Special Flipster Edition

Patrons asked for it!

Starting July 1, 2016 Calgary Public Library patrons will have a new way to access digital magazines on their computers, laptops or mobile devices: Flipster.

Collections is pleased to be adding Flipster to the resources of Calgary Public Library. Flipster has unique and desirable online magazine content that Calgarians want to see, particularly Canadian content.

“Patrons shared with us that they wanted Maclean’s online, as well as MoneySense and Canadian Business. With Flipster, we’re also able to offer Chatelaine, Flare, and Today’s Parent, so we’re pleased to be able to give patrons what they asked for,” states Anne Marie Fryer. “Other unique and patron-requested titles in Flipster include magazines from Time Inc. Group—People, Sports Illustrated, Fortune, Cooking Light, Entertainment Weekly, Food & Wine, InStyle, Real Simple, and Travel & Leisure.”

Flipster’s parent company EBSCO has long been in the business of providing magazines and journal content databases to the library market. The titles in Flipster do not duplicate those found in Zinio for Libraries so the two resources complement each other. Zinio for Libraries will continue to be available as long as its subsidy from the province is in place. Zinio for Libraries is a product that has been purchased for public libraries in the province of Alberta by the Public Library Services Branch, Municipal Affairs. Flipster provides access to online magazines that are not available to the Library through Zinio.

Flipster offers an easy, browse-able reading experience for our patrons. They can browse magazines by category, as well as perform searches for specific periodicals. Flipster’s online newsstand provides a carousel of the most recent issues, as well as a carousel of all issues. The table of contents contains links for quick access to articles of interest and hotlinks within magazines are hyperlinked, opening in separate tabs when clicked. In addition, patrons can opt to zoom in and out for readability.

“We know that there is always a learning curve with every new e-resource–for both staff and patrons,” says Stephen Gibbs. “One of the challenges is ensuring that patrons understand the need to authenticate with their Library card in order to access Flipster. This is an element required by the vendor to ensure that only registered patrons, accounted for in our contractual agreement with the vendor, have access. So we want staff to be sure to share that info with patrons if they have questions about signing in.”

Adding a new digital resource to the collection requires the collaboration of a host of Library staff. Implementing Flipster touches the work life of the Digital Resources Manager, the Selectors, especially Stephen Gibbs and Pamela Hodgson, as well as IT staff Anton Chuppin and Eduardo Oliviera, and Collections Assistant Laura Cheesman. The evaluation of Flipster began more than a year ago, with the technical work of acquiring starting once budget became available. Ultimately, the successful implementation of Flipster depends on the Calgary Public Library team—talking about it enthusiastically, using it, and helping others do the same.

“…we’re pleased to be able to give patrons what they asked for”

-Anne Marie Fryer

Collections’ Top 3 Things about Flipster

1. CANADIAN!

And just in time for Canada Day… more Canadian content (especially)

2. GET COMFY!

The ability to easily and comfortably read a magazine on a mobile device whenever and wherever

3. VARIETY!

Variety! Even though Flipster has only 34 titles at this point, it has something to interest everyone—from business and news to sports and from cooking to entertainment.

Flipster Titles:

(complete list)

Canada's History

Canadian Art

Canadian Business

Canadian Geographic

Canadian Wildlife

Chatelaine

Cinema Scope

Cooking Light

Entertainment Weekly

Fine Cooking

Fine Homebuilding

Flare

Food & Wine

Fortune

InStyle

LOULOU

Maclean's

MoneySense

Newsweek Global

OK! Magazine

People

Real Simple

Rolling Stone

Scientific American

Sports Illustrated

Today's Parent

Travel & Leisure

Us Weekly

The Walrus

Get Hip to Flipster

the answers to most-asked patron questions

Q. Do I need to pay for this service?

A. No, using your mobile browser, you can access Flipster and read magazines from your mobile device with an internet connection or 3G/4G connection.

Q. Are back issues available?

A. Yes, some back issues are available, depending on when Flipster obtained the online subscription. For example, the full backrun of Maclean’s would not be available.

• To access back issues on your desktop or laptop computer, open the most recent issue of a magazine and select the “All Issues” menu item in the right column to see all available issues.

• To access back issues on your mobile device, open the most recent issue of a magazine and select the “All Issues” menu item from the menu in the top left corner to see all available issues.

Q. Do I need a mobile app to view magazines on my mobile device?

A. No, using your mobile browser, you can access Flipster and read magazines from your mobile device with an internet connection or 3G/4G connection.

Q. Is there a mobile app I can use with Flipster?

A. Currently we offer a mobile app for the iPad and iPhone, Android Phones and Tablets, and Kindle Fire. To download the app, search for ‘‘Flipster’’ in the iTunes or Google Play store.

Q. Can I search within a magazine?

A. Yes, both the desktop and mobile versions of Flipster support keyword searching within a magazine. You can also search across all issues accessing the content gallery feature. There is no search feature on the mobile app.

Q. What is the Contents Gallery?

A. The Contents Gallery allows you to view the table of contents for all available issues of a magazine when using Flipster on your desktop or laptop computer.

To use the Contents Gallery:

1. Select “All Issues” from the viewer menu and click “Contents Gallery” from the resulting menu pane.

2. Click the “View” button. A new Contents Gallery window opens allowing you to page through the table of contents from all issues available.

3. Click on a feature or article to go directly to that page.

Note: The Contents Gallery is not accessible when using Flipster on a mobile device.

Q. Can I print from a magazine?

A. Yes, printing is available when reading a magazine on a computer, but not from a mobile device or the iOS or Android apps. The print button is located towards the bottom of the right-hand menu when viewing a magazine on a computer. The available print options are determined by the publisher. You may be able to print a single page, a range, or none at all.

Flipster Resources for Staff

In preparation for July 1, Flipster has provided a number of resources.

Flipster’s video tutorials provide audio narration with matching text to guide users on how to use Flipster. Their accompanying PowerPoint versions offer the same helpful information in slides.

• Flipster for Desktops (Video)

• Flipster for Desktops (PowerPoint)

• Flipster for Mobile Devices (Video)

• Flipster for Mobile Devices (PowerPoint)

EBSCO Support Site

Search the keyword “Flipster” to find additional information on how to view magazines, search, and more at http://support.ebsco.com

We’ll be posting this video to the Library website on July 1 to encourage our patrons to try Flipster: