E-books: Download e-books

Most e-book scan be read online on your browser but are also available to download in PDF or EPUB format, when you can read them offline. Most of the e-books available from EBSCO, Ebook Central and Ellibs are DRM protected, and you need a dedicated e-book reader software. Read more about Digital Rights Management (DRM).

Donwloadn instructions below apply to all DRM protected e-books. If necessary, see service specific instructions on international and Finnish e-books.

Adobe Digital Editions

Follow these steps to start using Adobe Digital Editions (ADE).

1. Download the program or app:
   • Download Adobe Digital Editions to your computer or mobile device (Mac, Windows, Android, iOS). ADE is not officicially available for Linux, but you can run Windows programs with Wine app. See e.g. how to install ADE to Ubuntu.
     • ADE is pre-installed on Uniarts computer classroom computers
   • There are alternatives to ADE for mobile devices, and you can search them in your app store. See e.g. Aldiko for Android or Aldiko for iOS
2. If you don't want to synchronize e-book sbetween your devices, authorize your computer without Adobe ID. But if you want to e.g. continue reading your e-book on another device, see part "Synchronize e-books: Adobe ID". With mobile apps Adobe ID is required.
   
   Choose Help > Authorize computer, and from the pop-up window I want to authorize my computer without an ID:


3. You can now download and read e-books on your device.
   

Downloading an e-book

1. Download an e-book from an e-book service. See service-specific instructions if needed:
   • International e-books
   • Finnish e-books
2. Your computer might not know which software to use to open the e-book file (.acsm) you downloaded. and you may have to search ADE from the apps on your computer.
3. Choose Helper Application > Browse. Usually ADE is located in the Program Files (see image below).
4. E-book is opened in ADE, and you can start reading.
   

Strictly speaking ACSM-files are links or tokens, that ADE uses to download e-books from Adobe's servers.

As of February 12, 2025, e-books from the Finnish e-book service Ellibs can be downloaded only to Thorium Reader. The software can be installed independently from the Microsoft Store for PCs (including Uniarts maintained PCs), and for Mac users directly from the program's website. Read more in the library's Ellibs guide.

If you wish to read a DRM protected e-book on other deivces than just the one you used to download it, you need a personal Adobe ID. You can get it for free. Adobe ID is used to authorize your devices (laptop, iPad etc.) and synchronize e-books between them. You only need to authorize a device once.

1. Create you Adobe ID.
2. Authorize Adobe Digital Editions on your computer. Choose Help > Authorize computer:
   


3. Log in with your Adobe ID:
   


4. Now you can transfer e-books between the devices you have authorized in this manner: