A modern library is impossible without the latest information technology. Our goal has always been to meet our visitors’ needs and therefore to make technology functional and not a mere decoration.
Despite the growing popularity of e-books, lending printed books is the principal library service. We work hard to make this process simple and convenient for our visitors.
Information kiosks in all rooms help you find the book you are looking for and print out the directions to its location on the shelves.
Once you’ve found the book, checking it out is very easy thanks to our RFID self-service stations. RFID (Radio Frequence Identification) is a technology that allows automatic objects identification: data stored on RFID tags is transmitted using radio signals. It looks very simple in real life: place the books on the RFID station, scan your library card and the system automatically identifies the user and the books — done! To view the list of borrowed books and renew them go to My Account on the library website.
If you’d rather communicate with a living person than a soulless machine, approach our librarians at their desks: they can do the same thing just as quickly with the pleasant bonus of a friendly smile.
Readers can return library books 24/7 using our Book Return Station just outside the library, next to the main entrance. It is accessible round the clock, even when the library is closed. Naturally, the Book Return Station is more than a metal box where you put the books; the device uses the same RFID technology as the self-service stations inside the library, which means that information about the returned books immediately goes to the database. The Station prints a ticket confirming that books were returned.
There are electrical outlets near all the desks in our library so readers can use their laptops. Free Wi-Fi is available throughout the library. Visitors connected to out network can not only surf the Web, but also access the electronic resources our library is subscribed to; no new software installation is necessary.
If you’d like to make copies, print documents or scan photographs, go to our Computer Library (CoBi) or use the Kopirkin copy machine in the Lobby. For a small fee you can use CoBi computers with office software and internet access. If you only use the computers to access the library’s electronic resources, your session, naturally, will be free of charge.
The Fiction Room offers more than just books: here you can watch the latest movies from around the world in HD on a large screen. You can select a film in the library or use our complete film catalogue with film descriptions, trailers and filmmakers’ biographies.
You can also listen to audiobooks in a comfy chair in the Fiction Room. Alternatively, enjoy audiobooks in the comfort of your home: all audiobooks can be borrowed.
Analogue sound enthusiasts have an opportunity to go back to the roots and explore our collection of music and radio dramas on vinyl records. At the moment, the main library building houses only a fraction of our 60 000-disc vinyl collection; the bulk of the collection is stored in our branch, Nosov’s Mansion.
And if you like playing musical instruments, you’ll love our digital piano! Headphones are attached so there is no chance you’ll disturb the other visitors: play as loud as you like and have fun!
We work hard to create a completely accessible environment for all our visitors, including visitors with special needs: parents with babies and toddlers, people with disabilities, parents with disabled children. For their convenience the library has taken measures to ensure equal access to all our resources. Read more on our Equal Opportunities page.
