Research

Ancestry Library Edition

Genealogy collection including census, vital, church, court, and immigration records from the United States, Canada, Australia, Europe and the United Kingdom.

Auto Repair Source

Auto Repair Source provides service and repair information for thousands of vehicles, from 1974 to the present. The database includes step-by-step repair information, diagrams, maintenance schedules, parts and labour estimates, service bulletins and recalls, and more. All content comes from the original equipment manufacturers (OEM).

BC Assessment

BC Assessment produces independent, uniform and efficient property assessments on an annual basis for all property owners in the province.
Access: Available to anyone anywhere

BC Charms

BC CHARMS (BC’s Refugee Claimant Housing Referral System) is a joint venture between The Ministry of Municipal Affairs, MAP BC, and MOSAIC, which connects refugee claimants to suitable housing opportunities in the province. The database specifically targets refugee claimants due to the heightened level of vulnerability they experience as a result of not being formally recognized refugees in Canada. Emerging out of the many challenges refugee claimants face, the database aims to enhance the housing supply while creating efficient and effective referrals to appropriate housing and services.
Access: Available to anyone anywhere

BC Codes

Full text of the BC Building Code, Fire Code, and Plumbing Code for 2018 and past years.
Access: Available to anyone anywhere

BC Historical Newspapers

Great for students, researchers, and genealogists, Proquest BC Historical Newspapers includes:
The Vancouver Sun (1912–2010)
The Times–Colonist (1884–2010)
The Province (1894–2010)
Access: Available to anyone in BC and Yukon, no library card required

BC Laws

BC Laws provides free public access to the current laws of British Columbia. This consolidation of BC Statutes and Regulations is updated continually as new and amended laws come into force. (Note: BC Laws now contains content that used to be in QP [Queen’s Printer] Legaleze)
Access: Available to anyone anywhere

BC Stats

Statistics and reports on BC’s population, labour market, economy, business and more.
Access: Available to anyone anywhere

BC: An Untold History Interactive Timeline

Developed by researchers at the Knowledge Network, BC: An Untold History is an inclusive history of British Columbia with Indigenous, Chinese, Japanese, Punjabi, Black, and European stories woven together.
Access: Available to anyone anywhere

Bibliothèque numérique de la Colombie-Britannique (Cantook Station)

Bibliothèque Numérique is a province-wide French eBook collection. This collection includes French Language eBooks and Audiobooks in a variety of genres for all age groups.

Please note that customers are required to provide an email address for notifications the first time a book is checked out.

VIRL 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.
VIRL 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 francais.
We are grateful to VPL for donating their sizable French language collection.

Business Plans Handbook

Actual business plans compiled by, and for, entrepreneurs seeking funding for small businesses. Presents sample plans taken from businesses in the manufacturing, retail and service industries which serve as examples of how to approach, structure and compose business plans.

Canadian Newsstream

Full text access to over 500 BC and Canadian newspapers. Titles include the Vancouver Sun, The Province, Times Colonist, Globe and Mail, National Post, Toronto Star, Calgary Herald, Montreal Gazette, Ottawa Citizen, and Winnipeg Free Press. Content for some titles starts from the 1970s. Canadian Newsstream is updated daily.

For older issues of The Times Colonist, Province, and Vancouver Sun, please see BC Historical Newspapers

Career Cruising

Career Cruising programs help people build more purposeful futures by assisting with career exploration and planning. This database offers career assessment tools, detailed occupation profiles, and comprehensive post-secondary education information.

CELA

CELA is the Centre for Equitable Library Access, which provides access to a collection of over 700,000 books, magazines, newspapers in a choice of accessible formats for people with a print disability. Print disabilities include learning, physical and visual disabilities.

• Enjoy a full range of subjects, genres, classics and award winners
• Stay up to date with 50 newspapers and 150 magazines
• Choose your preferred format: audio, e-text or braille.
• Download books or receive home delivery by mail

Sign up for CELA service with your public library card, or contact your VIRL branch for assistance.

Clicklaw

Clicklaw provides legal information, education and help for British Columbians. Clicklaw is operated by Courthouse Libraries BC.
Access: Available to anyone anywhere

Consumer Reports

Consumer Reports provides trusted ratings and reviews, recommendations and buying advice for thousands of products and services.
Subjects include:

• Appliances
• Cars
• Babies and kids
• Health, fitness and food
• Home and garden
• Money

Creativebug

Creativebug is an art and craft education resource. There are thousands of online video classes taught by leading instructors. Categories include:

Access online or via mobile app. Have a look at this introductory video by Creativebug to learn more.

Please note that access to Creativebug requires library customers to provide first and last name and email address to authenticate use. For more information, contact info@virl.bc.ca or review Creativebug’s Privacy Policy here.

Encyclopædia Universalis

An extensive collection of French-language reference resources. Encyclopedia Universalis provides a wealth of reliable Britannica information en français.

Includes a world atlas, timelines, an integrated dictionary, bibliographies, news and current events, original source documents, and a guide to select Web sites. A science center explains 11 scientific topics and uses more than 60 multimedia elements to demonstrate important topics.

Encyclopedia of British Columbia

Historical and contemporary information about BC. The Encyclopedia of British Columbia is the definitive reference work on British Columbia. With more than 4,000 entries and 1,500 accompanying photographs, maps, charts and tables, as well as sound and video clips, the EBC is the source of readable and authoritative information on significant British Columbian people, places and things.

First Voices Language Archive

Thousands of text entries in many diverse Aboriginal writing systems, enhanced with sounds, pictures, and videos.
Access: Available to anyone anywhere

Freegal Music +

Freegal Music + offers access to over 15 million songs, including Sony Music’s catalog. In total the collection is comprised of music from over 40,000+ labels with music that originates in over 100 countries. Downloaded music is free to keep for personal use.

Cap:

Each library member can download five songs per week, and stream up to three hours of music per day.

Gale Virtual Reference Library

Find eBooks for business, health, religion, and science topics. Find information on cultural topics like fashion and food. Includes titles from the Experiments for Future STEM Professionals series.

Grant Connect (In-branch only)

Grant Connect is a grant funding information database. With Grant Connect, you have access to:

• Over 11,000 Canadian foundations, 560 corporate giving programs, 370 government grant programs, 120 American foundations, and 200 other kinds of grant opportunities.
• Funder profiles that offer insights on specific grant programs, application preferences, financial summaries, and key decision-makers.
• Data on billions of dollars in past donations.

Hobbies & Crafts Reference Center

Find information on your favourite hobby or pastime, from toys and collectibles to model-building, arts and crafts, electronics and games.

Indigenous People of North America

Indigenous Peoples: North America sources collections from across Canadian and American institutions, providing insight into the cultural, political and social history of Native Peoples from the seventeenth into the twentieth century.

International Newsstream

International Newsstream provides the most recent news content outside of the US and Canada, with archives which stretch back decades featuring newspapers, newswires, and news sites in active full-text format.

ProQuest International Newsstream provides information from more than 660 of the world’s top newspapers, including The Times (London), The Bangkok Post, El Norte, Financial Times, The Guardian, Jerusalem Post, South China Morning Post, The Daily Telegraph, Asian Wall Street Journal, and the BBC Monitoring series of publications.

Kanopy

Kanopy is a video streaming platform for libraries with one of the largest and most unique collections in the world. It features more than 26,000 movies, documentaries, and indie and foreign films from hundreds of producers, including The Criterion Collection, The Great Courses, Kino Lorber, PBS and thousands of independent filmmakers. Browse by subjects to explore and expand your interests.

Cap:

Each library member receives ten checkouts (play credits) and two Great Courses per month. Kanopy Kids requires no play credits.
Access: Available anywhere to VIRL Resident Cardholders

KnowBC

KnowBC is the online portal for Harbour Publishing, an independent publisher based on the Sunshine Coast that focuses on British Columbian coastal history and culture. KnowBC features the Encyclopedia of British Columbia, along with essential publications and natural history field guides for the Pacific Northwest Coast, including

• The Encyclopedia of Raincoast Place Names
• Far West: The Story of British Columbia, a provincial history for younger readers
• A Field Guide to Birds of the Pacific Northwest
• A Field Guide to Medicinal Wild Plants of Canada
• A Field Guide to Shells and Shellfish of the Pacific Northwest
• Marine Life of the Pacific Northwest: A Photographic Encyclopedia of Invertebrates, Seaweeds and Selected Fishes
• Raincoast Chronicles 20: Lilies and Fireweed: Frontier Women of British Columbia

Knowledge Network

Knowledge Network, is a Canadian publicly funded educational cable television network serving the province of British Columbia. The station supports lifelong learning for children and adults by providing quality, commercial-free programming through its broadcast channel, websites and apps. Knowledge Network also invests in documentaries and children’s programs produced by independent filmmakers with more than 40% of their programming budget supporting original stories told by BC and Canadian filmmakers. Download their app and stream their content for free!
Access: Available to anyone anywhere

LinkedIn Learning (formerly Lynda.com)

LinkedIn Learning is an online learning platform featuring video courses and tutorials. LinkedIn Learning offers courses with a focus on skills for business, creative industries, education, information technology, software, and web development. The tutorials are high quality and led by industry experts.

Our LinkedIn Learning ID is: virl
Our invite URL (needed to log in to app) is: https://www.linkedin.com/learning-login/go/virl

LinkedIn Learning includes topics, software skills, and learning paths for the following subject areas:

• 3D +Animation
• Audio + Music
• Business
• CAD
• Design
• Developer
• Education
• Information Technology
• Marketing
• Photography
• Video
• Web

Mango Languages

Language learning database designed to equip you with conversational abilities. Mango immerses you in real, everyday conversations in 45 different language courses. Some of the languages include: Brazilian Portuguese, French, German, Italian, Mandarin Chinese and Spanish.

National Geographic Kids

Reputable, authoritative, and appropriate content that brings children aged 6-14 the world in a way they’ve never seen it before. Fun and substantive, National Geographic Kids will take them on amazing adventures in science, nature, culture, archaeology, and space.

National Geographic Virtual Library

National Geographic Virtual Library gives access to the complete archive of National Geographic magazine — every page of every issue — along with a cross-searchable collection of National Geographic books, maps, images and videos.

Naxos Music Library

Naxos Music Library is the world’s largest online classical music library. Major categories include:

• Orchestral Works
• Concertos
• Chamber Music
• Vocal & Choral Works
• Opera & Operetta
• Ballet Music
• Film Music

Naxos Music Library – Jazz

From jazz legends to contemporary jazz. Listen online to an entire album or search for your favourite song or performer.

Naxos Music Library – World

Stream a wide range of world music, from legendary historical musical performances to contemporary world music. Almost 10,000 albums available, representing over 32,000 artists, 1500 cultural groups and 150 countries. Includes the complete Smithsonian Folkways catalogue.

Naxos Sheet Music Library (in-branch only)

By using the Naxos Sheet Music Library, users can search and download printable scores from the database of over 35,000 works.

NNELS

NNELS is the National Network for Equitable Library Service, an online public library of downloadable ebooks and audiobooks for people with print disabilities. Print disabilities include vision, mobility, and comprehension impairments that prevent someone from being able to read a traditional book.

VIRL membership required. After registering at the library, eligible users or friends and family members can access the NNELS catalogue and download material directly, or request assistance from library staff.

NoveList

Discover your next favorite book! Finish a great book and looking for more? NoveList’s librarian-created read-alike suggestions and appeal mixer can help. Search from home. Link to the library’s catalogue. Then borrow and read.

OverDrive

OverDrive is our most popular eBook and eAudiobook platform. All you need to get started is your library card and an internet connection. Download the Libby App for a simple and easy experience downloading eBooks and eAudiobooks for free.

Cap:

Each library member receives 10 check outs and 10 holds at any one time.

• Try the online Libby app at libbyapp.com
• Customers experiencing issues with Libby may need to update their mobile device’s operating system. Libby is compatible with iOS 10+ and Android 5+
• OverDrive eBooks are compatible with Kobo eReaders. Please see more info here.

OverDrive for Kids

OverDrive is our most popular eBook and eAudiobook platform and we have a space just for kids! All you need to get started is your library card and an internet connection. Download the Libby App for a simple and easy experience downloading eBooks and eAudiobooks for free.

Cap:

Each library member receives 10 check outs and 10 holds at any one time.

• Try the online Libby app at libbyapp.com
• Customers experiencing issues with Libby may need to update their mobile device’s operating system. Libby is compatible with iOS 10+ and Android 5+
• OverDrive eBooks are compatible with Kobo eReaders. Please see more info here.

OverDrive for Teens

OverDrive is our most popular eBook and eAudiobook platform and we have a space just for teens! All you need to get started is your library card and an internet connection. Download the Libby App for a simple and easy experience downloading eBooks and eAudiobooks for free.

Cap:

Each library member receives 10 check outs and 10 holds at any one time.

• Try the online Libby app at libbyapp.com
• Customers experiencing issues with Libby may need to update their mobile device’s operating system. Libby is compatible with iOS 10+ and Android 5+
• OverDrive eBooks are compatible with Kobo eReaders. Please see more info here.

PebbleGo

PebbleGo is a digital information and research tool for K-3 students. Two modules are available: Animals (includes Dinosaurs) and Science. Each module features articles, activities, games, maps, videos and engaging read-aloud audio.

Find trustworthy, factual information and foster independent learning with PebbleGo. Explore resources for families here: https://pebblego.com/parent-resources

Points to the Past

Points to the Past is your gateway to a world-class collection of primary sources, made up of nearly 200 million pages of digitized historical content – maps, photos, newspapers, manuscripts, pamphlets, portraits, and much more. Includes historical newspaper collections from 17th & 18th centuries; archives for the Economist, Punch, the Times of London, the Times Literary Supplement, and more; collections from Associated Press, the British Library, and the Smithsonian.

For a complete list of available collections, please review the Points to the Past One-Page Flyer.

PressReader

The world’s largest online newspaper and magazine kiosk, where you can browse and read hundreds of full-content premium newspapers and magazines from around the globe. Access is for 30 days after library sign-in. You will need to follow the steps to sign in as a library member after that 30 day period, to re-start another 30 days of access.

Access to the Globe & Mail is in-branch only. Canadian Newsstream provides access to the Globe & Mail from home.

Please note that access to PressReader requires library customers to provide first and last name and email address to authenticate use. For more information, contact info@virl.bc.ca or review PressReader’s Privacy Policy here.

Project Gutenberg

Project Gutenberg offers over 54,000 free eBooks: Choose among free epub books, free kindle books, download them or read them online. You will find the world’s great literature here, especially older works for which copyright has expired. Project Gutenberg digitizes and diligently proofreads them with the help of thousands of volunteers.
Available to anyone anywhere

ProQuest Central

ProQuest Central is a comprehensive research resource for academic, business, health, and news articles. It includes 47 databases in a single platform. Users can search all databases or select individual databases under the Change Databases tab.

ProQuest Central collection highlights:

• Popular news publications including New York Times, Atlantic Monthly, and Washington Post
• Business Databases including ABI/INFORM and Canadian Business and Current Affairs (CBCA)
• Academic research resources focusing on Science and Technology, Social Sciences, Health, The Arts, and more

Road to IELTS: General Edition

Road to IELTS: General Edition is the official, online IELTS (International English Language Testing System) preparation and practice database prepared by the British Council, for people learning English who need to pass the exam for educational, immigration, and occupational purposes.

Small Engine Repair Center

Online tool for small engine repair assistance, including: ATVs, commercial mowers, farm tractors, generators, motorcycles, marine (boats), outdoor power equipment, PWC (personal watercraft/jet ski), snow blowers, snowmobiles, tillers and other small engines.

SOLARO

SOLARO is a test prep and study App based on the BC curriculum. It covers Mathematics, Science, and English/Language Arts for grades 3-12. Students can review lessons, create customized flashcards and notes, and more!

TeenBookCloud

TeenBookCloud (aka TumbleBookCloud) has 600 titles for middle and high school readers! This collection contains a wide range of audiobooks, classics, graphic novels, novels, poetry, and short stories! National Geographic videos are available too.

Note: The TumbleBookCloud app only works with library sign in on iOS (Apple) devices. For Android users, please tap Launch for browser access to the web platform. A new app is being developed by the vendor.

TumbleBookLibrary

Update: TumbleBooks is providing free access, no card required. Click on the Launch button to open.

An online collection of animated picture books, audiobooks, graphic novels, children’s classics, early reader chapter books, and National Geographic videos. A great resource to teach kids the joy of reading in a format they’ll love!

Universalis Junior

Un outil de référence en français pour les 7 ans et plus!

A French-language reference tool for ages 7 and up. The perfect companion for homework, projects, and satisfying natural curiosity, Universalis Junior is an easy-to-use and engaging tool that teaches research skills and makes learning fun.

Includes includes access to more than 4,000 encyclopedia articles and 1,700 English-language articles for bilingual education.

Vehicle Safety & Inspection Standards Online (in-branch only)

Provides current access to vehicle safety and inspection standards and related BC legislation from official sources.
Access: Available in branch on library computers or WiFi

Xwi7xwa Library

Xwi7xwa Library is a centre for academic and community Indigenous scholarship at the University of British Columbia. Its collections and services reflect Aboriginal approaches to teaching, learning, and research. Access archival material, research guides and more online at Xwi7xwa Library.
Access: Available to anyone anywhere