When you search Scout, your results will include both print books and ebooks. If you'd like to search specifically for books in Scout, select the "Print Books" or "eBooks" limiter on the left side of the results page:
As a distance student, you can borrow print books and have them mailed to you. Can't find a book you need in our collection? Scroll down to the Interlibrary Loan box below to learn how to request a book from another library through UA.
On the Scout record, click "Request Item" on the left side of the page.
Log in to ILLiad with your MyBama login.
Choose "Mail to Address" for your Loan Delivery Method on the next page. (You'll only have to do this once.)
Select "Doc Delivery - Loan" for the whole book, or "Doc Delivery - Copy" to get a scanned copy of a chapter. These options are also available in the left side menu.
The information will automatically be filled in on the request form. Double check it and hit "Submit." You're all done!
To return your books, mail them to:
Interlibrary Loan
University of Alabama Libraries
711 Capstone Drive, Room 208
BOX 870266
Tuscaloosa, AL 35487-0266
Ebooks at UA Libraries will look different based on different vendors, but for most of them, you'll want to look for how to download one or more chapters as a PDF to read offline. The instructions below show an EBSCO ebook (which you're most likely to come across in our collection), but you'll want to follow a similar procedure for all ebooks. Since many ebooks have limits on the number of users who can access them at once, this will keep you from blocking access to other users. You can return to download additional chapters.
In the Scout record, look for access options on the upper left (or scroll down to find a link at the bottom of the record). If available, select “PDF Full Text” or “EPUB Full Text.”
On the next screen, select chapter(s) or pages to download by clicking the download icon next to the chapter you'd like to read. You’ll see information about usage limits above the table of contents.
In the pop-up window, select "chapter" or define your page range and click download. If you hit the download limit, you can return later to download additional pages or chapters.
If you can't find a book you want in our collection, we can get you a copy from another library via Interlibrary Loan (ILL). Follow the same procedure as you did to request a book by mail, but select "Loan" instead of "Doc Delivery" and fill in the book's information manually. You can also request a book chapter or journal article to be scanned and sent to you by requesting "Copy."
The video tutorial below walks you through the process: