Requesting items from the library is changing a little.

On July 1st, 2010, Massachusetts Library Regions (which facilitates lending books between libraries throughout the Commonwealth) will be condensed from six regions to one. This will cause two impacts to patrons of the Chelmsford Library, which is summarized in the official wording from the MVLC:

Due to the 28% cut in state tax support for Massachusetts libraries, materials delivered to you from other Massachusetts libraries may experience a delay, or materials obtained from libraries outside of Massachusetts may be assessed a charge by your local library, as of July 1, 2010.

1. Because delivery centers, routes, and regional staff are changing, items requested from outside the MVLC may take longer to arrive. We’re not sure what the impact will be, but we do expect delays as the new system is put in place.
2. Chelmsford residents will not pay any fees to request items through the Chelmsford Library. However, non-residents will be charged $5.00 for any item that cannot be requested through the MVLC or state-wide Virtual Catalog. Any patron who fails to pick up an out-of-system item may lose the ability to place ILL requests. Also, any patron who returns an out-of-system item late may be charged an overdue fine (depending on the loaning library)

For more information on the regional restructuring, please see the Regional Transition Planning Committee Final Report and a Massachusetts Library System fact sheet [pdf] issued by the Patrick Administration and the Board of Library Commissioners.

If you are interested in requesting an item, please follow the steps below, or review our Interlibrary Loan/Network Transfer Policy.

1. Search the Merrimack Valley Library Consortium catalog
You can search for and request items by starting at http://catalog.chelmsfordlibrary.org (you’ll need your library card barcode and PIN) – instructions for requesting items online

2. Search the state-wide Virtual Catalog
If the item you’re looking for isn’t in the MVLC system, click the Virtual Catalog link at the top of the MVLC catalog page (you’ll need your library card barcode)

3. Request an item through library staff
If you can’t find the item on your own, library staff can search outside the state for the item and request it on your behalf. Non-Chelmsford residents will be charged $5.00 (non-refundable) for this service, so check with your home library to see if they will request it free.

Dennis Lehane, author of the 2010 One Book Chelmsford Shutter Island, will be speaking in Chelmsford on Sunday, June 13th!

This event will take place at 1:00 PM at the Chelmsford High School Performing Arts Center (directions and map). There is no admission fee, but we are asking people to register on our website so we know what size crowd to expect. Shutter Island will be discussed, but attendees are also encouraged to ask questions about any of Dennis Lehane’s books – including the upcoming Moonlight Mile.

For more details, visit the One Book Chelmsford webpage or our calendar’s Event Information page.

On Wednesday, May 5th, the Board of Trustees of the Chelmsford Public Library held an “Open House” style meeting at the MacKay Branch Library. More than 70 patrons of the Library were in attendance, representing a broad cross-section of library users and neighbors.

The full notes from the Open House are available on our website, and here are some of the highlights from the evening:

• The Trustees presented an overview of how the library is funded
• The library received level-service funding for FY2011, which means no cuts are expected
• Factors that influence staffing levels and operating hours at the MacKay Branch
• The Trustees are committed to keeping the MacKay Branch open
• Questions from patrons:
  • Can patron’s contribute or do fundraising to benefit the library?
  • What will it take to restore hours to MacKay?
  • Could a tax bill insert be used to fund the library?

Please read the full notes from the Open House. If you have comments or questions, you can contact the Trustees directly or Becky Herrmann, Library Director, at bherrmann@mvlc.org or 978-256-5521 x101.

Another Open House is scheduled at the Main Library for Wednesday, June 16th, 7:00-8:00 PM.

The Friends of the Library have begun scheduling drop-off dates for book sale donations. These dates are listed below, and more information is available on the Friends’ Book Sale webpage.

Please consider helping make the 2010 Book Sale a success – the 2009 Book Sale raised over $27,000 for the Library!

If you are unable to make one of the scheduled drop-offs, you can use the Book Sale Donation box, located on the edge of the parking lot between the Library and the Dutton House.

Or, if you are emptying a house or an estate and would like to donate a large collection of books, please contact the Friends directly to make special arrangements.

Also Remember to Visit the 2010 Book Sale:

The sale will take place in the gym behind the Town Office building, 50 Billerica Road, Chelmsford [see a map].

The Library’s Overdrive subscription has been expanded to offer ebooks in addition to audiobooks.

These ebooks are in the Adobe EPUB format, and work with many ereader devices, including the Barnes and Noble Nook and Sony eReader – they are not compatible with the Amazon Kindle or Apple iPad.

Anyone with a valid MVLC library card can visit http://mvlc.lib.overdrive.com to start browsing. We’re starting with a small ebook collection, but will continue to add titles.

Searching for ebooks works the same as searching for audiobooks, but you will need to download and install the free Adobe Digital Editions software. Overdrive provides instructions for getting started, and offers a great video guided tour of using our Overdrive library. We also have an introductory brochure [pdf] that gives tips on using Overdrive.

In addition to Overdrive, our Reading Room page lists other places from which Chelmsford residents can download free ebooks (including some Kindle resources).

If you’re still considering purchasing an ebook reader, here are resources to help you evaluate which device would work best for you:

• News and Advice from Consumer Reports
• Reviews from c|net
• Reviews from PC Magazine
• Reviews from Wired Magazine
• Privacy information from the Electronic Frontier Foundation: E-Book Buyer’s Guide to Privacy and privacy comparison charts of the top models