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Comment by esoteric_nonces | Hacker News Reader

Does anyone have a recommendation for a good public library in London?

I've often found myself wanting to read a reference book prior to purchase (technical books are extremely expensive to buy).

Do any of the universities offer subscriptions to members of the public?

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No recommendation for a good public library. For pre-purchase of a reference book if it's current find the right bookshop and you could always do that way. Many universities offer access to their libraries. UCL access policy [1], City University Library [2]

[1] http://www.ucl.ac.uk/library/membership/researchers-public [2] https://www.city.ac.uk/library/my-library/external

I've struggled to find a good public library here. I've been able to find every book I was looking for at the British Library, but you have to request each book and can only read it there.

Having said that, the books I was reading there were mostly general programming books. I don't know if they have more specific technical books.

The British Library also has some scary note on their website about how you need to demonstrate why you need access. But that's not worth worrying about. I just went there and signed up, nobody asked me to justify why I want to read books there.

Not a direct answer to your question, but you might also consider a subscription to Safari books online with the caveats that I don't know if it is available internationally and it is not necessarily cheap. My work covers my subscription and it has had a copy of virtually every technical book I have searched for.

I don't know about London libraries but the Bodleian in Oxford offers associate membership. It's about the same rate as other university libraries in the UK

http://www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/using/getting-a-readers-card/ch...

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