Exams and Revision

How to get the most out of the Library and other University support for revising for and taking exams

Introduction

man taking notes whilst using a computerE-books are electronic versions of print texts. You can read them on various devices, including your laptop or University computers. The Library has purchased access rights to thousands of e-books which you can access and read on- or off-campus.

E-books are available to you 24/7 from any device which is connected to the internet, and many can be downloaded for later reading.

This section includes guidance on:

Common problems

Can I read e-books on different devices?

Although all our e-books can be accessed from any device with an internet connection, most e-book platforms have not been optimised for viewing on mobile phones and tablets as they do not automatically re-format the size of the text to fit your device. For the best viewing experience we would therefore recommend accessing our e-books from a PC or laptop computer.

What do I do when I get a message saying the e-book is already in use?

For very popular e-books you may see a message telling you that the e-book is already in use. Some platforms only allow an e-book to be viewed by one or sometimes three people at a time. If you get a message saying the e-book is already in use, take a quick break and try accessing it again after a few minutes.

What do I do if I can't work out how to get an e-book?

If you’re experiencing technical difficulties accessing e-books, please read this guide, and if you're still struggling, get in touch with us via EdHelp (students) or the Helpline(staff).

Digital Rights Management (DRM)

Many e-books available to university libraries contain Digital Rights Management (DRM) software. This software, which is used by some e-book suppliers, can limit what you can do with an e-book, i.e. download, print or copy.

While the University Library purchases e-books without Digital Rights Management wherever possible, some of our e-books do have restrictions on how they can be used. You can find more information on how to use our e-books by browsing the tabs in this E-books guide.

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