E-Resources
e-BOOKS & Audiobooks
LIBBY BY Overdrive
OverDrive is the leading digital reading platform for libraries and schools worldwide. OverDrive are dedicated to “a world enlightened by reading” by delivering the industry’s largest catalog of eBooks, audiobooks and other digital media to a growing network of 40,000 libraries and schools in 70 countries. Access via app available via the App Store or Google Play, or access using a web browser.
THE PALACE PROJECT
Introducing your newest e-reader, the Palace app! Palace allows you to access more of your library’s ebooks and audiobooks in one place. Additionally, enjoy thousands of free titles on the Palace Bookshelf which are yours to keep for as long as you’d like. Access via app available on App Store or Google Play.
Biblioboard
Biblioboard offers a library of e-books that are available to any Illinois resident. Web browser access only.
educate station
educate station
Educate Station is an educational Internet resource designed to support parents, teachers, and caregivers with high-quality, ready-to-use learning materials for children in Pre-K through 5th grade.
Fun and attractions
Explore More Illinois
Explore More Illinois is a free service provided by your library that provides instant online access to free and discounted tickets to museums, science centers, sporting events, zoos, park districts, theaters, and other fun and local cultural venues. Log in using your full Plano Library card number and PIN (the last four digits of your card number, unless you have changed it). This service can be accessed without needing to visit the library in person.
MUSEUM ADVENTURE PASS
Use your Plano Library card to receive admission or a special discount at participating cultural destinations, including Air Classic Museum, Brookfield Zoo, Cantigny Park, Chicago Botanic Garden, Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center, Naper Settlement, and more. Available to Plano Library cardholders in good standing. Passes cannot be reserved or checked out online or by phone. You must visit the Plano Library in person to get a pass. The library has a limited number of passes for each destination. There is a limit of one pass per family per week.
Genealogy
Ancestry
Search by surname, location, or record type. Contains more than 1.2 billion records in more than 3,000 databases, including the U.S. Federal Census from 1790-1930, the American Genealogical Biographical Index, Passenger and Immigration Lists Index, and much more. This database is accessible only within the library.
heritagehub
Explore your family history with the premier collection of U.S. obituaries and death notices for in-depth genealogical research from 1704 – today. HeritageHub helps you easily identify relatives, uncover new information and potentially unknown family members. Includes deep coverage from all 50 states, hard-to-find content from the mid 1900’s, and original obituary images.
Heritage Quest
HeritageQuest® Online is a comprehensive treasury of American genealogical sources—rich in unique primary sources, local and family histories, convenient research guides, interactive census maps, and more. Discover the amazing history of you with HeritageQuest Online. With more than 4.4 billion records, it delivers an essential collection of genealogical and historical sources—with coverage dating back to the 1700s—that can help people find their ancestors and discover a place’s past.
research and newspapers
Access world news research collection
Explore and stay informed on local, national and international topics, people and events in areas such as business, health, education, jobs and careers, political and social issues and more. Features a wide variety of credible, vetted news sources from around the world to around the corner.
Access World News Research Collection
BeACON NEWS collection
Don’t have a subscription to the Beacon News? No problem! View today’s full-color newspaper every day for free. Explore Aurora area history through local news, events and people with the Beacon News Collection. Search current and archived issues with full-color newspaper pages, full-text articles and content only published online.
Chicago sun times collection
Explore Chicago history through local news, events and people with the Chicago Sun-Times Collection. Search current and archived issues with full-color newspaper pages, full-text articles and content only published online.
USA TODAY collection
Explore national content and history through local news, events and people with USA TODAY Collection. Search current and archived issues with full-color newspaper pages, full-text articles and content only published online.
Ebsco Databases
Provided by the Office of the Secretary of State and the Illinois State Library.
collection highlights
EXPLORA PUBLIC LIBRARY
Search once and see results from many of these EBSCO databases.
LEARNING EXPRESS LIBRARY
Learn the fundamentals of computers, the internet and popular software applications a user-friendly e-learning platform that contains more than 100 self paced video tutorials.
NOVELIST
Contains information on over 260,000 fiction and readable nonfiction titles. Features lists of award-winning books, book discussion guides, Read-a-Like recommendations, and complete series information. Also includes reader ratings and reviews. Create your own reading wish list.
NOVELIST K-8
Find just the right book by subject, age, awards won, books made into movies, and much more. Read reviews and learn about the author. Create your own reading wish list. Includes tools for teachers such as Lexile levels and Common Core standards.
AUTO REPAIR SOURCE
Repair information and schedules, diagrams, parts and labor estimates, service alerts, and recalls. Covers thousands of domestic and imported vehicles.
FULL COLLECTION
ACADEMIC SEARCH ELITE
Designed for academic institutions. Comprehensive, multi-disciplinary resource of scholarly research. Coverage on a wide range of topics. Includes peer-reviewed full text resources for subjects such as adult education, higher education, public health, and more.
AGRICOLA
From the National Agricultural Library. Contains citations about all aspects of agriculture and related fields. Includes: journal articles, monographs, proceedings, theses, patents, translations, audiovisual materials, computer software, and technical reports.
ALT HEALTHWATCH
Provides information on complementary, holistic, and integrated approaches to healthcare and wellness. Sources include journals (some peer-reviewed) and reports.
AUTO REPAIR SOURCE
Repair information and schedules, diagrams, parts and labor estimates, service alerts, and recalls. Covers thousands of domestic and imported vehicles.
BIOGRAPHY REFERENCE center
More than 390,000 biographies. Includes complete full text run of Biography Today and Biography Magazine as well as thousands of narrative biographies.
BUSINESS SOURCE ELITE
This database provides full-text coverage of top business, management and economics journals and periodicals. These valuable publications cover topics such as accounting, banking, finance, international business, marketing, sales and more.
EBSCO EBOOKS CRICKET MEDIA SUBSCRIPTION COLLECTION
Build strong literacy skills in students from pre-K to 8th grade by offering digital access to award-winning, short-form fiction and nonfiction titles.
ERIC: EDUCATION RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER
Index of journal articles, books, theses, curriculum guides, conference papers, standards, and guidelines on a wide range of education topics. Sponsored by the Institute of Education Sciences of the U.S. Department of Education.
ETHNIC DIVERSITY SOURCE
This full-text database is a dedicated resource covering the culture, traditions, social treatment and lived experiences of different ethnic groups in America.
HEALTH SOURCE: CONSUMER EDITION
Subjects include fitness, nutrition, diabetes, aging, women’s health, children’s health, and more. Information comes from magazines, books, Clinical Reference System reports, and pamphlets.
HEALTH SOURCE: NURSING/ACADEMIC EDITION
Provides researchers, allied health professionals, nurses, and medical educators access to scholarly journals on many medical disciplines. Provides indexing, abstracts, and full text for hundreds of nursing and allied health journals, many of which are peer reviewed.
HISTORY REFERENCE CENTER
Covering topics in U.S. and world history from the earliest civilizations through the 21st century, this database contains full-text journals, magazines, reference books and thousands of primary source documents.
HOBBIES AND CRAFT SOURCE
Subject areas include arts & crafts; games & electronics; models; needlework; outdoors & nature; and scrapbooking & paper craft.
HOME IMPROVEMENT SOURCE
Includes maintenance, remodeling, electrical work, plumbing, wood projects, outdoor improvements, decorating, home & garden, etc. Includes more than 130 reference books.
LEARNINGEXPRESS library
Learn the fundamentals of computers, the internet and popular software applications a user-friendly e-learning platform that contains more than 100 self paced video tutorials.
LEGAL INFORMATION SOURCE
Thousands of legal forms by topic including Bankruptcy, Divorce, Name Changes, Wills & Estate Planning and more. Most of the full text legal reference books provided through NOLO.
LEGAL SOURCE
A scholarly resource of current issues, studies, and trends of the legal world. For attorneys, educators, businesspeople, law librarians, students, and paralegals.
LGBTQ+ SOURCE
LGBTQ+ Source is the definitive database for LGBTQ+ studies. It provides scholarly and popular LGBTQ+ publications in full text, plus historically important primary sources, including monographs, magazines, newspapers, and videos. It also includes a specialized LGBTQ+ thesaurus containing thousands of terms.
LIBRARY & INFORMATION SCIENCE SOURCE
Journals and periodicals that help librarians and researchers keep pace with the latest trends in the field.
LITERARY REFERENCE SOURCE
Full-text literary database covering all genres and time periods. It includes thousands of synopses, critical essays, book reviews, literary journals, and author biographies, plus full-text classic novels, short stories, and poems.
MAS COMPLETE
Designed for high school libraries and offers coverage of popular high school magazines and reference books. Wide range of subjects offered including art, history, sports, and music. Over 1,000,000 photos, maps, and flags. Full text magazines include Discover, US News & World Report, Scientific American, and more.
MASTERFILE COMPLETE
Broad collection of popular full-text magazines and reference books. Magazines include People, Better Homes and Gardens, TIME, and Newsweek. Covers subjects including business, health, education, fitness, sports and leisure, personal finance, general science, multicultural issues, DIY, and fashion. Also includes photos, maps, and flags.
MIDDLE SEARCH
Magazines and reference books for middle school students. Includes thousands of biographies and primary source documents. Subjects include history, current events, science, sports, and biographies. Also includes photos, maps, and flags.
NEWSPAPER SOURCE PLUS
Includes millions of articles from newspapers, newswires, and news magazines. Offers television and radio transcripts and ongoing daily updates from popular news sources. Newspapers include St. Louis Post-Dispatch, The Washington Post, USA Today, and more.
NOVELIST
Contains information on over 260,000 fiction and readable nonfiction titles. Features lists of award-winning books, book discussion guides, Read-a-Like recommendations, and complete series information. Also includes reader ratings and reviews. Create your own reading wish list.
NOVELIST K-8
Find just the right book by subject, age, awards won, books made into movies, and much more. Read reviews and learn about the author. Create your own reading wish list. Includes tools for teachers such as Lexile levels and Common Core standards.
POINTS OF VIEW REFERENCE SOURCE
Presents multiple sides of over 500 issues. Helps students assess and develop persuasive arguments and essays, better understand controversial issues, and develop analytical thinking skills.
PRIMARY SEARCH
For elementary school libraries. Content from children’s magazines, easy-to-read encyclopedia entries, and images. Students can learn about animals, musicians, fitness, space exploration, and much more.
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT COLLECTION
Specialized information for librarians, teachers, and education researchers.
PSYCHOLOGY AND BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES COLLECTION
Covers a broad range of subjects in the fields of psychology, behavioral sciences, and related disciplines. For psychologists, counselors, researchers, and students.
REGIONAL BUSINESS NEWS
Regional business publications for the United States and Canadian provinces from 1990. Includes newspapers, radio and television news transcripts, trade publications, magazines, and newswires.
RELIGION & PHILOSOPHY COLLECTION
Hundreds of full-text journals and magazines covering many religious and philosophical topics, including world religions, religious history, political philosophy, and philosophy of language.
SCIENCE REFERENCE SOURCE
Provides full text for hundreds of science magazines, journals, reference books and high-quality videos. The database also contains science experiments, curriculum-aligned lesson plans, and a vast image collection.
SMALL BUSINESS SOURCE
Covers all aspects of starting and operating a business. Includes information on accounting, human resources, management, marketing, tax, and more. State-specific information included.
SMALL ENGINE REPAIR SOURCE
Repair guides for small engines and routine maintenance (tune-ups, brake service, etc.). Also includes guides on extensive repairs such as engine and transmission disassembly. Coverage includes lawn mowers, motorcycles, tractors, and snowmobiles. Information on more than 25 years of engine models, with new and updated content added regularly.
