Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Online Ordering at the Library

My favorite thing about my library's website is the notification e-mails when something is due. The e-mail has a link that I can click to renew it right away. This has rescued me several times when I was in the middle of an audio book, and several more times when I was on the road.

I love the Internet.

The Chicago Tribune ran an article about online ordering at the Chicago Public Library. Apparently, it has grown so popular that the waiting lists have gone crazy:

""It was an expected shock," said Lednicer of the surge in hold requests with the advent of online ordering. She notes that 40,000 holds were placed online in the first month of the new system three years ago. These days, as many as 120,000 items are placed on hold each month, 95 percent of which are done via computer."

The Trib calls CPL a victim of its own success.

Personally, I don't use online ordering for library books. I like to wander the stacks. But I am glad to see other patrons embracing the technology. And borrowing books!

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