Summer programs 2022 for Adults

Book Bingo - fill out a card and return by August 13 to enter the gift basket raffle

Spotting Fake News - Saturday, July 9 at 1:00 pm. media literacy program at the library (no registration)

Mark your calendar for the First Friday movie on August 5th at the library (bring your own snacks)

Visit the Adult  program page on our website for more info

Holiday Help with Your Library

Winter holidays are fast approaching and your "to do" list may be growing.

Cooking, shopping and travel preparations for visiting with friends and family. If you're feeling a little time pressured, look to your library for some help.

Recipes and cookbooks: We have a variety of cookbooks (both in-house and online) with recipe ideas for making that traditional dish or a new recipe would like to try. There are books with different cooking methods, baking, slow cooking, grilling and some that cover special diets.

Shopping recommendations: The Consumer Reports online database and buying guides can help with gift ideas on the latest electronics - smartphones, tablets, TVs, digital cameras and home appliances. Access to the database is available from library computers only.

Make sure you pencil in a little downtime for yourself and family! 

 

Whether you enjoy reading, watching or listening, your library provides free access to audio-books, books, comic books, magazines and DVDs to check-out with a library card. 

 

If you prefer online access, you will need your library card, pin and device (tablet, e-reader, computer or TV) to enjoy content from the Tumble Book library, Hoopla and Overdrive databases. 

 

Not sure what to check-out? 

 

Browse the Novelist Plus & Novelist Plus K-8 reading databases for ideas - great for finding the next title (or the First) in a series. 

 

You can also browse the library catalog for book lists, awards and recommendations. or download the app from your app store - search for Pinellas Library Cooperative

 

To get started - visit the library checkout desk to get a library card. For help with downloading e-books/audios - click on the "help" buttons within each database to find out which devices and formats are supported and how to download/stream. Call the library (813) 749-1178 for more info.

 

 Wishing you an enjoyable and relaxing holiday!

New Online Service - Hoopla Digital

We are excited to announce the public availability of thousands of ebooks, movies, television shows, comic books, music albums and audiobooks, all available for mobile and online access through a new partnership with hoopla digital – all you need is a valid library card!

hoopla digital has a simple sign-up and attractive, easy-to-use interface, so it’s easy to get to your listening and viewing experience. There’s also no waiting to borrow, ever, and hoopla digital’s automatic return feature eliminates late fees.




To access the system on your mobile device, you will need to first download the FREE hoopla digital app from the App Store on your Android or IOS device. There is no need to download an app or extension for your internet browser.


Once you have downloaded the app to your device(s) and/or clicked on the hoopla digital link on our website you will be prompted to select your library, enter your email address, a password, your library card number, and your library card PIN number. The system will validate that you are in good standing with the library, so that you may begin to browse, borrow, and enjoy the content.



Remember: the default PIN number for your library account is the last 4 digits of your phone number!


Come see what all the hoopla’s about: 

• Once you borrow a title on one device it is automatically available via all devices with the hoopla digital app and via your PC web browsers (IE 8+, Firefox 12+, Safari 5+, Chrome 19+).
• When using hoopla you will be able to begin streaming the content immediately. You can also download content to view at a later date (in case you won’t have Wi-Fi on that camping trip).
• You will be allowed to borrow 4 titles each month
• Video lends for 72 hours
• Music lends for 7 days
• Ebooks, eaudiobooks & comics lend for 21 days
• You are able to access (view/listen to) borrowed content as often as you want during the checkout period and you can return any borrowed title whenever you want.

We hope you enjoy this new service and let us know what you think!

Little Free Library #2

We're pleased to announce that our second Little Free Library has been installed at the Environmental Education Center at Mobbly Bayou Wilderness Preserve on Lafayette Boulevard. We'd especially like to thank our artists Janet Gurney and Library Assistant Nancy Verderosa.

A Little Free Library is a free book exchange where users are encouraged to "take a book, leave a book". Library staff will fill the library initially & check it periodically, but all are welcome to help make sure it's stocked.

The box was paid for by the Friends of the Oldsmar Library.  Our first Little Free Library is still in front of Cypress Forest Recreation Center, and you can see pictures of it here.

Oldsmar Book Display

Books & DVDS  about  Oldsmar, Pinellas County, the Tampa Bay area and Florida are available for check-out with your PPLC library card. The display is located in the Reference/Adult Services area of the library.

Find more books in our Florida Collection - located in non-fiction FL 001.9 - FL 976 and online from the Library's  History link  

Reference books are also available for use in the library only - please ask at the Reference help desk

Resources Review - E-Books

Over the past few weeks we've been reviewing our online resources.  You can visit our Resources page at any time for a list of our more popular programs, or the databases by subject page to view a comprehensive list which includes our academic research offerings.

In this final installment, we'll be taking a look at our many e-book resources for kids and adults.  One great thing about our e-books is you don't have to remember to return them (they expire on their own) and there are never any fines!

For kids, we have:

Sesame Street E-books, picture books with animation & audio

StarWalk Kids Media, featuring picture books by award-winning authors and illustrators. Please note: The login/password for the available apps is opl/opl (that is OPL lowercase).

Tumblebooks, animated, talking picture books and chapter books. Includes books in French & Spanish for language learning!

Most kids ebook services are interactive and allow you to customize your reading experience, such as turning narrative audio on and off. Several also have apps available so you can use them on the go.  More details & links to help and FAQs are included on our Resources Page.

For adults/teens, we have two resources, both of which are now fully integrated into our catalog, allowing you to find titles as well as get on holds lists without using a separate app or going to another website.

3M Cloud Library

3M offers e-books for all ages, you can browse our collection here, and checkout their online support resources here.  They offer apps for many smartphones, e-readers (except traditional Kindles) and computers. Please remember your default account password is the last 4 digits of the primary phone number we have on file for you!

OverDrive

OverDrive has e-books, e-audiobooks and a limited number of downloadable videos for teens and adults. They offer apps for most platforms as well as Kindle support.  They also have extensive online help, including videos and step-by-step guides for most devices.

We hope you've enjoyed this blog series and found a new resource (or two) to enhance your library experience!

Resources Review - Novelist

Over the next few weeks, we'll be highlighting some of our online resources, including our ebooks and various online learning programs.  You can visit our Resources page at any time for a list of our more popular programs, or the databases by subject page to view a comprehensive list which includes our academic research offerings.

First we'll take a look at NoveList, a comprehensive readers' advisory solution for fiction lovers. It helps you find your "next read" with a variety of easy-to-use tools.

You can access Novelist from this link in the library, and use your Oldsmar library card # to access it from outside the library.

Novelist has book discussion guides, read-alike lists and reading suggestions for all ages.  You can tell it what type of books you're looking for or browse by genre and age group. You can even search by Lexile or limit your searches to only award winners with the Advanced Search options.

Right on the landing page, you'll find suggested read-alikes for recent bestsellers as well as the Keeping Up lists, which let you know what's been released recently in your favorite genre.

We hope you'll give Novelist a try when trying to find your next read and let us know what you think!

Writer's Critique Group Forming

We have a guided writer's critique group forming here at Oldsmar Library.  You MUST PRE-REGISTER via e-mail, the registration info is below.

The critique group will meet the 1st and 3rd Monday evenings every month, and will be led by former publisher and Time-Life editor, Molli Nickell. The first meeting will be Monday, June 15 in TECO Hall. Things will get started with a meet & greet from 5:30 pm - 6:00 pm, followed by critique activities from 6:00 - 8:00.

Sponsored by the FWA (Florida Writers' Association), the group will be open to the public. It is limited to 10 active participants, but auditors will be welcome to attend and "listen only." Focus will shift between manuscript development/refinement, agent acquisition, and/or self-publishing.  

Reserve space by emailing Molli at getpublishednow.biz@gmail.com. Write CRITIQUE in the subject line.  Feel free to email any questions to the same address.

Submit your Recipes, Oldsmar!

     In anticipation of the City of Oldsmar's Centennial in 2016, the Friends of the Oldsmar Library are preparing a cookbook of recipes from current & former Oldsmar residents! Entries can be submitted now through June 1, 2015.
     You can submit a recipe through this online form, or by picking up a paper form from the Circulation Desk at the Oldsmar Library.

• You must be a current or past resident of the City of Oldsmar to submit a recipe
• Paper entries are to be dropped off at the Oldsmar Library
• All recipes will be given to the Friends of the Library who will decide which recipes will be included in the Centennial Cookbook
• There is no limit to the number of recipes that each person can submit
• Final selections will be notified by phone or e-mail
• The Oldsmar Centennial Cookbook will be available for purchase beginning in January 2016.

Little Free Library

We're pleased to announce that our first Little Free Library has been installed in front of Cypress Forest Recreation Center on Pine Avenue!

A Little Free Library is a free book exchange where users are encouraged to "take a book, leave a book". Library staff will fill the library initially & check it periodically, but all are welcome to help make sure it's stocked.

Little Free Library & entrance of Cypress Forest Rec Center

The box was paid for by the Friends of the Oldsmar Library, and we were lucky enough to have talented local artist Chelsea Cadwallader volunteer her time to paint it.  We are thrilled with the colorful and whimsical design!  You can see more pictures of the Little Library and of Chelsea's other work on her Facebook page. Chelsea is the daughter of Library Circulation Coordinator Darlene Cadwallader.

Artist Chelsea Cadwallader (L) with Bert Weber, Library Director

The Friends plan to purchase a second Little Free Library, and Library Director Bert Weber will soon be searching for another local artist who would be willing to donate their time to paint it.

Literary Classics Online Book Club from Recorded Books/One Click Digital

Recorded Books, the largest independent publisher of unabridged audiobooks and provider of digital content to the library market, announces the launch of a new online book club, The Literary Classics.

The book club launches in January with Hamlet.

This online book club is tailored for people who enjoy reading and talking about classic literature. Six books are selected each year for reading and discussion. Although all of the titles chosen for The Literary Classics are available to libraries free of charge through the OneClickdigital platform, patrons can participate in the online discussion regardless of where they sourced their reading materials.  (*Note, Oldsmar Library only subscribes to the digital audiobook service from OneClickDigital, but the books they are selecting are in the public domain & free ebooks are available elsewhere, such as from OverDrive or Project Gutenberg)

Each book is featured for a two  month period. During the first month, participants read the book while checking out fun facts about the title on the club’s social - media outlets. The second month is prime time for discussion, discourse, and debate with questions on Facebook, Twitter, and the blog.

For assistance with using OneClickDigital, please call us at 813-749-1181.

New Non-fiction book club

We will be hosting an informal meeting to gauge interest in a monthly daytime non-fiction book club on:

Wednesday, January 8,  2014

1:00 PM

Rotary Literacy/Conference Room

If you have questions or are interested but can't attend this meeting, please send your name/phone/email address to: information@oldsmarlibrary.org or leave your information with our Reference Desk, 813/749-1181 and we will have the group leader contact you.

Book Display-Florida History

Interested in local and state history?  The library is featuring books on Florida this summer with the current display on Oldsmar, Tampa Bay & Florida history. The display is located near the magazines and the Garden reading room and the books are available for check-out with your library card.

In additon to the books on display - more Florida books can be found in non-fiction within the call numbers FL 001.9 - FL976. Oldsmar books marked Reference in the PALS Library catalog are for use in the library only - please ask at the Reference Desk (813) 749-1181.

New at the library is a  Florida History guide - free copies are available at the library or print a copy from this link Florida History Guide The guide includes a book list on Oldsmar History, websites and database links.

For more information on Oldsmar History click on the history tab of the Oldsmar Library Website and visit the Oldsmar Historical Society website.

Don't have a library Card? Information can be found here Library Card FAQS or contact the library by phone (813) 749-1178, email or post a question/comment to this blog.

Catalog Updates

After some recent downtime, you may have noticed a change in the look of our catalog!  All of the old functionality is still there, but new enhancements have made it look & behave more like an online bookstore.

Items that are included in Googlebooks have preview links available.

You can now limit searches more easily by using the check boxes on the left menu.

 
 Clicking on "Full Display" now takes you to a separate screen which provides (if available) reviews, a summary, and a link to take you straight to Novelist for more detailed information.

 Please give it a try and let us know what you think!

New additions to OneClick Digital downloadable audios

Please click here for a list of the latest & upcoming titles from our OneClickdigital downloadable audiobook service!

OneClickdigital provides access to downloadable .mp3 and .wma files of Recorded Books audiobooks. All are iPod compatible and also work on a variety of other devices.

If you haven't used this resource before, here's a brief introduction.

TumbleBooks' new iPad site

Below is a press release from our friends at TumbleBooks for their new iPad site.

TumbleBooks are animated, talking picture books which teach kids the joy of reading in a format they'll love. TumbleBooks are created by adding animation, sound, music and narration to existing picture books in order to produce an electronic picture book which you can read, or have read to you.

TumbleBooks is pleased to announce the launch of our new site for iPad. This means that instead of just having an iPad link, we have now created a mirror site specifically for iPad compatible content!!

Those logging onto TumbleBooks with an iPad will be pointed directly to our TumbleBooks for Mobile Devices site. It looks exactly like our regular website but all the content in every category will be iPad compatible!! You can also access the iPad content by using our Choose drop down menu on top right hand corner of our home page.

This is not an app you need to download from the iTunes Store. It is accessed through your regular browser just like TumbleBooks.

In the next few weeks, you will see new content for all of the categories - including new educational games and quizzes built specifically for the iPad and mobile platform. Every TumbleBook in the Story Book, Language Learning and Non fiction categories will be converted to an iPad compatible format. All our National Geographic videos - and the books they are paired with - will also be available in our new site. Those of you accessing TumbleBooks with an iPad will be able to enjoy the entire TumbleBooks experience!!

 If you haven't yet, please try them out and let us know what you think!

OneClickDigital - Webinars Available to the Public

Want to learn more about OneClickDigital downloadable audiobooks and have the chance to get your questions answered by a member of their staff?

They are offering a free, public, patron-focused webinar (online seminar) to demonstrate the service’s features. This 45-minute program will include a complete tour of the service and show patrons how to create an account, install the OneClickdigital Media Manager, search for content, manage checkouts, and download and transfer audiobooks to listening devices.

These webinars will be held on:
Tue, Oct 23, 2012      3:00 PM - 4:00 PM EDT
Tue, Nov 27, 2012     3:00 PM - 4:00 PM EST

Pre-registration is required! Please click the above links to sign up.

If these sessions are not convenient, you can check back at on their website for future dates & times.

OneClickDigital - Kindle Fire app now available

Do you have a Kindle Fire? Want great audiobook downloads available instantly?

OneClickDigital, a provider of downloadable audiobooks has new upgrades.

They have officially launched the OneClickdigital app for the Kindle Fire. Users can download the app for free by searching for OneClickdigital in the Android Appstore at Amazon.com

OneClickdigital now offers apps for the iPhone, all Android devices, and the Kindle Fire. App users will be able to access and download audiobooks directly to their device, without having to connect to a computer.

Here are a few other recent enhancements to OneClickDigital:

• The quick search bar is now available from all pages of the OneClickdigital website.
• The preview player now plays from within the Title Detail page, instead of opening a new webpage.

For more information on how to get started with OneClickDigital, please check out their Help Pages or give us a call!

New OverDrive App for Nook

We just received a press release from OverDrive that brings good news for owners of newer Nooks!

OverDrive App for NOOK® Makes Library eBook Borrowing Even Easier

Highly anticipated release enables over-the-air eBook borrowing on
NOOK HD, NOOK HD+, NOOK Tablet™ and NOOK Color™

(Cleveland, OH) - October 2, 2012 - OverDrive, the leading distributor of eBooks for libraries and schools, announced the release of the free OverDrive Media Console app for NOOK, making it even easier for users to borrow eBooks and audiobooks from libraries and schools. With the new OverDrive app, users of NOOK HD, NOOK HD+, NOOK Tablet and NOOK Color can wirelessly borrow eBooks and MP3 audiobooks from the library.

"With the OverDrive app for NOOK, readers can simply browse, checkout and download both eBooks and MP3 audiobooks," said David Burleigh, OverDrive's director of marketing. "NOOK has consistently been one of the highest rated devices in libraries and schools, and readers will welcome the convenience of the new app."

Users can visit the NOOK Store™ to install the free OverDrive Media Console app. The app enables users to locate a library or school nearby, browse or search their eBook collection and, after entering a valid library card or school ID, check out and download the title for a lending period of one to three weeks (depending on the library or school's policies). At the end of the lending period, the title simply expires. For more information, you can go to www.NOOK.com/publiclibrary or www.overdriveblogs.com.

New audiobook titles on OneClickdigital

Please click here for a list of the latest & upcoming titles from our OneClickdigital downloadable audiobook service!

OneClickdigital provides access to downloadable .mp3 and .wma files of Recorded Books audiobooks. All are iPod compatible and also work on a variety of other devices.

If you haven't used this resource before, here's a brief introduction.