Q. How do I access ebooks from ProQuest Ebook Central?

ProQuest Ebook Central is one of the primary ebook resources provided Western Libraries. Accessing the ebooks provided on this platform requires a few quick steps. 

1. Start at the Western Libraries Databases A-Z webpage. Search for Ebook Central.

Note: Accessing the platform through the University website automatically authenticates those with a universal login, meaning you don’t need to create an account with ProQuest to access materials.

2. Click through and search Ebook Central for a topic or title. Use the advanced search options to conduct a narrow search by title, author, publisher, ISBN, etc.

For an advanced search, use the drop down menus to refine search results:

3. Once you've found a result that looks promising, click through to the detail page for access options.

4. See the "Availability" section to find out the level of access Western provides (depending on how many copies of the online book the library purchased, the ebook you’re searching for may not be immediately available. Some have unlimited availability while others may be single use). The "Availability" section also details the book's check-out period and the number of pages available for download. To the left of the page, below the cover image, there are options to read online or download the ebook.

Note: To download full ebooks onto a computer, phone, or tablet, you will need to install Adobe Digital Editions in order to access them on your device. However, there is usually an option to download a limited number of pages or chapters of ebooks instead of the full-text version. This results in a PDF file that won’t expire, and you do not need Adobe Digital Editions reader for access.