FREE "Laptop to Go" program at the Detroit Public Library - RESERVATION NEEDED

"Laptop to Go" at the Library

The Detroit Public Library is pleased to offer a “Laptop to Go” program allowing customers to check out a laptop for personal use. This new service is made possible with support from Lawrence Technological University. Laptops can be checked out on an adult Detroit Public Library card for 90 days. While there is no charge, there is a replacement fee if the laptop is lost or damaged. The laptops come with Wi-Fi capabilities and also include an integrated camera, speaker and microphone, as well as the Microsoft Office Suite. Additionally, when you check out a laptop you’ll receive a flash drive to store your work and files—and it’s yours to keep.  To reserve a laptop, you must come in-person to any open Detroit Public Library location. The laptops must be reserved in advance and you will be notified when its ready to be picked up. Reserve and pick up your laptop at Main Library, the open branches, or even the Mobile Library.

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Checkout a Laptop

Request a laptop in person at any open Detroit Public Library location. Laptop must be checked out on an adult Detroit Public Library card. Circulation period for laptop is 90 days. Return laptop in person to any open Detroit Public Library location on or before the due date. There is no charge to check out a laptop. The replacement fee if lost or damaged is $500.

Open Locations

Check the website for the most up to date information on library closures.

Location Information

Main Library 5201 Woodward Ave. Located in Midtown Call 313-481-1400 Tuesday - Saturday, 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. Sunday (October - May), 1:00 - 5:00 p.m.

Campbell Branch 8733 Vernor Hwy. Located in Southwest Detroit Call 313-481-1400 Monday - Thursday, 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. Saturday, 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Edison Branch 18400 Joy Rd. Located just west of the Southfield Fwy. Call 313-481-1400 Monday - Thursday, 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. Saturday, 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Jefferson Branch 12350 E. Outer Dr. Located at the corner of Outer Dr. and E. Warren Ave. Call 313-481-1400 Monday - Thursday, 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. Saturday, 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Parkman Branch 1766 Oakman Blvd. Located between Livernois and Linwood Call 313-481-1400 Monday - Thursday, 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. Saturday, 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.

Redford Branch 21200 Grand River Ave. Located just south of W. McNichols Call 313-481-1400 Monday - Thursday, 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. Saturday, 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. Sunday (October - May), 1:00 - 5:00 p.m.

Wilder Branch temporarily closed 7140 Seven Mile E Located just west of Van Dyke Call 313-481-1400 Monday - Thursday, 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. Saturday, 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. Sunday (October - May), 1:00 - 5:00 p.m.

Mobile Library Schedule

Conely Branch 4600 Martin St. Located off Michigan Ave. (across from the Telway) Call 313-481-1706 Every Monday from 9:30 - 11:30 a.m.

Douglass Branch 3666 Grand River Located between Trumbull and Commonwealth Call 313-481-1706 Every Monday from 1:30 - 3:30 p.m.

Chase Branch 17731 W Seven Mile Road Located just east of the Southfield Fwy Call 313-481-1706 Every Tuesday from 9:30 - 11:30 a.m.

Sherwood Forest Branch 7117 W Seven Mile Road Located west of Livernois Call 313-481-1706 Every Tuesday from 1:30 - 3:30 p.m.

Franklin Branch 13651 E McNichols Road Located at Gratiot Call 313-481-1706 Every Wednesday from 9:30 - 11:30 a.m.

Knapp Branch 1330 Conant Street Located at E Davison Call 313-481-1706 Every Wednesday from 1:30 - 3:30 p.m.

Elmwood Park Branch 550 Chene Located between Lafayette and Larned Call 313-481-1706 Every Thursday from 9:30 - 11:30 a.m.

Duffield Branch 2507 W Grand Blvd Located between Rosa Parks Blvd and 14th St Call 313-481-1706 Every Thursday from 1:30 - 3:30 p.m.

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FREE Family Fun, FREE Parking at 11th Annual Shell Eco-Marathon at Cobo Center - ENDS 4/30

Special thanks to Shell for partnering with FREEISMYLIFE to inform everyone about this year's Shell Eco-Marathon in beautiful Downtown Detroit ...

Experience innovation like never before for FREE at Shell Eco-marathon Americas...

It is finally here! The Shell Eco-marathon Americas has returned to the iconic “Motor City” for the mileage challenge – a unique competition to uncover which high school or college student teams can go the furthest on the least amount of energy.

Student teams from all across the Americas, including Metro Detroit teams from the University of Detroit Mercy, University of Michigan Ann Arbor and Roseville High School, push the boundaries of automotive energy efficiency on the road, competing with vehicles they design and build themselves.

The event also features a  totally FREE festival of ideas and innovation called "Make the Future Detroit" where you and your family can experience a variety of multi-sensory educational activities including -

- Virtual reality experiences

- Hands-on science experiments

- Live music

- Test drives on an outdoor track featuring the Toyota Prius and Mirai

- Live stage expert segments hosted by radio hosts Alan Taylor and Jeff Allen

- Vehicle displays, including FCA’s Dodge Demon, Pacifica PHEV and the Viper Simulator

- Fiat Chrysler Automobiles’ Rooftop Ride & Drives on Friday and Saturday from 9:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Admission is FREE and open to the public.

Parking will be FREE for the first 700 cars to come to Cobo rooftop and mention Shell Eco-marathon on both Saturday and Sunday. 

FIND OUT MORE ABOUT 11TH ANNUAL SHELL ECO-MARATHON AMERICAS AT DETROIT'S COBO HALL

Cobo Center
1 Washington Blvd
Detroit, MI 48226,


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FREE Family Fun, FREE Parking at 11th Annual Shell Eco-Marathon at Cobo Center 4/27-4/30

Special thanks to Shell for partnering with FREEISMYLIFE to inform everyone about this year's Shell Eco-Marathon in beautiful Downtown Detroit ...

Shell Eco-Marathon Americas 2017 returns to

Downtown Detroit

April 27-30, 2017

FREE Family Fun | Cobo Center | FREE Parking for 1st 700 cars on Saturday and Sunday

For the last two years, my son and I have attended the Shell Eco-Marathon Americas in Downtown Detroit. This event is an innovation challenge for future automotive engineers and scientists  in high school and college to push the limits of energy efficiency.

For the 3rd year in a row, the Shell Eco-marathon Americas will once again take place at Cobo Center, in the heart of Detroit this weekend, from April 27-30, 2017.

It's all about the cars...

At the heart of the event will be the Shell Eco-marathon student mileage challenge where more than 100 teams from all over the Americas design and build the most fuel efficient vehicles that the best bright young minds can imagine.

The teams then compete on a specially-designed track around Cobo Center to see just how far they can drive on the equivalent of one liter of fuel.

My son and I had a blast at last year's event

In addition to the design competition, the Shell Eco-Marathon provides FREE family-friendly events open to everyone who wants to learn more about the role he/she plays in the future of our worlds energy!

The Shell Eco-Marathon events will take you on an incredible and interactive journey into the future of energy and mobility. You can see cars of the future in action on the track outside of Cobo Center, learn how gravity, salt water and just stomping your feet can create energy and have conversations about the next bright energy idea.

The events will take you on an incredible journey into the future of energy and mobility. At the fan zone you will be able be see new technologies, enjoy the energy adventure of tomorrow and have fun with live music shows!

Parking will be free for the first 700 cars to come to Cobo rooftop and mention Shell Eco-marathon on both Saturday and Sunday. 

The Shell Eco-Marathon will take place April 27th-30th with the following event hours -

Thursday 9:00AM-4:00PM
Friday 9:00AM-4:00PM
Saturday 8:00AM-4:00PM
Sunday 10:00AM-3:00PM


CLICK HERE FOR MORE DETAILS ON THE SHELL ECO-MARATHON 2017

Shell Eco-Marathon Americas
Cobo Center (Enter through Hall A!)
1 Washington Bvld.
Detroit, MI 48226



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Shell Eco-Marathon encourages Science, Tech, Engineering, and Math (STEM) with Young People

Special thanks to Shell for partnering with FREEISMYLIFE to inform everyone about this year's Shell Eco-Marathon in beautiful Downtown Detroit ...

Let's Encourage our Kids to be the Next Generation of STEM advancers...

Imagination is a powerful tool. When imagination is combined with education, it brings the impossible into the everyday.

Just nine years old, the iPhone and the iPad did not exist and now smart devices are a staple of our everyday lives.

Smart device apps like Facetime, Skype, Periscope and SnapChat allow friends and family to connect in realtime in ways that were impossible just 10 years ago.

When I was I kid, The Jetsons animated TV program showed an automated world that I never thought I would see in my lifetime. Now I turn up the heat in my home remotely using my smart thermostat and my Smart Lights use geofencing to turn on the lights in my home right before I turn my car into the driveway. And both smart devices help to lower the energy bills on my home.

The newest cars sport sensors that can keep me safer by knowing if other vehicles are too close, breaking before I know trouble is ahead, and safely parallel parking without my help.

It's a brave new world out there and we will need the next generation of imaginative young people to take STEM advances to the next level.

But the problem with imagination is that we tend to lose it as we grow up. As we age, we tend to accept the barriers instead of looking for the solutions.

My son and I checking out the exhibits...

So how do we encourage our kids to keep imagination alive??

Last month, my son and I attended the 10th annual Shell Eco-Marathon Americas in Downtown Detroit.  This event is an innovation challenge for future automotive engineers and scientists to push the limits of energy efficiency. More than 1,000 high school and college students from across the Americas came to Detroit to see who can design and build ultra-energy efficient vehicles that go the farthest distance using the least amount of energy.

This is the second year that the event has been held in Metro Detroit and also the second year that I and my son have attended. Last year, my son did not want to go. He thought it all sounded kind of boring and too much like a school assignment and he assumed he would not have a good time. But after he got to the event and had hands-on exposure with all the cool technology, he had a blast and was actually looking forward to going again this year.

This year's event was held again at Cobo Center in downtown Detroit and included many FREE technology focused activities for the entire family.

The Shell Eco-Marathon Americas event showcased many activities that stimulated my son's interest in STEM and is helping to keep his imaginative juices flowing.

Fuel Efficient Vehicle Designs are Imaginative and Fun to watch...

The purpose of the Shell Eco-Marathon is to challenge teams of high school and college kids to come up with ultra fuel efficient vehicles that they design by hand.

Some of the vehicles resemble something that you might see on the street.  But most are not only eye catching but down right daring.  In this competition, kids are only limited only by their imaginations and that is pretty fun for everyone to watch.

After watching the designs race on the streets of Detroit, the parents and kids in attendance got to try out building a vehicle too, just on a smaller scale. Shell supplied FREE salt water powered car kits that took about 30 minutes to assemble and then let the kids race them on a model car sized track.  It was a great activity that let kids see on a smaller scale what efficient vehicle design is all about and encourage them to one day enter the Shell Eco-Marathon challenge with imaginative vehicles of their own design.

My son trying out the Virtual Reality headset...

Virtual Reality has kids dragging parents to try it out...

Shell Eco-Marathon brought Virtual Reality home by allowing kids and adults to strap on a VR headset and experience how green hydrogen can be produced from water for use as an alternative fuel source to power vehicles and also heat homes and businesses.  This virtual reality experience had kids dragging their parents to stand in line and not the other way round.

Robots on the move...

One of the more surprising experiences at the Shell Eco-Marathon involved Robotics.  Imagine walking in Cobo Hall and coming upon a roaming robot on wheels named TARA who is programmed to stop, have a conversation with you and your family, and then politely move on her way.  I wonder if TARA can be further trained to cook and clean like the robot Rosie on The Jetsons ???  Now that would be my kind of a STEM advance :)

STEM is alive and well in Metro Detroit....

All of the wonderful experiences at the 10th annual Shell Eco-Marathon brought home the importance of encouraging STEM with our kids. And as families left the event, they were asked to write on a sticky what they got out of the event and attach the sticky to a massive wall.

As I read the many comments, I realized that STEM is alive and well in Metro Detroit.  And another generation of young people are well on their way to using their imaginations to change the world.

So I cannot wait to see what high school and college teams will imagine into reality at the 11th annual Shell Eco-Marathon when it makes its way back to Detroit in 2017.


Enjoy!


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