Answered By Library Staff
Last Updated: Aug 16, 2024     Views: 128

Each ebook vendor/platform (Ebsco, JSTOR, ProQuest, and etc.) has different options and permissions for downloading a chapter or a book. Sometimes, it depends on the book itself and there is no one-size-fits-all within the platform. It all depends on the agreement the publisher of the book has with the platform. 

When you download pages or chapters (versus the whole book, which you may not need), you will sometimes get a PDF file that doesn't expire--that you can retain for your research. The number of pages you can download is usually the same as what you are able to print. Learn the pros and cons of downloading a whole ebook in this FAQ.

In ProQuest Ebook Central and in many Ebsco ebooks, for example, you can download or print just the section you need! Typically, you're enabled to download/print individual pages and sections.

Here's an example of a book we are reading in our browser on the ProQuest plaform, but that we want to retain a section of. Using the icons, we can print page ranges (using the printer icon) or download the section we are on (using the PDF icon):

icons in proquest

Here's an example of an Ebsco ebook where we can retain a portion of the ebook, using similar icon options:

ebsco icons

This section of this video shows what downloading a JSTOR ebook chapter looks like: