Ebooks

Availability

All our ebooks from Ebook Central are in Library Search. Links to ebooks take you to an ebook details page on the Ebook Central website. If you are not signed in on Library Search, it will prompt you to log in with your Manchester Met University ID and network password.

The availability section on each ebook details page tells you the type of access for that ebook.

Access types:

Unlimited access - many simultaneous readers. We prefer to purchase ebooks with this access type. It doesn’t matter how many people want to use the ebook at the same time, you’ll be able to access it.

Single use titles – only one person can read an ebook at a time. Some publishers only allow us to buy ebooks with this access type. For popular ebooks we buy more copies to enable more of you to read it at the same time. The availability section tells you how many. If you can’t read an ebook because all copies are in use, you’ll usually be able to access it after 15 minutes, when a copy becomes available.

READ ONLINE

Select Read Online to read an ebook online. This is usually the easiest way to read an ebook.

PRINT OR DOWNLOAD A CHAPTER

Print up to 40% of an ebook. These limits reset after 24 hours. Printing or downloading a chapter or page range do the same thing - both options create a PDF that does not expire. You can then print the PDF at any time or save to read offline.

DOWNLOAD A WHOLE BOOK FOR A LIMITED PERIOD OF TIME

You may download a whole ebook to read offline on a personal device, usually for 24 hours. Some books allow you to download for longer. Check the availability information for an ebook to see how you can use it.

You will need:

• A free Adobe account - search online for Adobe ID and create an account.
• Adobe Digital Editions - free app - once you’ve got the app installed, go to Settings and enter your Adobe username and password to authorise it.

Once you’ve set up Adobe Digital Editions, using a browser (e.g. Chrome, Safari etc.) go to the Ebook Central ebook you wish to download.

Select the loan length and select Download. Then confirm that you wish to download the file.

Depending on your device, it may open automatically in Digital Editions or you may need to open your downloads, tap on the file and use the share or open with and choose Digital Editions.

Ebook Central Help

Availability

All our ebooks from VLeBooks are in Library Search. Links to ebooks take you to an ebook details page on the VLeBooks website. If you are not signed in on Library Search, it will prompt you to log in with your Manchester Met University ID and network password.

The ebook details page tells you if we own a single copy or multiple copies.

A single copy means one person can access the ebook. 

Multiple copies mean:

• An unlimited number of people may use the ebook at the same time, but access is limited by the number of annual credits (1 credit = 1 student per day). Or…
• the ebook has a multiuser licence. Where one copy might allow 3 people to use it at one time, so if we want 6 people to be able to read it the same time, we buy 2 copies and so on.

If you try to access an ebook when all copies are in use, you either just can’t get into the ebook or are offered a chance to read it for 5 minutes before being offered the option to purchase further copies. It is always worth trying to access again in 15 minutes or so, when one of the other copies may be available.

We try to buy enough copies or credits, so you are not turned away from an ebook when you want to read it. Suppliers report numbers of turnaways to us, so we can purchase additional copies or credits where funds allow.

Read Online

The easiest way to read ebooks from VLeBooks is with the Read Online button. It opens in a web browser.

If you select Read Online and get a popup saying Server Error has Occurred, check your browser settings and make sure you have cookies enabled.

If you’re on VLeBooks and it times out and asks you to log in again, selecting Shibboleth gets you to the Manchester Metropolitan login. 

Read offline

You can download most VLeBooks ebooks for one day (24 hours) to your phone or tablet.

You need:

• A free Adobe account - search online for Adobe ID and create an account
• Adobe Digital Editions - free app - once you’ve got the app installed, go to Settings and enter your Adobe username and password to authorise it.

Once you’ve set up Adobe Digital Editions, using a browser (e.g. Chrome, Safari etc.) go to the VLeBooks ebook you wish to download. Select the Download button. It’ll ask you to select how many days you want to download it for, choose 1 (there is no other option). Then select the Download button. It shows a generating download screen, once it has generated, select the Click Here To Download link.

The ebook is now in your phone or tablet’s files or downloads. It will have a filename something like 1735921.ACSM. It will either, open automatically on the Digital Editions app or, you may need to go to the file, select the share button and choose the Digital Editions app.

If the download fails, go to My Account in VLeBooks. Open the Download menu and select Alternative download.

If VLeBooks says you have already downloaded a title, go to My Account, under Current Downloads it tells you what you have downloaded and you can click Download to trigger another download file for that ebook.

VLeBooks FAQs