Skip to Main Content
Virginia Tech® home

Ebooks

We subscribe to over a million ebooks. Most of our ebooks are PDFs, and require no additional software. See each entry for formats and restrictions.

Digital Rights Management (DRM) is a kind of restriction placed on some ebooks. DRM can limit who can use an ebook, for how long, and on which devices.  We avoid purchasing ebooks with DRM whenever possible because these restrictions can severely limit how ebooks are used by entire classes. 

Listed here are the three platforms for ebooks with DRM, how those restrictions work, and what steps you'll need to take to handle the DRM restrictions.

If you want to use an ebook for an entire class and are concerned about DRM restrictions, contact us. We'll check for any restrictions and see if the ebook can be purchased on another platform without DRM.

EBSCOhost

To download EBSCOhost ebooks, you'll need to be signed into to your My EBSCOhost profile and have Adobe Digital Editions installed.

To create a free, personal account:

  1. Start on any EBSCOhost database screen and click the “Sign In” link along the top of the page.
  2. Click “Create a new Account.”
  3. Enter the relevant information and remember your Username and Password.
  4. Use your new Username and Password to log in to My EBSCOhost.

To download an ebook:

  1. On the ebook's screen, click on “Download This eBook (Offline)”
  2. Select a Checkout Period (there is often only one choice) and click “Checkout & Download”
  3. When the File Download box opens, select “Open” and the ebook opens in Adobe Digital Editions.

If the ebook was purchased under a single-user model, only you will have access to the ebook for the duration of your download. You can "check in" the ebook early through Adobe Digital Editions.

ProQuest Ebook Central

You can read, annotate, and download individual chapters without DRM restrictions. Downloading the entire ebook requires Adobe Digital Editions software. If you will move the downloaded ebook from your computer to a device like a tablet or phone, you'll also need an Adobe ID.

If the ebook was purchased under a single-user model, only you will have access to the ebook for the duration of your download. You can "check in" the ebook early through Adobe Digital Editions.

Digitalia Hispanica

To download Digitalia Hispanica ebooks, you'll need to be logged into your Digitalia account and have Adobe Digital Editions installed.

You can create a free account if you don't already have one. Otherwise use the Your Account link at the top, right of the screen to log in.

Each book allows online reading through the browser. To download an ebook for offline use or on a tablet, use the Adobe DRM Checkout link. Choose the Download entire document option. The file should open into Adobe Digital Editions, where you'll need to sign in to your Adobe account. Users can download up to five ebooks at a time for 21 day at a time. You can "return" books early through Adobe Digital Editions. After the checkout period has expired, you can download the ebook again.