By Subject

Enjoy your library anytime, anywhere with these online resources. All you need is your library card barcode number and PIN code! Not an ORL member? Get a library card, today

Need help? Email help@orl.bc.ca, connect with your nearest library, or call library staff at 1-844-649-8127.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Automotive

Alldata is a comprehensive database of car repair information for domestic and imported cars, light trucks, and vans from 1982 to the present. Includes maintenance schedules, illustrated diagnosis and repair procedures, and technical service bulletins.
Available for use on computers at Kelowna, Vernon, and Salmon Arm library branches.

Auto Repair Source provides automotive diagnostic and repair information, including technical service bulletins & recalls.
Watch Tutorial

Vehicle Safety and Inspection Standards Online includes vehicle safety and inspection standards and related BC legislation from The King's Printer, and the Ministry of Transportation. Includes official bulletins, and inspection manuals for commercial vehicles, motorcycles, semi-trailers and buses. 

Available for use on library computers only.

 

 

Books & Reading

Bibliothèque numérique de la Colombie-Britannique is a collection of French language eBooks and audiobooks from Canadian and international publishers. It includes popular genre fiction, bestsellers, non-fiction and more. The ORL recognizes the financial support of the Province of British Columbia and the Government of Canada through the Canada-British Columbia Agreement on French-language Services. | ORL reconnait le soutien financier de la province de la Colombie-Britannique et du gouvernement du Canada par le biais de l’Entente Canada-Colombie-Britannique relative aux services en français. We are grateful to VPL for donating their sizable French language collection.
View Tutorial

Centre for Equitable Library Access (CELA) is an additional collection of accessible materials for customers with print disabilities and professionals who work with people with print disabilities.
Learn how to get started

National Network for Equitable Library Service (NNELS) is a collection of accessible, downloadable titles for Canadians with print disabilities.
Learn how to get started

NoveList has information on over 125,000 fiction titles. It includes reviews, annotations, author read-alikes, discussion guides and book talks. Great for Book Clubs.
Watch Tutorial

ORL eBooks is the ORL’s main collection of downloadable eBooks and eAudiobooks. With hundreds of popular fiction and non-fiction titles to choose from, this collection will have something for everyone. You can enjoy best-selling novels, well-known classics, self-improvement guides, and much more.
Learn how to get started or Watch Tutorial.

 

 

Business & Careers

Business Plans Handbook is a collection of business plans written by entrepreneurs seeking funding for small businesses throughout North America.

ORL Guides - Careers & Job Hunting: Books, websites, and other resources to help you with exploring career options or with finding work. 

ORL Guides - Resources for Small Business in BC: If you need help with payroll, hiring and training employees, marketing, IT, social media, or any other functions to ensure your business thrives, your library is here to help! Check out our online guide for resources you can access or borrow from your library.

 

 

Consumer Information

Consumer Reports Online offers ratings, reviews, recommendations and buying advice for hundreds of products and services, including appliances, babies' and kids' products, cars, and electronics.
View Tutorial

You can also access articles from Consumer Reports Magazine and Consumer Reports Buying Guide through MasterFile Premier. Explore current and past articles by selecting the year and issue.

 

 

Encyclopedias

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Britannica Library - Reference Center provides articles on a complete range of subjects, an atlas and tools for country comparisons, biographies, and how-to documents for research and writing reports.

Britannica Library - Children provides age-appropriate articles on a variety of subjects. Check out the Discover Britannica features like “Canada in Focus” and the interactive World Atlas.

Britannica Library - Young Adults provides articles written for students on a complete range of subjects, an atlas and tools for and tools for making statistical and informational comparisons across countries, biographies, and how-to documents for research and writing reports.

 

 

Environment

GreenFILE provides both scholarly and general interest information on a variety of topics concerning human impact on the environment, such as global warming, recycling and alternative energy sources.

 

 

Genealogy & History 

Ancestry: Library Edition has more than one and a half billion names in over 7,000 databases. Birth, marriage, death, church, military, court, passenger lists and more, from Canada, U.S. and the U.K.
Watch Tutorial
Available for use on library computers only.

Explore the past with the BC Historical Newspapers collection. The collection features cover-to-cover, full-page images in downloadable PDF. No log in needed when accessing from within British Columbia. Available newspapers:

  • The Province - 1898 to 2010
  • Vancouver Sun - 1912 to 2010
  • Times-Colonist - 1884 to 2010

FamilySearch affiliate library access is available at the Kelowna library branch, on its two research computers or when using the library’s Wi-Fi. FamilySearch is a genealogy website featuring millions of digital images and records that are collected via the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah. With affiliate library access, you can view millions of digital genealogical records that are normally restricted to the public. You will need to create a free FamilySearch account the first time you use the site (see Privacy notice, Terms of use).
Watch Tutorial
Full access to FamilySearch is available at the downtown Kelowna Library Branch only.  

ORL Guides - Researching Local History: Provides an overview for how to find historical sources to help guide your search at the local level.

Points to the Past is a site where you can search through millions pages of digitized historical content and primary source materials such as maps, photographs, newspapers, manuscripts, pamphlets, poems, sermons, and much more. No log in needed when accessing from within British Columbia.

 

 

Grants & Funding

Grant Connect Delta is a useful resource for charities and non-profits seeking funding. Browse through thousands of funding organizations, including Canadian grant-making foundations, corporations and government agencies.
Available on library computers and at home. Up to 2 patrons can browse this resource at home at one time.  

 

 

Health & Well-being

ORL Guides - Health Resources: This guide helps you find authoritative resources to address your health concerns.

ORL Guides - Trans, Non-Binary & Two-Spirit Resources: Includes suggestions for various library sources, as well as highlights external resources including videos, websites and legal documents.

 

 

Home Improvement

ORL Guides - Vegetable Gardening for Beginners: Library and community resources that will provide you with the knowledge and skill to begin growing a vegetable garden from scratch.

 

Kids

Britannica Library - Children provides age-appropriate articles on a variety of subjects. Check out the Discover Britannica features like “Canada in Focus” and the interactive World Atlas.
Watch Tutorial

CodeCombat: Start your coding adventure with CodeCombat! Learn Python, JavaScript, or C++, while you play through a fantasy game. Recommended for ages 9 and up. 
Learn more about CodeCombat

ORL eBooks for Kids. This eReading Room showcases only the digital children’s books from the ORL eBooks collection, making it easier for kids to find just what they want! The steps for borrowing, downloading and enjoying books are the same as for the ORL eBooks collection. 

TumbleBook Library for Kids: TumbleBooks are animated, talking picture books. The collection has fiction and non-fiction titles in English, as well as titles in French and Spanish. It also includes puzzles and games.
Watch Tutorial

 

 

Languages

Rosetta Stone: Learn Spanish, German, Korean, Arabic, Dutch, Polish, Portuguese and many more. Learn a new language today!  

Learn how to get started or Watch Tutorial.

 

 

Law

BC Codes includes the BC Building Code, Fire Code, and Plumbing Services. Describes minimum construction requirements for safe buildings in BC. Find it under the Public Library label.

BC Laws is your source for current law in BC including complete Statutes and Regulations, Third Reading Bills, Orders in Council and more.

ORL Guides - Legal Help: Books, websites, and other resources to help you find information for your legal questions.

 

 

Learning & Technology

CodeCombat: Start your coding adventure with CodeCombat! Learn Python, JavaScript, or C++, while you play through a fantasy game. Recommended for ages 9 and up. 
Learn more about CodeCombat

Kermode Education is a browser app that analyzes web pages to help you learn how identify if the information on the page is accurate and trustworthy. When logging in, enter the first 5 digits of your library card barcode number as the license key.
Learn how to get started

LinkedIn Learning for Libraries is your source for online learning. ORL members have access to thousands of video tutorials covering topics such as business, project management, popular software, and much more. Courses are taught by industry experts. Learn something new today!
Learn how to get started or Watch Tutorial

Online Resource Tutorials (from Niche Academy): Learn how to use your library's online resources. Watch tutorials about how to enjoy digital books, magazines, movies, and how to use our genealogical databases, journal collections and encyclopedias for research. 

ORL Guides - Cyber Security: Learn how to improve your cyber security and ensure your online information is safe and secure.

Social Media & Technology Basics (from Niche Academy and ORL): Learn how to use Facebook, Gmail, Goodreads, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Snapchat, and Twitter, and get some tips for using your iPad.

 

Magazines, Newspapers, & Journals

Academic Search Elite provides articles from more than 2,000 publications from various academic fields, many of which are peer-reviewed. You can find and read articles from such journals as Canadian Journal of Archaeology, History Today, Shakespeare Studies, and more.
Watch Tutorial

BC Historical Newspapers collection features cover-to-cover, full-page images in downloadable PDF. Available newspapers: The Province (1898 to 2010), Vancouver Sun (1912 to 2010), and Times-Colonist (1884 to 2010).  No log in needed when accessing from within British Columbia.

Canadian Newsstream is an online collection of Canadian newspapers. Includes the Globe and Mail, the Province, the National Post and many more. You can also find your local community newspapers from across the Okanagan region.
Watch Tutorial

Explora can help you with conducting research for a school project or just with to satisfying your curiosity about a topic of interest. It offers reliable information on subjects including Arts and Literature, Biography, Business and Government, Current Events, Geography, Health, History, Science and Math. It lets you search Academic Search Elite, MasterFILE Premier, and GreenFILE databases at the same time. 
Watch the Explora Tutorial

Flipster Digital Magazines provides you with instant access to magazines you know and love, like People, Chatelaine, and The Atlantic. You can read these magazines online on the browser of your computer, smartphone or tablet, or download them for off-line reading on the Flipster App.
Learn how to get started or Watch Tutorial.

International Newsstream gives you access to more than 800 of the world's top newspapers outside of the US and Canada. It includes newspapers like The Times (London), The Bangkok Post, El Norte, The Guardian, Jerusalem Post, and South China Morning Post. Find recent news articles as well as archives that stretch back decades.

MasterFILE Premier simultaneously searches databases of full text articles and abstracts from over 2,000 popular and scholarly magazines. Ideal for general, academic, business, health and consumer research (including Consumer Reports).

OverDrive Magazines lets you choose from over 3,000 popular, always available, magazines ranging from sports, science, fashion and entertainment. You can read these magazines online in your browser or download them for off-line reading on the Libby App. 
Learn how to get started or Watch Tutorial.

PressReader is an online collection of over 4,000 newspaper and magazine publications from around the world! Get same day access as the newsstands from the comfort of home. Read newspapers and magazines in print-like layout, or read in SmartFlow format, which is optimized for your screen. Publications include The Daily CourierThe Guardian, Vancouver Sun and so many more. 
Learn how to get started or Watch Tutorial.

NoteThe Globe and Mail is available to read in-library only, if you try to open the newspaper from home you will be brought to a blank page. Select the menu icon in the top left corner and find a different publication. 

 

 

Movies

Kanopy gives ORL members access to 30,000 of the world’s best films, including award-winning documentaries, rare and hard-to-find titles, film festival favorites, indie and classic films, and world cinema with collections from Kino Lorber, Music Box Films, Samuel Goldwyn, The Orchard, PBS and thousands of independent filmmakers.  

Learn how to get started or Watch Tutorial

Also from Kanopy:

  • The Great Courses offers you the opportunity to expand your mind from the comfort of home with lectures given by esteemed professors and teachers. You can learn about the history of the ancient world, physics and math, animals, or business! Watching a lecture series will use 5 Tickets. 
  • Kanopy Kids features videos that can help children learn and grow with a variety of educational and entertaining topics as history, languages, and science. There are movies, TV series, and animated favourites. Videos will not use any Tickets, so kids are free to explore enriching and inspiring videos. Learn more about using Kanopy Kids mode

 

 

Music

Naxos Music Library: Classical is an online collection of classical music. The service offers streaming access to more than 135,000 recordings, totalling over 2 million tracks, and new recordings are added monthly.
Learn how to get started or Watch Tutorial

 

 

Travel

Global Road Warrior is packed with colour photos, over 1000 country maps and information on culture, customs and travel essentials for 175 countries and nations. It is great for customers preparing to travel abroad for business or recreation or for students researching country information.
Watch Tutorial

 

 

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