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We have access to a growing collection of ebooks on the VLEBooks platform. VLEBooks features a modern interface, provides options to read online or download content to read offline and has a range of excellent accessibility features.
You will find VLEBook ebooks by searching Discover@Bolton or you can log into VLEBooks and browse the platform here.
This video provides an overview of how to use the VLEBooks platform. VLEBooks has been updated recently and looks a little different, but the key features are the same.
Further guidance on the VLEBooks online reader can be found on the VLEBooks website.
While Read Online is the easiest and most user friendly option, VLEBooks does allow you to download a book to use offline.
This may be particularly useful for users with their own preferences of assistive software.
There are a range of accessibility options available on VLEBooks which make searching and navigating the platform easier.
To access these options, select Edit Accessibility Settings on the left side of the screen. This feature enables users to set their own preferences for the platform.
Options include:
The options are applied permanently or until users make a change.
When reading via the platform, users can change the background colour to suit their requirements. Select Read Online and access the colour palate in the top right-hand corner of the screen. This will open a pop-up panel which allows users to select a reading background from one of seven 7 different dyslexia-friendly colours.
To amend contrast in the reader, users will need a browser plugin such as High Contrast on Chrome.
Read Aloud is a core feature built into the VLEBooks platform.
eBooks downloaded to eReader software such as Adobe Digital Editions can be read by most other software. Common software tools and their compatibility are as follows:
VLeBooks have over 20 levels of magnification using the built-in zoom function, available when reading via the platform, which is operated through the universally recognised zoom icons. Windows & iOS magnifier can also be used.
The zoom function is designed to work as both a reduction and a magnification tool. The actual font size is dependent on device but typically a reading font size of between 4 to 36 is achievable.
DRM free PDFs can be downloaded by users and opened in Adobe Reader or Microsoft Word, where reflow may be possible.
As the platform does not currently support EPUB formats, reflow is not available. VLEBooks are working towards enabling this.
A full Accessibility Statement and further guidance is available on the VLEBooks website.