The WBAC library comprises over 300 hundred books covering all aspects of wooden boat design, construction, maintenance and operation. There are also volumes about historic tall ships and epic sailing adventures, as well as books on boating humour and poetry. The library also holds an extensive collection of boating magazines published over the last 85 years, containing thousands of articles on boating design, construction techniques, adventures, misadventures and photographs. We also have a collection of full size boat plans, charts, maps and posters.

 

BOOKS

The book collection has been catalogued and shelved under the following subjects:

• Biography

• Boat Building and Design

• Canoes and Kayaks

• Cruising

• Equipment and Maintenance

• Fiction

• History

• Humour and Poetry

• Model Boats

• Nature

• Navigation and Lighthouses

• Racing

• Seafarers

• Seamanship

• Shipwrecks

• Tall Ships

• Voyages and Adventures

 

Within each subject category, books are shelved by title in alphabetical order, except when the title starts with “The”, in which case the second word in the title is used. Titles beginning with a number (e.g., “10 Easy Boat Plans”) are shelved at the beginning of the subject group.

 

The book catalogue includes a photo of the front cover, the title, author, and (for most books) a brief summary. The catalogue can be accessed by clicking on the PDF logo at the foot of the page.

 

The catalogue can be searched for title, author, subject or key words using your computer’s “Control F” function.

 

MAGAZINES

The WBAC magazine collection comprises long publication runs of 15 Australian and international boating magazine titles, and single editions and short runs of a further 34 magazine titles. The magazine catalogue includes a cover photo, publication dates or issue numbers, and, where available, website links to contents of several magazine titles.

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Download the magazine catalogue by clicking on PDF logo at the foot of the page.

 

SMART PHONE USERS

How to Search a PDF on iPhone:

1. Launch i Books from your iPhone home screen.

2. Open the PDF file that you wish to search by tapping on the file.

3. Then tap the magnifying glass that is the upper end on the right side.

4. Type the text or term that you want to search for, then you can click on the search section of the keyboard.

 

How to Search Text in PDF on Android App PDF element:

1. Step 1: Download and Launch PDF element Android App.

2. Step 2: Import Your PDF File.

3. Step 3: Open your PDF file and tap on the magnifier glass.

4. Step 4: Enter keywords you want to search in the PDF, all searched results will be listed.

 

BORROWING BOOKS & MAGAZINES

To borrow books or magazines, record the following on the whiteboard in the library:

• Book number (on the inside cover, or 1st or 2nd page) or Magazine title & edition

• Member’s name

• Date borrowed

 

Returned books should be placed inside the wooden stool located underneath the whiteboard.

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BOAT PLANS, CHARTS, MAPS & POSTERS

A collection of full-size boat plans, charts, maps and posters are stored in numbered poster tubes in the WBAC library.