Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Arts & Entertainment
Print Is Dying? The NYPL Has An iPad App For That
By
Jamie Feldmar
Published May 17, 2011
Modified May 17, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Jamie Feldmar
Published May 17, 2011
Modified May 17, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Do you prefer the feel of an iPad or of an old book in your hand? (Photo on right, of Charles' Dickens own copy of A Christmas Carol, by Jen Carlson/Gothamist)
Taking a page out of their "Find the Future"-themed centennial celebration exhibition this year, the New York Public Library unveiled today their first-ever iPad app, called Biblion: The Boundless Library. For those who can't get up to The Stacks in person, it's a nifty little way to peruse history from your lap.
The app focuses on the popular New York World's Fair 1939-40 collection, allowing users to scroll and zoom through "thousands of photos, internal documents and personal stories" from the exhibit. As part of the library's 100th birthday celebrations, they also plan to release a second app later this week, a "Find the Future" game, and designs for a third app later this summer are in the works. It's a little disconcerting to see the city's grandest testament to print go digital in such a flashy way, though the NYPL is not the first institution of its type to make the mobile move. No word yet on any of the Library's other collections that might make it into app form, though this could be the start of a beautiful relationship between tech nerds and bibliophiles.
The app is totally free—check out a video of how it works, and download the app here.
Tagged
App
Centennial
ipad
mobile
new york public library
nypl
tech
Jamie Feldmar
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE arts-entertainment
Inside a photographer's journey to visit every neighborhood in New York City
What do you see when you record the whole of the boroughs?
By
Sonia Rao
Published Oct 5, 2026
Banned books and Winnie the Pooh: October in NYC libraries
It's a busy month at the branches.
By
Alec Hamilton
Arts & Entertainment
Banned books and Winnie the Pooh: October in NYC libraries
It's a busy month at the branches.
By
Alec Hamilton
NYC music in October: The Strokes, a Blink-182 cover band, and Polish experimentalism
By
Hank Shteamer
Are you a New Yorker? The Department of New Yorker Verification will now decide.
By
Hannah Frishberg
In the mood for a pastoral autumn experience? Try Queens.
By
Elizabeth Shwe
and
James Ramsay
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .