Subject guide

E-Books

The library provides access to a large collection of e-books. Below you can find answers to the most relevant questions on how to find and successfully access these e-books.

How can I find e-books in the library's collections?

The library’s large e-book collection can be accessed through the library’s catalogue. To filter your results so that you will only find e-book results, select (e-)Books under resource type after searching, then choose Online Access under Availability.

e-Books for guests of the library and alumni

Alumni and members who are not connected to Leiden University, but do have a library account, can access all e-books from within the university network. Find out more about the services available for alumni or visitors and guests

Can I download and print e-books?

The library provides access to e-books through many different providers and downloading policies can vary. Most platforms allow PDF downloads of complete works. Some allow only downloads of portions/chapters of e-books. The two most important providers of e-books that cannot be fully downloaded are EBSCOhost and ProQuest EBook Central, you can read more about these two exceptions and their download policies below.

Why can't I get access?

Some e-books permit only one user at a time. If you are unable to access an e-book, try again later or ask a librarian for assistance.

Can I add annotations in e-books?

This depends on which device and which software you use, but it is possible in most cases. When you are reading a PDF through Adobe Reader of Adobe Digital Editions you can add notes or highlights through their native functionality. If you use a tablet or smartphone, it depends on which app you use.

If you are using e-books hosted in the EBSCOhost or EBook Central, you may run into some limitations you are not accustomed to in other databases. This is due to Digital Rights Management. The easiest way to use these e-books is to read them online in the browser by selecting ‘PDF full text’ for EBSCOhost or ‘read online’ for EBook central. Additional services, such as downloading and reading books offline, require extra steps.

Accounts

EBSCOhost	Proquest Ebook Central
Requires login for any services beyond reading a book online. You need to register for a free EBSCO account via the sign in button.	Requires login for any services beyond reading a book online. You can use your UCLN account to log in.

Downloading PDFs and printing

EBSCOhost

Proquest Ebook Central

Only partial downloads are possible due to decisions on the publishers’ behalf. Up to 100 pages can be downloaded (may be lower, number can be found on the EBSCOhost page of the book). The resulting PDF can be printed.

To download:

Select ‘PDF full text’
Select ‘save pages’ from the top of the page.

Find more information here

Only partial downloads are possible due to decisions on the publishers’ behalf. Up to 40% of the book can be downloaded (may be lower, number can be found on the Ebook Central page of the book). The resulting PDF can be printed.

To download:

Select ‘read online’
Select ‘chapter download’ or ‘print PDF’ from the top of the page.
You are prompted to loan the book, follow the directions and you will be able to download a section.

Reading an e-book offline

You can read an e-book offline by creating a ‘loan’ and downloading a PDF that is only accessible for a set amount of time. In order to read these documents you either need Adobe Digital Editions (available on the library computers) or BlueFire for mobile devices. You can only read the downloaded document using this specific software, and after a set amount of days the document ‘expires’. You can renew the loan for your book if you need more time with it.

Choose ‘Download (offline)’ for EBSCOhost or ‘Full Download’ for EBook Central to use this option. You can read more about the exact process for EBSCOhost here, the process works similarly for EBook Central. The resulting PDF cannot be printed.

These types of loans will not appear in your list of borrowed books under My Loans in My Account in the catalogue.

What is Digital Right Management?

Digital Rights Management or DRM is a form of document protection added by the publisher. This protection serves to prevent books from being illegally copied and shared. It is similar to the copy protection added to many CDs and DVDs. For e-books and documents this generally means they can only be opened in a specific program or app.