DOWNLOAD BEST SELLERS
February 22, 2006

Kinston — Neuse Regional Library patrons now have access to OCLC NetLibrary eAudiobooks through NC LIVE.  More than 1,000 different titles are now available to library patrons anytime, anywhere. 

The collection of NetLibrary eAudiobooks includes a growing collection of more than 500 titles, with works from notable authors who regularly appear among the top 15 works on the New York Times’ Hardcover Best Seller List, such as Dan Brown, Patricia Cornwell, Alexander McCall Smith, Carl Hiassen, Elizabeth Peters, Nevada Barr, Pat Conroy and more.  Additional titles are added to this core collection monthly, providing the Neuse Regional Library with a continuous flow of new titles to offer library patrons.  Recent additions include “Cell” by Stephen King and Oprah’s latest pick, “Night,” by Elie Wiesel.  The Pimsleur Language Series Collection of language instruction is also available in the eAudiobook format.

“Audiobooks, in the form of cassettes and CDs, have been popular in our libraries for many years,” said Agnes W. Ho, Director of Libraries.  “The new format provides an alternate way for users to listen to their favorite titles.  Plus, we can offer eAudiobooks to our patrons 24 hours a day, seven days a week through the Web.”

Library users can search for, preview, checkout, and listen to eAudiobooks via the Internet through the NetLibrary platform, and can focus their search on audio titles only, or take advantage of search functionality that integrates audio titles with all electronic content in the Library’s NetLibrary collection.  Patrons can also access some recent releases through the Library’s catalog where they are listed as Electronic Resources.  For instance, searching “The Hunt Ball” will bring up the print copies owned by the Library and the eAudiobook link.

NetLibrary eAudiobooks can be played on any desktop, laptop, or portable device supporting Windows Media Player version 9 and above.  Library users can also transfer favorite titles to a wide range of portable devices, including portable music players, portable media centers, Pocket PCs and even select smartphone devices.  The titles cannot be played on iPods.

To access NetLibrary eAudiobooks from home, patrons must first set up an online account at any library branch.  Patrons may then use library computers to download titles to portable devices or storage media but must listen to the book elsewhere.  For more information about NetLibrary eAudiobooks ask your local librarian or visit www.neuselibrary.org/audiobooks.