Libraries Are Good For More Than Books

[Michael]

I've been borrowing CD's from our local library. Actually we have two cities side by side and you can use the same card at both. One lets you check out 6 CD's at a time and the other 10. So I can get 16 CD's a week for free.

The one library charges $1 for DVD's for 3 days but that includes TV season sets. So I can get a whole season of a TV show for $1. Not bad!

Something you might want to take advantage of if your library has a decent media section.

[Nickle00]

Oh man. Good idea. If I rent C.D.'s from the library can I put the music from them onto my iPod?

[Michael]

Oh man. Good idea. If I rent C.D.'s from the library can I put the music from them onto my iPod?

Not legally. :)

[fadeaway1289]

I love the library for renting dvds! They're $1 here also. I"ve rented a few tv seasons and various movies. The only sucky thing is that they take forever to get weekly new releases in and there's always a waiting list. But other than that I've been fortunete to find some really ones and it sure beats renting one movie for $5 at blockbuster.

[MissGarbo]

I L-O-V-E libraries. The abundance of resources that are available to me through the library makes me so grateful to live in a country that makes libraries a priority.

[gillibean]

Our library has movies books and cds as well. There's no charge for borrowing movies though. I'd never heard one that does charge!

[Iria]

My friends and I have utilized this for a while now. We'll be eating dinner at the dining hall and this will occur:

"Do you want to watch a movie tonight?"
"Yeah!"
*traipse next door to the library*
*span half an hour browsing through videos*
*check out four*
*have movie marathon*

We're physically incapable of picking just one. Also, incredibly irritated that The Devil Wears Prada and Little Miss Sunshine have been checked out for, like, two years straight. Yes, they're relatively new and popular, but that popular?

[Skylark]

I made hefty use of my local library and its extensive inter-library loan system when I was in Ohio. Alas, I know of nothing similar in Bolivia. I've gone back to the tried-and-true method of borrowing CDs and DVDs from friends.

[ottabox]

My library used to charge a dollar for dvds. They changed after awhile and offered them for free (legal reasons???). Public libraries should be 100% free. Sure charge extra late fees for movies and music media, but make access available to all.

[barefootchick]

I work at a public library and the system is awesome. Borrowing books, dvds, and cds is completely free. The late fees are what get most people. They also charge for interlibrary loans, but that's understandable given shipping fees and all.

A good place for really cheap books are library book sales. I've found like-new books at those sales. The main library in town holds a really big book sale at least twice a year.

Another good place for inexpensive media is Goodwill and thrift stores. I buy a lot of vhs tapes from thrift stores because I only have a vcr and the library is slowly phasing out their vhs collections. I've also found really cheap books, cds, and record albums at thrift stores.

[asp3]

Our main library is a little over a mile from our house and I normally walk there twice a week. They don't charge any fees for anything other than late fines. I'm able to get CDs, DVDs, books on CD, interlibrary loans, etc...

The library is a joint library run by the city of San Jose and San Jose State University, so it has oodles of resources that one wouldn't normally find at a standard city library (journals, thesis collections, etc...)

There are two smaller branches slightly closer to my house, but they're both being renovated, so they're closed for now.

[Skylark]

My library used to charge a dollar for dvds. They changed after awhile and offered them for free (legal reasons???). Public libraries should be 100% free. Sure charge extra late fees for movies and music media, but make access available to all.

My library in Ohio did not charge for most DVDs, but you had to pay $.50 to check out one of the new releases. After six months or so, the new releases would go into the regular DVD section, so it´s not like access was being denied. Just delayed. If $.50 is a critical amount of money for a person, they can wait six more months to view a movie. If it were ten years, I would have a problem with that, but a few months is not going to break anyone, especially with so many other movies available for free.


I work at a public library and the system is awesome. Borrowing books, dvds, and cds is completely free. The late fees are what get most people. They also charge for interlibrary loans, but that's understandable given shipping fees and all.

A good place for really cheap books are library book sales. I've found like-new books at those sales. The main library in town holds a really big book sale at least twice a year.

Another good place for inexpensive media is Goodwill and thrift stores. I buy a lot of vhs tapes from thrift stores because I only have a vcr and the library is slowly phasing out their vhs collections. I've also found really cheap books, cds, and record albums at thrift stores.

:yes: Same here. I did that with movies I couldn´t find at the library. I have this running list of movies I want to see, and I carry it with me when I go to thrift stores. If it´s a movie on VHS I know I can´t get at the library, then I may well buy it at the thrift store. If I end up not wanting to keep it, I can always donate it back for someone else to enjoy.

[Pirate Ferret]

I realised today that my university library has films!
Unfortunately almost all of them are vhs and i dont have a player =(
I did check out a documentary on a woman who thinks she's a cow though

[Starblossom]

aww i wish my library had a decent cd collection. I did take out a few edcuational cd's just because i like free stuff, but i handed them in late and whooaaa late charges for cd's are brutal!

[Bof]

My library is 'free' (But we do pay for it out of our rates) and has a large number of audio books, on CD and cassette tape. I spent 2 days last week listening to No Country for Old Men whilst working outside.
I have another one on CD which I'm loading onto the ipod (one CD at a time) and deleting when I've heard it, which is probably technically illegal but no ethical problem for me.

[nidobunny]

There's a library within walking distance from my house. It's a small one but they still have CD'S and DVDs. I really should check them out!

[jenni-anti-fur]

Thanx for the heads up on the movies,dvd cds ect..i have been thinking of going back to my local library because of the many resources there....I buy books usually at used stores..thrift stores..and sometimes the dollar tree has an excellent selection...and just pass them on to friends.

[Gita]

I pay 5 dollars per year for "friends of the library" and when they have their sales, I get in in advance of the crowd and can take my pick of the best stuff. I've been getting these huge classical music boxed sets for one dollar each, practically new books, movies and so on. I love the library sales.

[Shamandura]

Our library doesnt charge anything for renting videos/books/cds. However, they find charging $5 for lost library cards as being reasonable.
Like others have mentioned, it's hard to find anything on video other than VHS format. Most of what they have anyway are Public Broadcasting Shows.

Unfortunately, my library has maybe a max total of 5 vegetarian/vegan cookbooks that are outdated and are never available for checkout. I get upset everytime I check; to find they are already borrowed out. Yet, it makes me happy to know there are others where I live that are using them....yet, I swear it is probably one person...LOL!

[WonderRandy]

Some libraries in large cities will also let you check out framed artwork/prints/posters. It's a great way to hang replicas of great masterpieces in your home for no money. And since it's a short-term checkout, you can have a rotating gallery in your own home!!

[Scorpius]

Oh man. Good idea. If I rent C.D.'s from the library can I put the music from them onto my iPod?


Not legally. :)

I do this. (check CDs out of different libraries, rip them to my hard drive, then to my MP3 player)
I don't see why it would be illegal, it would be the same thing as borrowing one of your buddy's CDs and doing the same thing. At least its not lifted off of a downloading site...the CD was originally purchased by someone, so you're not doing the same disservice to the artist as downloading some lifted version of it from Limewire would be.

That's just my take. I'm allowed to take out up to 10CDs at a time, they're more strict about DVDs however.
I love libraries!

[DMZdogs]

I have my second excel class tonight at the library. I love free computer classes even if you do have to sit through two hours to learn just a little. (Instructor talks too much about himself and has no control over students who are desperate to chitchat--cut that out and the class would be 15 minutes) But, hey, it's free. :)

[animallover7249]

My library is extremely small, and I don't think they even have a media section. My old library did, though.



I do this. (check CDs out of different libraries, rip them to my hard drive, then to my MP3 player)
I don't see why it would be illegal, it would be the same thing as borrowing one of your buddy's CDs and doing the same thing. At least its not lifted off of a downloading site...the CD was originally purchased by someone, so you're not doing the same disservice to the artist as downloading some lifted version of it from Limewire would be.

That's just my take. I'm allowed to take out up to 10CDs at a time, they're more strict about DVDs however.
I love libraries!

I think ripping a friend's CD is illegal, too, right?

[Mr. Sun]

I think ripping a friend's CD is illegal, too, right?

I think it is. But what about mixed cds? It seems to me that people always used to make mixed tapes and that was ok because there was no way to buy one and you already did purchase the music. But now that you can buy individual songs online I wonder if it's illegal to make a mixed cd.

The laws are sometimes on the books but aren't enforced. So maybe mixed tapes were illegal all along but the artists didn't care -- they probably enjoyed having their songs exposed to more people.

[sarahjayn1980]

I'd never heard of a library charging you to check out films. I guess we are spoiled here!