Any one subscribe to Scribd (Netflix for books)?

[Anonymous]

I've seen a few ads for Scribd. For $8.99 a month, you gain access to their library of e-books.

I'm wondering if anyone here has subscribed and do you think it is worth it?

I'm an avid reader and I use the library Overdrive App for e-books and audio books. I also buy books at Amazon, B&N and the thrift shop.

I like Overdrive for reading at work during breaks or listening to books in the car. The problem is there is very long wait lists for new and popular books. All of my holds seem to come in at one time and you can't renew a book beyond the 21 day check out.

I had A Fine Balance, Sisterhood and Where'd You Go Bernadette all arrive to my account within two days. I only made it through two of them during the 21 day check out. Now I'm back to the bottom of the wait list for book 3.

Still, I'm not sure if my reading habits will warrant the monthly fee or if the issues I have with Overdrive will resolve with Scribd.

http://www.scribd.com/

[Anonymous]

Before you do that, try getting library cards from other local libraries. DC, MoCo, FFX, and Arlington all have reciprocity. This will greatly increase your odds of getting the book you want sooner.

Also, develop a strategy for placing holds. When I'm ready to start a new book, I place identical holds on the book at all my different Overdrive libraries. I start reading as soon as the first one becomes available, and by the time the first loan period expires, I usually have another copy available from a different library.

Also, I focus on reading the popular books from last year, instead of the current popular ones.

HTH!

[Anonymous]

I looked into it but there weren't a lot things I wanted to read.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I looked into it but there weren't a lot things I wanted to read.

Me too. I use the library and supplement with buying a book maybe once a month.

[Anonymous]

There are waitlists for library e-books.

I'd try Librivox:
https://librivox.org/

It's free and all the titles are in the public domain, so mainly classics but lots of choices.

[Anonymous]

I did for a couple months but unsubscribed because I was hardly using the service. I do read find some free stories on Scribd though they tend to be in the 'documents' section.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I've seen a few ads for Scribd. For $8.99 a month, you gain access to their library of e-books.

I'm wondering if anyone here has subscribed and do you think it is worth it?

I'm an avid reader and I use the library Overdrive App for e-books and audio books. I also buy books at Amazon, B&N and the thrift shop.

I like Overdrive for reading at work during breaks or listening to books in the car. The problem is there is very long wait lists for new and popular books. All of my holds seem to come in at one time and you can't renew a book beyond the 21 day check out.

I had A Fine Balance, Sisterhood and Where'd You Go Bernadette all arrive to my account within two days. I only made it through two of them during the 21 day check out. Now I'm back to the bottom of the wait list for book 3.

Still, I'm not sure if my reading habits will warrant the monthly fee or if the issues I have with Overdrive will resolve with Scribd.

http://www.scribd.com/

Download the books from Overdrive to the hard drive of your computer. They will stay there permanently, rather than disappear after three weeks the way they do when you download them to your iPhone. When you're ready to listen to a book, you can import it to iTunes through your computer, then set up a Playlist and upload it to your phone (or whatever you use to listen to audiobooks.)

I know this is not the way you're supposed to use Overdrive. But I feel ok about it because I'm not reproducing the audiobooks for distribution or for anyone else's use. I'm just holding them on my hard drive until I have time to catch up with books that all came in at the same time. YMMV.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've seen a few ads for Scribd. For $8.99 a month, you gain access to their library of e-books.

I'm wondering if anyone here has subscribed and do you think it is worth it?

I'm an avid reader and I use the library Overdrive App for e-books and audio books. I also buy books at Amazon, B&N and the thrift shop.

I like Overdrive for reading at work during breaks or listening to books in the car. The problem is there is very long wait lists for new and popular books. All of my holds seem to come in at one time and you can't renew a book beyond the 21 day check out.

I had A Fine Balance, Sisterhood and Where'd You Go Bernadette all arrive to my account within two days. I only made it through two of them during the 21 day check out. Now I'm back to the bottom of the wait list for book 3.

Still, I'm not sure if my reading habits will warrant the monthly fee or if the issues I have with Overdrive will resolve with Scribd.

http://www.scribd.com/

Download the books from Overdrive to the hard drive of your computer. They will stay there permanently, rather than disappear after three weeks the way they do when you download them to your iPhone. When you're ready to listen to a book, you can import it to iTunes through your computer, then set up a Playlist and upload it to your phone (or whatever you use to listen to audiobooks.)

I know this is not the way you're supposed to use Overdrive. But I feel ok about it because I'm not reproducing the audiobooks for distribution or for anyone else's use. I'm just holding them on my hard drive until I have time to catch up with books that all came in at the same time. YMMV.

One last note about audiobooks on Overdrive: Keep checking the inventory. I'm finding they're adding new audiobooks all the time.