Ebook Central allows you to read ebooks online directly within the platform, without the need to download them first.
In the majority of cases you will do this via the Ebook Central Reader. The video below (3:30) will walk you through using the Ebook Central online reader. You’ll also learn how to download, copy, and print books or chapters, and how to quickly and accurately create a citation for your research.
For more info on how to use the Ebook Central Reader, scroll below the video.
The Ebook Central Reader (pictured below) allows you to navigate through your ebook. The default view includes an expandable Table of Contents, a very helpful Search Within feature, relevancy ranked search terms by chapter, and a navigation tool bar in the content pane. Take special note of 3.Search Within Book and 10.Cite -- these are 2 productivity tools that you will be using often!
1. Book Details
View your print and copy allowances.
2. Annotations Icon
View your highlights, notes and bookmarks.
3. Search Within Book (shown from 1:23 - 2:00 in the video above)
Type your search term into the search box, making sure to put phrases in quotes. If those words appear in the book, then they will be displayed (by chapter) beneath the search bar. Select the chapter name to see the results per page and contextual snippets of text. Click text snippets to go straight to the page those words are on!
4. Book Download
Downloading a book is an easy 3-step process to computers, tablets, and phones.
5. Chapter Download
Download a chapter to PDF. Text is searchable and selectable, and a citation is included. Pages included in your Chapter Download are counted as part of your overall print allowances.
6. Copy
Copy the whole page by selecting the copy icon in the navigation toolbar. To copy text within a page, select your text and use the copy icon in the pop-up menu.
7. Print
Create a PDF of a page, or a range of pages that can be printed or saved, and which includes a citation of the book. Printed pages are counted as part of your overall print allowances.
8. Add to Bookshelf
Save this book to your online bookshelf. If you have already added the title, the icon will be disabled.
9. Share Link
Copy a URL to this page in the book, which you may share with others at your institution.
10. Cite
Create a citation from your choice of styles: APA, Chicago/Turabian - Notes-Bibliography, Chicago/Turabian - Author-Date, Harvard, MLA, or Vancouver. If you have a preferred citation style, you may set that preference in Settings (see "Warning" below).
11. Search Terms by Chapter and Page
Expand the Table of Contents to see search terms by chapter and page and click in the contextual snippet of text to navigate to that page.
12. Zoom Options
Zoom in (+), zoom out (-), fit to width, or fit to page.
13. Go To Page
To navigate to a specific page in the book, click on top of the page number and enter your desired page.
14. Previous/Next
Move backward or forward through a book one page at a time.
15. Settings
Reset your password, change your default citation style, and more.
Note: Clicking on the little 'x' in the left columns top right corner will collapse this column and provide you with a larger display of the page.
Be careful! Occasionally, ProQuest Ebook Central (and other databases) will generate an incorrect citation. Before you copy/paste any of these citations into your work, make sure to take the time to check them for accuracy. Common citation mistakes include: no hanging indent, incorrect use of italics, incorrect use of capital letters, improper inclusion of a URL.
Use the LAVC Library's Cite Sources Guide to make sure your MLA/APA citations are accurate!
This guide was adapted from the ProQuest Ebook Central LibGuide.
