Reply #35: Public libraries have access to book "rental" businesses

[csziggy]

These companies buy the block busters, "rent" them to the libraries sometimes for limited periods, then when the big demand is over, they sell them as remaindered books. Our small public library did that when I was a kid. They had special shelves for those books so the patrons knew that they were not in the permanent collection and would be sure to check them. Plus at our library the lending period for those books was shorter than for the permanent collection to give more patrons a chance to check them out.

I've bought some of those books from the discount tables at Books A Million in the last several years. Hard back books with library dust cover wrappings selling for under $5 tend to stand out.

One way that books will survive are the low cost "books on demand" machines that are being used these days. These relatively compact machines can print and bind a 300 page book in four minutes. For those out of print, out of copyright books, or for new books that are low demand, these are a great choice for people who want a physical copy rather than an electronic copy. The machines are not all that expensive and are getting a wider distribution today.

http://instabook.net/jm1/

http://www.ondemandbooks.com/hardware.htm
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1173013/A-novel-idea-The-machine-print-book-minutes.html

http://www.harvard.com/bookmachine/
http://philobiblos.blogspot.com/2009/10/harvard-bookstores-print-on-demand.html

http://www.wired.com/epicenter/2009/09/google-books-publish-on-demand/