Auburn Public Library Now Offers Digital Magazines

Auburn, Ala. - This week, the Auburn Public Library launched Zinio, a new service providing library cardholders with access to digital magazines. The opening collection offers 65 titles for checkout and covers a wide range of interests, including current events, interior design, cooking, travel, fitness, business, and technology. Zinio for Libraries is provided by RBdigital, a division of Recorded Books. 

Brandon Rowland, the library’s Digital Services Specialist, has been looking forward to Zinio’s launch. “It’s a way for us to bring the library to our patrons in a new, convenient way. Zinio really puts the library right in people’s hands.”

To access Zinio, library patrons should follow the link on the library’s website and create an account with Zinio and RBdigital using their library card number. Once the account is activated, patrons can check out individual magazine issues through the Zinio website and read them either in their web browser or with a Zinio mobile app. The app is available for tablets, smartphones, and e-readers. Patrons can check out as many issues of as many magazines as they like, and can keep them indefinitely.

Zinio continues the Auburn Public Library’s exciting tradition of digital collection development.  In 2011, the library began offering patrons downloadable ebooks through OverDrive.  “Since then, our e-books have become the fastest growing  part of our collection,” said Auburn Public Library Director Chris Warren.  “In just the past year, our OverDrive activity has doubled to almost 2,000 downloads per month.  We’re hoping that Zinio will be just as popular, if not more so.”

Both Zinio and OverDrive are available even when the library is closed and can be accessed from anywhere and on almost any device with an internet connection.  “Our digital media services allow us to serve our community 24 hours a day, seven days a week,” said Rowland, “and our patrons love that.”

For more information about the Auburn Public Library’s Zinio collection, please visit www.auburnalabama.org/library. For questions about how to use Zinio or OverDrive, please call the Auburn Public Library at 334-501-3190. Library staff can provide general assistance over the phone and can also provide one-on-one training by appointment.