AUBURN — Local readers may soon check out and read library books without ever going to the library.

Their method: a new online service at many Maine libraries that allows people with most home computers and some e-readers to borrow, download and read a growing list of books.

The system is called Maine InfoNet.

For the reader, it’s entirely free, Rick Speer, the director of the Lewiston Public Library, said.

“We’ve never tried this before,” Speer said. “And we’re still learning.”

His library and the Auburn Public Library have each signed onto the program. And they have each committed to purchasing several new e-readers. Each costs between $130 and $200.

They will be loaned for free, too.

“It’s something that people are curious about,” said Suzanne Sullivan, the assistant director of the Auburn Public Library. Both libraries plan to begin lending the readers within two weeks.

“People want to try these out,” she said. “We want to help them.”

The concept of an e-book is somewhat new.

Essentially, each is a computer file or collection of files that includes the full text of any book. Many also include photos and illustrations. Some are outfitted with video and computer links.

At the Maine InfoNet website — download.maineinfonet.org — people can sign in using their library cards and browse through 1,800 book titles in a variety of genres.

The site includes free downloads of software needed to read the books on their home computers. The software also protects the book publishers from illegal copying.

If people own their own readers, they may be able to use those too.

Only some of the companies’ systems are compatible, so far.

People with the Sony Reader and the Barnes & Noble Nook will be able to borrow books and read them on their devices. Two of the most popular, the Amazon Kindle and the Apple iPad, do not yet work with the InfoNet system.

A program for the iPad is in the works, Sullivan said. The Kindle may also be on its way.

So far, her library has bought a Nook and a pocket edition of the Sony Reader.

On Friday, just as the InfoNet site launched its e-book program, Sullivan took the Sony out of its box.

She plans to learn the how to use it and share the knowledge.

One of the pluses of e-books is convenience. They can be downloaded without leaving home. Buying them is typically cheaper than buying one at a book store. And for the library, there are no overdue books.

When they are due, they simply vanish from your computer or reader.

On Nov. 18, Sullivan is scheduled to lead a free workshop at the Auburn Public Library on e-books and e-reading.

She has read several books on a laptop computer and likes the way a reader can easily adjust the size of the type, its font and the brightness of the screen, she said.

“It’s as comfortable as reading a traditional book,” Sullivan said.

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