September is Food For Fines Month

Save on fines and help our community at the same time! 

We will accept donations of canned or boxed food during the month of September. One dollar in fines will be waived for each item of food donated for up to $10 per library card holder. Expiration dates must be visible on the food containers and the waived fees apply to fines only. The food drive is open to anyone, even if they do not have overdue materials.

“Our goal is to encourage users to return overdue materials, while at the same time giving back to our communities,” said Pat Ryan, executive director of the Jefferson County Library Cooperative. “We’d rather have overdue items back than the fines because of the costs associated with reordering and processing new materials. And some items cannot be replaced.” 

We want to do something for our community and also provide an incentive for library users with overdue fines to return to the library. At this time of year, food pantries are getting low and need to be replenished with the holidays just around the corner. We will be collaborating with the United Way Food Bank, Greater Birmingham Ministries, and Magic City Harvest.

“Food for Fines” is held in conjunction with the annual National Library Card Sign-up Month. In September, cardholders can trade in their old wallet card for a keychain card, or receive a replacement for a worn out card free, without paying the usual $3.00 fee.

Readers! eBooks are now here!

You can enjoy EPUB eBooks from all Jefferson County Libraries if you have a Barnes & Noble Nook, Sony Reader, or Borders' Kobo eReader. And of course they work with most Windows and Mac computers. 

To download Adobe eBooks, you need Adobe Digital Editions. Download and install Adobe Digital Editions here.

To help you get started, go to the Quick Start Guide.

See our new and growing eBook collection!

At the present time, Adobe EPUB & PDF eBooks are incompatible with Amazon Kindle and Apple iPad. See the list of known compatible devices.

"Mockingjay" Suzanne Collins Reads from her Hunger Games series

Want to see Suzanne Collins, author of the Hunger Games series reading from the first chapter? Then watch below. Reserve your copy of the book-on-CD or book here!

How Rocket Learned to Read by Tad Hills

The Children’s Department is proud to announce that there are now two copies of How Rocket Learned to Read by Tad Hills on the shelf and ready to be checked out!

In Tad Hills’ new story, How Rocket Learned to Read, Hills creates a cute story of the joys of reading. Rocket, a sweet little black and white puppy, loved to play. He loved to chase leave and chew sticks. He loved to listen to the birds sing. Then one day, a little yellow bird landed on Rocket’s head and proclaimed him to be her first student. Though he initially tries to resist learning, the little yellow bird is determined to teach Rocket the wonderful world of reading.

Author and illustrator Tad Hills, who created the delightful Duck and Goose, is sure to captivate children with his beautiful oil and colored pencil illustrations and quirky facial expressions. This enchanting story will surely help your little one overcome any fears that they might have about reading or even starting school.

To place a hold on How Rocket Learned to Read, click here!

#2 - HPL's Summer Reading 2010 Finale starring Roger Day

We enjoyed the experience so much that we had to post part #2 of the Roger Day performance at our Summer Reading Finale. Watch to see children and parents interacting with more of our favorite songs: Parachute Girl, Dream Big, Sara Bellum, Roly Poly, and more...

See part #1 on YouTube. 

www.rogerday.com

Enjoy!

Organizing Your Gmail Inbox With 'Labels'

Organizing Your Gmail Inbox With 'Labels'

By default, Gmail, much like any web-based mail, provides standard 'labels', sometimes called 'folders' in other email programs, such as INBOX, SENT MAIL, DRAFTS, and TRASH.

If you use the same email address for a long period of time, it's easy to fill your inbox with hundreds of emails you wish to keep, which are normally organized by most recent to less recent. This can result in clicking through several pages of emails to find an email you need from a year ago.

Gmail provides a 'Labels' system to help organize the inbox and enable users to find emails they need to keep over time quickly and efficiently.

For example, I have a favorite charitable organization I give to regularly, and when I donate I will receive a confirmation email with the amount I gave, check number, the date of the gift, etc. If I have been giving to this organization for several years, and I need to find the second gift I ever donated to them, I could easily waste a lot of time weeding through emails.

With Gmail's 'Labels' system however, I can create a folder called 'Giving', and each time I receive my confirmation email, I simply check the box next to the email, and move it to the 'Giving' label, where I can find any of my statments quickly.

You can create custom labels with any name you want, such as a label for emails only from a specific contact, or concering a certain subject, such as an event, project, or emails only from co-workers or classmates.

CREATING CUSTOM LABELS

At the top right hand corner of the Gmail window click SETTINGS.
In the SETTINGS menu, the second sub-heading from the left, click LABELS.

The first heading under LABELS is called SYSTEM LABELS. Under SYSTEM labels you will see the default Gmail labels. These default labels cannot be changed or removed, but you do have the option of whether or not they appear in the Gmail menu on the left of the Gmail window. To the right of each label, click 'show' or 'hide' to customize what default Gmail labels appear in your menu.

The second heading under LABELS is called LABELS. From this menu you can create custom labels to help organize your inbox. In the LABELS menu you also have the option to 'show', 'hide', or 'remove', which allows you to delete a custom label from your Gmail menu. You can also choose to 'show all' or 'hide all' created labels in your Gmail menu.

The SYSTEM LABELS and LABELS headings will be separated by a horizontal line in your main Gmail menu.

CREATING A NEW LABEL
To create a new label, type the name of label you want to create in the text box to the right of the LABELS heading. Now click the create button. Look in your Gmail menu on the left of your window. Your newly created label should now appear.

USING YOUR NEW LABELS
In your Gmail Inbox, check the checkbox of the email you want to move to your created label. Any emails with a check in the checkbox will be moved to the new label.

At the top of the inbox, click the MOVE TO button. A drop-down menu will appear listing your created labels.

Click the name of the label where you want to store the email.

Click the name of the folder you just chose in your Gmail menu. The email you moved should now appear.

Gmail organizes your created labels alphabetically by label name.

--kb

FIFTH ANNUAL FOHO BLOCKBUSTER BOOK SALE - Print Your Coupon Now!

Friends of the Homewood Public Library are planning their Fifth Annual FOHO Book Sale August 13-16, 2010 in the Auditorium.

Special donations of books are being reserved for this sale. These books have never been seen in the bookstore and will not be revealed until the first day of the sale. Bring your book donations to the Homewood Public Library now, so that we can make this the largest sale in the history of Homewood Public Library.

 

Print your $1.00 off coupon here

Join us Friday night for the opening event! Get first choice of the books, enjoy light refreshments, and have a great time.

Friday, August 13
6:30 – 8:30 p.m.
$2.00 Admission

Saturday, August 14
9 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.

Sunday, August 15
2 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.

Monday, August 16
9 a.m. – 8:30 p.m.

Visa and MasterCard Accepted

Visit the Friends of the Homewood Public Library Bookstore located on the lower level of the library during regular store hours:

Monday – Friday
10 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Saturday

10 a.m. – 2 p.m.