Step inside a library, and you know you’re in a special place. Generations of readers have grown up walking the aisles of row after row of fiction and non-fiction books, finding just the right one to help them escape into another world.

These spaces, which have always been about information, now have joined the information age. Instead of flipping through pages, you can download audio books to your mp3 player and listen to Jon Stewart narrate his book “America” or read each chapter of “Trump Strategies for Real Estate” right on your computer screen.

But don’t panic, bookworms. Hard copies aren’t going anywhere. The Roanoke Valley Library system (which serves Roanoke, Salem, Roanoke County and Botetourt County) merely has made it easier for you to get what you need, when you need it.

From the library or the comfort of your own home (with Internet access), you can do just about anything on the computer — apply for a library card, search for reading or multimedia materials, renew items you borrowed, participate in book clubs and read or listen to your books of choice.

“A lot more people are using online resources,” explains Diane McGuire, head of circulation for Roanoke Public Library. “Renewals and putting books on hold is a convenience for the patrons because they’re not confined to library hours.”

WHAT CAN I DO ONLINE?

Search the catalog

Looking online for what you want to read is simple. Just log on to www.rvl.info; type in the topic, author or title of choice; click submit; and up pops every version — hardbound, paperback, audio or video — that the library has in stock.

If you prefer browsing through the stacks, the online database lets you search by subject or keyword, and the valley libraries Web site offers recommended reading lists that include The New York Times Fiction best-seller list and every one of the picks from Oprah’s Book Club.

Still not sure if you want to commit to checking out that book? Read reviews and get a peek inside some by clicking on the summary page to get an excerpt of the first chapter. If you like the topic but want to see more, you can continue browsing by clicking on links that give you more titles by that author, on that same topic, or filed nearby on the shelf.

Request stuff

Once you’ve found an item, simply click on the “request title” link, and the library branch of your choice will notify you when you can pick up your book.

Renew

Renewing your books is just as easy: Login to your account, select the title you have checked out and click the “renew” button.

Download audiobooks

If you prefer to listen to your reading material, download a digital audiobook to play on your desktop or portable device such as an mp3 player that supports Windows Media Player version 9.0 and above (which means you can’t use your iPod yet), Pocket PC or smartphone.

Salem Public Library partnered with NetLibrary and Recorded Books about two months ago to offer 896 books narrated by professional actors. The branch heads this initiative, but these titles are available to any valley library patron. A high-speed connection will get you a CD quality file, but dial-up connections work, too.

“The major reason we’ve gone this track is because the technology is headed that way,” said Nancy Collins, reference and electronic services librarian at Salem. “Just as movies are moving from VHS to DVD, books are moving from tape to CD to the next level, which is the digital world.”

These books are checked out just as the old-fashioned kind; you can listen to them for three weeks (and they can be renewed), and a maximum of six titles can be checked out at one time. Even though you can download them, the files do expire, so don’t think you’re getting a freebie.

The process is set up for you to never have to even step a foot in the library, but since the system is so new, Collins recommends that you go into the Salem Public Library on your first visit to set up your NetLibrary account.

Read an eBook

If all you want to do is look at the book on your screen, well, the library can do that for you, too. About a year ago, the valley libraries began offering eBooks, electronic versions of printed books that can be viewed on your computer screen for four hours at a time, 24 hours a day. As long as you stay within copyright laws, you’re free to copy and paste and download parts of the text.

“The e-books are a wonderful way of expanding our non-fiction collection without having to have the space to house all of it,” says McGuire.

You’ll need a NetLibrary account for this service, too; sign up in person at the library of your choice to get your user name and password.

For more information and to start your electronic libraryjourney, log on to www.rvl.info.