now offers a variety of ebooks, primarily fiction.
In audiobooks, there are more genres to select from — you can choose from African-American interests to foreign language study, mysteries, political and current events, true crime or urban fiction.
For the student, there is a collection of EngLits — audio summaries of well-known pieces of literature such as “A Tale of Two Cities” and “Othello.” For bestsellers like Martin’s “Game of Thrones” or biographies like “Long Walk to Freedom,” discover more books for your listening pleasure brought to you by Rowan Public Library.
Chapter Chats Book Club: A weekly club for teens 14-17, primarily for participants with developmental or intellectual disabilities, but all are welcome. Meets at East branch meeting room, 5 p.m. Tuesday. For more information, contact Tammie Foster at 704-216-7842.
Anime Club: Teens and college-age adults (21 and younger) may watch anime and engage in Japanese-themed crafts and games. Headquarters, 4:30 p.m. Feb. 7.
Teen Advisory Board: Teens who join this board provide input on the library’s teen programming and book selection and discuss current events and issues of interest. Members can count their hours of participation toward school community service requirements. East, 6:30 p.m. Feb. 13.; headquarters, 4:30 p.m. Jan. 24 and Feb. 28; South, 4:30 p.m. Feb. 2.
Teen program: Each month, teens play games, make crafts and do activities related to a specific theme. January is game night, February is the Chocolate Festival, and March is the MuV Chat. Headquarters, 4:30 p.m. Jan. 17 and Feb. 21; East, 6:30 p.m. Jan. 23 and Feb. 27; South, 4:30 p.m. Jan. 20 and Feb. 16.
“Dr. Who” Days: Travel through time and space with screenings of the classic BBC program. Families are invited. Headquarters, 4:30 p.m. Feb. 14.
Game Night for Teens: Hang out and play a variety of board games, card games and video games. Bring your own and challenge friends. 4:30-6 p.m. Tuesday, Headquarters; Jan. 19, South Rowan Regional.
No-School Cinema Marvel Marathon: South Regional, 9:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Jan. 23. Features the “Iron Man” series. All three films are PG-13 and have run times of, respectively, 126 minutes, 124 minutes, and 130 minutes. “Iron Man I” begins at 9:30 a.m., “Iron Man II” at noon and “Iron Man III” immediately following. Children ages 13 and younger must be accompanied by an adult. Light refreshments will be served. The showings are free and open to the public.
11 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Jan. 23, East branch, features “Avengers” and “Avengers: Age of Ultron.” Both films are rated PG-13 and have run times of about 140 minutes. “Avengers” begins at 11 a.m. and “Ultron” at 2 p.m. Light refreshments will be served. Free and open to the public. All ages are welcome; children 13 and younger must be accompanied by an adult.
Learn. Act. Grow. Defend Yourself: 5:30-7 p.m. Jan. 23, South Regional. Learn simple tips and techniques on how to protect yourself. Live self-defense demonstration and hands-on assistance provided by Sidekick Karate.
Maker Mondays: 6-7 p.m. Jan. 23, headquarters. See the library’s Cooperative Lab’s 3D printer in action. Learn about the process from start to finish, and witness how a 3D printer can turn ideas into reality.
Displays: Headquarters, West Rowan High School student art classes and Lee Street theatre; East, cross-stitch; South, South Rowan High School student artwork.
Literacy: Call the Rowan County Literacy Council at 704-216-8266 for more information on teaching or receiving literacy tutoring for English speakers or those for whom English is a second language.