cloudLibrary is one of our eBook providers and offers both eBooks and eAudiobooks (For information on the other eBook services we offer, please click here). cloudLibrary can be accessed from the Digital Library page on our website under the eBooks tab or by clicking here. It's also available as an app for smartphones and tablets from the App Store and Google Play Store.
cloudLibrary can be used on a computer through the website, or on a smartphone or tablet by downloading the app. cloudLibrary does not offer Kindle books, and while Amazon does not have the cloudLibrary app in its app store, if you have a Kindle Fire you can download the cloudLibrary app from their website. For more information on how to download the app onto a Kindle Fire, please click here.
Getting Started
When using the website you can browse and search for books without signing in. However, you will need to sign in to see if the book is currently available to be checked out. To sign in, click the green Login button at the top of the screen, enter your library card number, click Login, and then click the blue Accept button.
The first time you open the cloudLibrary app you will need to log in with your library card number. Follow the onscreen prompts to sign in. Once you're signed in, you will remain signed in on the app unless you delete the app or sign out of it.
Finding and Borrowing Items
These are the home screens for Cloud Library. The first one is the website, and the second one is the app.
The website will automatically take you to the Featured page, where you can browse and search items, while the app's homepage is a little different. To access the Featured page or search for items in the app, tap the Search button on the bottom of the screen. This will take you to this page where you can browse and search for items:
cloudLibrary allows you to browse different collections of items, such as popular items, genres, or item types (eBook and eAudiobook). Some of these collections may change or new ones may be added. You can also search for specific titles, authors, genres, subjects, and keywords. To search for something, select the magnifying glass by the search box and enter your search terms. To see more information about one of the books, click or tap on the cover. A pop-up window will load with the description, publication information, and availability of the book.
To see if the book is an eBook or an eAudiobook look at the bottom right corner of its cover (or top right corner in the app). If the book has a little symbol with a pair of headphones in the bottom or top right corner like the "Entry Level Boss" book in the first two photos then it is an eAudiobook. If there isn't a symbol in either corner like the "5 Ingredients" book in the third photo then it's an eBook. For some titles we have both the eBook and the eAudiobook versions, and for others we just have one version.
Once you've found a book you'd like to borrow, click or tap on the green Borrow button to borrow it.
Once you've borrowed the item, the screen will reload. To start reading the book right now, click or tap the blue Read button (for an audiobook the button will say Listen instead). To return it, click the red Return button. You can always find the items you have checked out in the Reading section (website) or Current section (app) of your account (see below for how to find these sections). The lending period for both eBooks and eAudiobooks is 21 days, or 3 weeks, and you can have up to 10 items checked out at one time.
Placing Holds
Just like our physical items, the Sarasota County Library system only owns so many copies of each eBook or each eAudiobook in cloudLibrary. If all copies of the item you'd like to borrow are currently checked out, instead of the green Borrow button you'll see the blue Place Hold button, along with an estimated wait time. To place a hold on the item, click Place Hold (or Hold if you're using the app).
Once your hold is placed successfully, the blue Place Hold button will be replaced with a red Remove Hold button. You should also still see the estimated wait time.
Your hold will now also appear in the Holds section of your account (see below for how to find this section). Here you can view your current wait time estimate, cancel your hold, and check out your hold once it becomes available. You may have up to 15 items on hold at one time.
Once your hold is ready to be checked out you will receive a message from Cloud Library (depending on your notification settings - see below for information on how to adjust this setting), and you will then have three days to log into your account and borrow the item before your hold is canceled.
Finding Your Checked Out Items
All items you currently have checked out will show up in the Reading section (website) or Current section (app). This is the section you will need to go to read or manage your borrowed items. To access this section on the website, click on My Books at the top of the page, where you should automatically be directed to the Reading section. On the app, tap My Books on the bottom of the screen, where you will automatically be taken to the Current section.
To read or listen to any of the items, click or tap the blue Read button (or Listen for audiobooks) and your book should automatically open to the last page you were reading (or where you last stopped listening to it for an audiobook). If you're using the app, when you first open the book or audiobook it should automatically download onto your device.
Finding Your Holds
Your holds are found in the same area. Once you click or tap on My Books your current checked out items page will automatically load. If you look at the top of the screen you should see different tabs. On the website, you will see four: Reading, Holds, History, and a little flag (any books you click the "Save" option on will show up in this section). On the app, you'll also see four, though the order is slightly different: Current, History, Holds, and Saved. To view your holds, select the Holds option.
Any items you currently have on hold will appear here. You will see your current estimated wait time, along with a red Remove Hold button you can use to cancel your hold. Once your item is ready to borrow, you'll see the option to borrow it here as well.
Renewing Items
Items in cloudLibrary can be renewed as long as there are no holds on the item. This can be done from the My Books section of your account. This option will not be available until exactly 3 days, down to the minute, before the item's due date, and it won't appear if there's a hold on the item. For example, if you checked out the item on May 1st at 3:46 pm, the book will be due on May 21st at 3:46 pm, and the renew button will not appear before May 18th at 3:46 pm. To renew the item, click on the Renew button.
Returning Items
Unless renewed, borrowed books in Cloud Library will be returned automatically at the end of your lending period. However, just like with our physical items, you can choose to return your eBook or eAudiobook early. To do this, first go to the My Books section of your account. In the Reading or Current section, click or tap on the red Return button below (website) or next to (app) the item you'd like to return.
History
cloudLibrary automatically saves a history of items you've borrowed. To view your history on the website, go to My Books and then choose History.
From this page you can delete everything in your history by clicking the big red Delete History button on the right side, near the top. You can also borrow items again by click the Borrow button.
To find the your history on the app, tap the My Books icon, and then select History at the top of the screen. To delete everything from you history, click on the blue Clear List button at the top of the list.
Saved
You can access your Saved items list in the same area. On the website, go to My Books and then click the little flag symbol. To delete everything in the list, click on the red Clear Books of Interest button, or click the Green borrow button to borrow the item.
On the app, tap My Books and then Saved. Here you can borrow or unsave the items in your list, or you can delete everything in the list by choosing Clear List.
Settings
cloudLibrary also allows you to adjust some of your settings. What you can change depends on if you're using the website or the app. We'll cover the website first, and then the app.
The only setting you can change in the website is if and how you receive notifications about your holds from Cloud Library. To adjust your settings, click on the Settings tab to open the dropdown menu. If you'd like to receive email notifications, click the bubble next to Yes and enter your email address. You can also change your email address here. If you'd prefer not to receive email notifications, click the bubble next to No. When you're done making changes, click the green Save button.
There are a few additional settings in the app you can adjust that are unique to the app. To access your settings in the app click the Account icon on the bottom of the screen.
From here you can tap on the different settings areas to make adjustments.
The Notifications area allows you to control what notifications you receive from cloudLibrary, if any. The first two options apply to push notifications on your device, including the option to be notified if an item you've placed on hold becomes ready, while the third option gives you the chance to turn email notifications on or off. To turn one on or off, press the button next to it. If the button is blue, then it is turned on. Tap the Save button in the upper right corner to save any changes you make.
The Cellular Data Usage area only applies to devices with cellular service, like a cell phone, and only applies to audiobooks. If these options are turned on, then you can download or stream an audiobook using your cellular data. If these are turned off, then you will have to be connected to WiFi to download or stream an audiobook. Tap the button next to the option you'd like to change to turn it on or off. It is turned on when the button is blue. Tap the Save button in the upper right corner to save any changes you make.
The Reader eBook Settings options both apply to eBooks. If you turn on the first option then when you're reading a book (or have one open) your device won't lock after several seconds of inactivity. Most devices are set to lock after several seconds of no activity (not touching the screen), and while this is often automatically disabled when you watch a video it doesn't automatically apply to reading an eBook in cloudLibrary. Turning on the second option means that when you borrow a book it will then automatically open it without you having to press the Read button. Tap the button next to the option you'd like to change to turn it on or off. It is turned on when the button is blue. Tap the Save button in the upper right corner to save any changes you make.
This is the Usage Reporting area. When this option is turned on, data about the app is automatically sent anonymously to cloudLibrary, which they can use to help improve the app. This is common in apps. One example of the kind of data that is sent is data about the app crashing. This is optional, and while the default is for it to be turned on you can always turn it off by tapping the button next to it. Tap the Save button in the upper right corner to save any changes you make.
In addition to these settings, cloudLibrary also offers a few accessibility features for when you're reading a book. To learn more about these features, please click here.