Pollinators Week is June 17 – 23

The bees are buzzing, the butterflies are flitting about and the bats are swooping through the skies at dusk. Time to get ready for Pollinators Week, which runs June 17 - 23.

The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service has an entire site dedicated to pollinators, with information on how to plant a pollinator garden; educational materials to use at home or in the classroom; and podcasts and videos on butterfly migration, how to build nesting sites for honeybees and more.

Pollinator Partnership, a nonprofit working to protect the health of managed and native pollinating animals, has planting guides for your ecoregion (enter your zip code), which you can download to your smartphone.

The Foundation for the Preservation of Honey Bees awards active 4-H members a cash prize for their essay contest. The 2014 contest topic is "Beekeeping in Colonial Times."

Basics on pollination (how it works) and accompanying activities are available on a number of websites, including the Piedmont Environmental Council's Information on Important Crop Pollinators, the Missouri Botanical Garden, the US Forest Service, neoK12 (educational videos) and BrainPOP, to name a few.

If you consider bats a nuisance or are frightened by bees, hopefully the above resources will spur you to celebrate Pollinators Week this year.

PBS LearningMedia

Although the school year is winding down (or has ended, in some cases) for students in our area, teachers are already preparing for next year's crop of learners. Thus now is a good time to remind teachers (and homeschool parents) to visit our Educators page on the library's website (library.fauquiercounty.gov). This page features recommended websites and services the library offers, including PBS LearningMedia.

Honored with two 2013 SIIA CODiE Awards in the Education Technology category, PBS LearningMedia offers more than 30,000 free, carefully cataloged, standards-aligned, digital resources specifically designed to address national curricular gaps for high-quality digital media. The site features interactive games, images, videos, and instruction from such PBS and PBS KIDS programs and can be browsed by grade level, subject, standard or collection.

e-Resource of the Month: e-audio books

With June being Audiobook Awareness Month, what better time to acquaint yourself with the library's e-audiobook offerings?

Find e-audio books @ your local library

The library offers patrons the option of downloading e-audiobooks via two (2) e-audio book services, OverDrive and OneClickDigital.

OverDrive e-audio books include popular fiction and non-fiction and are compatible with a number of devices. Similar to CD books you check out from the library, when an item is checked out, you will have the option of placing a hold. E-audio titles can be checked out for 1 or 2 weeks. There is an OverDrive Media Console app for the iPod/iPad as well as Android devices. Some OverDrive titles can be burned to CD, a welcome alternative to commercial radio and can also provide a break for parents on a family road trip. Check out e-books and e-audio books with your Fauquier County Public Library card.

OneClickDigital, the exclusive provider of Recorded Books audio, allows unlimited checkouts for all titles, so there is no need to place a hold on an item. You can checkout an e-audio title for 21 days. The OneClickDigital Media Manager software is also available as an app for iPhone, iPad and iTouch devices.You will need to set up an account using your Fauquier County Public Library card.

Catalog tip

To limit your search of the library's online catalog to just e-audio titles, go to the Advanced Search page and enter/select the following:

1. Enter Search Terms - put an asterisk (*) as "any field" if you're not sure what you are looking for; otherwise enter in an author name and change "any field" to author or try a specific title;
2. Add Limits (Optional) - under Material Type, select/click on E-AUDIOBOOKS
3. Hit the Submit button

Happy listening!

Series & Sequels

If you're wondering if a book has a sequel or want to devour all of the books in a series, the library has several e-resources to help you in your quest.

Did you know you can search the library's online catalog by the series title? This is especially helpful if you know you want the 3rd title in the Inspector Rebus series, but aren't sure if the title is "Tooth and Nail" or "Hammer and Nail." If you're not sure what the series title is, what I do is look up the title of the book I know I read/enjoyed (hint - if you have your reading history enabled, it's easy to find what you've already read) and click on the Series title link in the record:

By clicking on the link "Inspector Rebus mysteries series; 1," I'm taken to an ordered list of all the Inspector Rebus Mystery Series titles in the library's collection.

Aside from the library's online catalog, be sure to visit our Readers' Tools page on the library website. There, under the section labeled, Book Reviews, Series Info., Read-Alikes & More, you'll find a number of resources that provide guidance on reading in a series, finding similar books to those you love and much more, including:

• Books & Authors - I often consult this database, specifically the Who, What, Where, When search, to find titles that feature a specific character (and I don't remember the book title or the series title)
• Fantastic Fiction - This is especially helpful if I just want to see the various series an author writes, as well as his/her non-series fiction, all in one place. Ideal for prolific authors like Nora Roberts.

OverDrive Media Console Update Available May 28

Are you a user of the library's e-books and e-audiobooks via the Blue Ridge Download Consortium (powered by OverDrive)? If so, be aware that OverDrive will release an updated version of the OverDrive Media Console (OMC) mobile app for iOS and Android (v2.6.5) on Tuesday, May 28. Below is a summary of the release details:

OMC for iOS v2.6.5

 

Enhancements to improve the speed of the in-app browser Bug fixes Reauthorization of Adobe ID for ALL iOS users required by Apple

Due to a change in Apple's privacy policies, OverDrive had to make changes to the way they handle licensing of EPUB eBooks and MP3 audiobooks. As a result, the OMC for iOS v2.6.5 update will de-authorize every users’ Adobe ID and prompt them to authorize again.  Audiobook users will be unaffected unless attempting to download parts from a book that was only partially downloaded prior to the v2.6.5 update.

eBooks – Adobe Authorization After installing the update, users with authorized Adobe IDs in place will see the following message:

Clicking ‘Sign In’ will show the ‘Adobe Authorization’ screen. The deauthorized Adobe ID is pre-populated, so you will only need to enter your password. The ‘Forgot password?’ link will be available in case you've forgotten yours.

Audiobooks – Downloading additional parts Audiobook users won’t notice anything different unless they attempt to download parts of audiobooks partially downloaded to OMC before installing the v2.6.5 update. In this case, the following message is displayed:

Users will need to download the title again from their digital library website bookshelf to download the missing parts.

These updates will be messaged in the App Store and on the “What’s New” screen. Additionally, there are two help articles available for users to help with these updates:

Why do I have to sign in with an Adobe ID after updating OverDrive Media Console for iOS? What to do if there is a 'downloadManagererrorDomain:403' error when trying to download an audiobook using OverDrive Media Console for iOS

OMC for Android v2.6.5

 

Bug fixes

Note: The issues with Adobe authorization and audiobook downloads will not impact the Android release of OMC v2.6.5.

Zinio: Downloadable Magazines Now Available!

What is Zinio?
Full digital versions of your favorite magazines, including the Economist, House Beautiful, Rolling Stone, Smithsonian Magazine and Weight Watchers.

Key Features:

• See the pages as they look in print - some magazines include features like video, audio and live links. 
• Digital magazines are always available with unlimited users. 
• You can read online or download issues to your computer or mobile device and read offline.

Requirements

• A computer--your own computer or a Library public PC.
• A valid Fauquier County Public Library number (when you create your account)
• A valid email address
• You will need to create two (2) accounts:
1. One account for the Library's Zinio Collection (to choose magazines to read)
2. A separate account with Zinio.com (to actually read/view the magazines)

Optional:  Install a free Zinio Reader App on your computer or mobile device.

Where do I go to find it?
The direct link for Fauquier County Public Library's Zinio collection is https://www.rbdigital.com/fauquierva/zinio. Be sure to add it to your favorites/bookmarks.

From the library website, on the left-hand navigation, under Services > Downloadable Magazines. You can also access from Search for Articles and More > Magazines, Journals and Newspapers.

You can also find a link in the library's catalog (title = Zinio).

After you've signed up/created your 2 accounts for Zinio, to read selected magazines:

• Sign in to your Library Zinio account
• Then, sign in to your Zinio.com account
• Click My Library or Read to view your magazines
• If you're using the Zinio Reader app, select Read

To get new issues or select new magazines:

• First, log in to both your Library Zinio account and then your Zinio.com account
• Next, return to the Library's Zinio Collection to choose new titles or add new issues to read. Just click on the cover or title.
• Then go to your Zinio.com account and select My Library to read them
• TIP: from the Library's Zinio Collection, use the link at upper left to quickly navigate to your Zinio.com account.

Complete details and FAQs are available on our website.

The Digital Public Library of America

The Digital Public Library of America (DPLA), launched on April 18, brings together the riches of America’s libraries, archives, and museums, and makes them freely available to the world. The DPLA offers a single point of access (http://dp.la) to millions of items—photographs, manuscripts, books, sounds, and moving images—from libraries, archives, and museums around the United States.

Content providers include ARTstor, the Harvard Library, the National Archives and Records Administration, New York Public Library, the Smithsonian and the University of Virginia.

Users can browse and search the DPLA’s collections by timeline, map, format, and topic; save items to customized lists; and share lists with others. Users can also explore digital exhibitions curated by the DPLA’s content partners and staff. Each record in the DPLA contains a link to the digital object on the content provider’s website. Digital copies of some objects are available for download, based on the content provider and the individual rights status of the object.