At the Port Washington Public Library, books and movies are not the only thing that you are allowed to check out.  A new service was recently introduced so that residents of Nassau County are able to rent out nooks and iPods.  Nooks have been available for rental since this past June, but the iPods are the newest addition and became available to the public last month.

The library offers the seventh edition iPod Nanos.  They come in protective casing along with a keychain and a charger. The small device has 200 songs, and can be checked out for up to two weeks.  Some of the playlists that are downloaded on to the iPods include “The Beatles Complete Discography,” “Blue grass, Country and Traditional,” and “Bob Dylan—A Cross-section of Dylan over the Years.”

One thing these iPods do not come with is audiobooks, also known as audio cassette recordings.  This is because the library offers mini mp3 players called “playaways,” which are designed for that purpose.  The Nooks also come preloaded with e-books;however, one is not able to add their own book choice to the collection.

To borrow e-books for two weeks, you must go to the library’s separate e-book service called the Overdrive—an organization that distributes e-books to libraries.  This service was made available as a response to the growing popularity of e-books.

“The library should be encouraging everyone to read in any format that is available to them,” said the Director of Adult Service at the PWPL Lee Fertitta.  “E-readers are now the ‘new thing’, yet people are still reluctant to buy an e-book device unless they tried them out first.  Another reason why we made the nooks available to the public is that the nook is a very convenient and comfortable device for avid readers, and they are able to carry their own little library around with them.”

Students who forget to bring their own nook or iPod to the library are at an advantage with this service because they can easily rent one out on the spot, without having to run back home.

The world is in an increasingly digital age, and Schreiber’s students must be well- equipped to work in such a digital workplace.  The addition of nooks and iPods to the library allows students to access these materials, epsecially if they do not own them or cannot afford them.

Stop by the Port Washington Public Library to reserve an iPod or nook, as they are rented out on a first come, first serve basis.