The Marvel of Zinio

Oh. My. Gosh. How did I not know about Zinio?! I'm amazed.

Zinio - "the world's largest newsstand" - has a partnership with many libraries, including Washington County.

I'm brand new to Zinio, so my apologies to those of you who know much more about it. I created an account yesterday, so I'm psyched to explore it and torture my friends and family with tutorials. Here's what I've learned thus far:

• Zinio is free once you create two accounts (one WCL Library Zinio account, and one zinio.com account). If this sounds confusing, don't panic! Your library should have instructions, either online or physical fliers to take home. The flier guides you through the entire process.
• Once you download a magazine, you get to keep it forever! Am I the only one who finds this a) convenient b) amazing and c) the exception to the rule? However, there are a few details to keep in mind:
• You cannot download past issues. If you're able to find time each month to download the newest issue, this shouldn't be a problem. Simply download the file, and read it whenever your heart desires.
• You must download the file if you want to be reading offline. Tailor this to fit your needs - either you are surrounded by WiFi on a daily basis, or you'd rather download the file for the convenience of reading wherever, whenever, regardless of WiFi.
• There's a corresponding mobile app! Not only can I read magazines on my laptop (or tablet, but I don't have one), but I can also read them on my phone. I haven't played around with this enough yet to determine if the small screen size will bother me - but I like having the option.
• Of course not all magazine titles are available, but in my opinion, there's some great publications. So far, I've downloaded Consumer Reports, National Geographic, Yoga Journal, Saveur, Runner's World, and Food Network Magazine. And no, I haven't had a chance to read them all.
• You can print articles if you are using a computer. Again, I haven't had time to try this quite yet.

I can tell that the more I explore this resource, the more I'll like it. Check with your local library to see if they have Zinio, or a similar option. If you live in Minnesota, come to any Washington County Library branch to learn more.