Attention Holiday Shoppers!

Get the most bang for your buck by consulting ConsumerReports.org before making final purchases.

Whether you're looking for information on lawnmowers, groceries, or the latest in digital cameras, ConsumerReports.org has the rating, reviews, recommendations and buying advice you need. The online edition gets you access to videos, newsletter, notification of recalls, and a handy mobile app convenient for comparison shopping on the go. In addition, you can find advice and tips on saving money, home improvement, personal finance, health and wellness, and more.

You have free access to both the online and print editions of Consumer Reports with your library card. Visit www.ConsumerReports.org -or- check out back issues from our magazine collection. The reference desk also keeps copies of Consumer Reports for in-house use along with an index.

Mad About Mags

Print is undergoing a major transformation. More and more we are hearing talk about how e-readers and mobile devices are shaping journalism, publishing, advertising, and libraries.

Last month Fortune magazine did a cover story on the Future of Reading, discussing how tablets will change books, magazines and newspapers. For a glimpse of what that may look like, check out the unveiling of Wired magazine's tablet app (it's pretty cool -- if you only click one link from this post, let it be this one!)

How can people expect to access digital magazine content? Companies like Maggwire.com and Zinino.com hope to be the iTunes of magazines -- serving as gateways and content managers for consumers, though Apple already has designs on that with the upcoming release of the iPad.

And what about libraries? Last week David Lee King sat in at the Public Library Association conference in Portland to discuss Top Tech Trends. At the top of the trends list...e-book readers. It is highly likely that libraries will begin adopting this newfangled format.

It is going to be interesting to witness how all this unfolds for the magazine industry and readers.

Mad About Mags

MPL receives 200+ newspaper, journal, newsletter, and magazine titles. You can search for your favorites by selecting the “Periodical Title” search option in the library catalog, or browse our magazine stand next to the comfy reading area. You can checkout back issues for 4 weeks.

We’ve got the standards: Time, People, National Geographic, Readers Digest, Rolling Stone, Montana Magazine – and some specialized titles maybe you’ve never heard of: American Philatelist (stamp collecting), Archaeology, Family Chronicle (genealogy), Futurist (forecasts & trends), Linux Journal, Organic Gardening, Paste (music), ProRodeo Sports News, Shambhala Sun (buddhism), Threads (sewing), and Wood Carving Illustrated.

Over the next few weeks I’ll highlight some of the magazine titles in our collection. Until then, stop by and see for yourself what the library has to offer you!