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Resources Outside of Library

UNCSA students are able to request virtual public library cards, which they can later upgrade to full borrowing privileges.

Forsyth County Public Library

Benefits of a Virtual Library Card 

  • Borrow physical resources from local Forsyth County libraries. 

  • Borrow electronic media (books, music, movies, and more) through Overdrive. 

  • Request interlibrary loans. 

  • Use computers in library branches. 

 
Requesting a Virtual Library Card 

17 years and under 

Have a parent fill out the Forsyth County Public Library registration form

Questions of note: 

1-5: Enter student's name.

7: Use student's UNCSA mailing address. 

9: County = Forsyth 

10: ID Number = UNCSA school ID number  

14: Home library location = Central Library 

15: Signature = Enter student name 

19: Select ‘Yes’ 

20: Enter parent or guardian’s name and ID number. 

 

18 years and older 

Fill out the Forsyth County Public Library registration form

Questions of note: 

7: Use your UNCSA mailing address. 

9: County = Forsyth 

10: ID Number = UNCSA school ID number  

14: Home library location = Central Library 

20: N/A 
 

Upgrade a Virtual Card to Full Borrowing Privileges 

To borrow physical materials, wait until you receive your physical cards in the mail. Then visit any Forsyth Public Library branch and request an upgrade to full borrowing privileges. This upgrade is available regardless of age. 

Library Extension

Library Extension is a browser add-on allowing users to discover which of their libraries (public and college/university) offer physical or electronic versions of books and media. This works by adding the extension to Chrome (and Chromium-based browsers), Firefox and Edge browsers, then visiting sites such as Bookshop, Amazon and Goodreads - full list

Privacy

The extension’s FAQ page explains how the tool works, and end-user risks.

What and how do you track my books?
We take user privacy seriously and, unlike other tools, we do not track your browsing behavior. The Extension was designed to perform searches directly at your library, rather than through a middle-man, in part as a way of ensure user privacy. We do track some anonymous metrics surrounding the general use of the extension (for example, what versions of the extension are installed and which libraries are in use) as a way of ensuring we keep popular libraries working. If you have questions, we are more than happy to answer them if you contact us.

Instructions

Installing Library Extension

  1. Visit the Library Extension website

    Always visit the source website when possible. Extensions with identical or similar names are sometimes published, which can put your security at risk.
     
  2. Click on the appropriate button for your browser.
    Screen capture of browser links from the Library Extension website.
     
  3. Follow instructions to install and enable the extension in your browser.


How to Add Libraries

  1. Click the Library Extension Icon on your browser menu bar.

    Library Extension browser add-on icon
     
  2. Change “Choose your state” to “North Carolina”.
  3. Click on the blank drop down to the left of the Add button.
    Screen capture of library list dropdown tool
     
  4. The list includes every library in North Carolina through which UNCSA attendance allows campus members to request a library card. Currently, campus members can use three local libraries:
    • UNCSA Library
    • Forsyth County Public Library
    • Forsyth Tech Community College

Your home library may also be linked through the extension To check, change to your home state and search the list for your local library. If it is not on the list, consider reaching out to the library or to the extension developer through their contact form.

Not all libraries present content the same way. 

  • UNCSA Library results pull from the main catalog, which includes physical and electronic copies. Adding the library offers both formats. As a result, UNCSA does not offer selections at the time of this publishing.
  • Forsyth County Public Library includes the Overdrive catalog, their digital resource hub, which requires a separate selection to enable. If you add FCPL, you may select the main catalog and/or the Overdrive collection.

Screen capture of library settings

 

Using the Extension

When you visit specific websites using a browser running Library Extension, the add-on will add a panel on the 
webpage presenting whether a book (physical or electronic), CD, DVD, etc... is available through each library in your settings.

Screen capture of library Extension results