Launched in November 2011, the Palo Alto Library was one of the first to introduce a Chromebooks lending program, after conducting a successful pilot project.
The program is enjoying a large degree of success reports Monique le Conge, Department Director, Palo Alto Library.
“Today, members of our community, both young and old, are able to check out one of our 60 Chromebooks and take it home for up to seven days to research material for school reports, educate themselves on health matters, or simply watch videos. The possibilities are endless,” she blogs.
Simplicity of usage, ease of retrieving cloud-based data and being easy to carry around have proved to be a winning combination for the library’s patrons.
The fact that Chromebooks don’t require any manual software updates or maintenance is of great benefit, le Conge notes.
“Due to shrinking budgets and reduced library staff, IT maintenance is something we pay close attention to when providing new technologies to our patrons, and the Chromebook program has been a breeze to manage,” she adds.
The popularity of the Chromebook lending program has led to expanding the service to include all of the library branches in the coming year. Additionally, other library systems have expressed interest in adopting a similar program.
A live webinar with a question and answer session about the success of the Chromebook Lending Program will be presented by the library on September 12th at 1 PM PST.
