Basic
Keyword Searching
Type in any two or three words. Some basic facts:
- AND is implied between
search words
- It is NOT case sensitive
- Author, Title, Subject,
Notes, Series name, Publisher, Publication Date, and
ISBN fields are indexed and searchable.
- Searches will result in
a list of titles.
Author
Searching
Author searches will bring you an alphabetic list of all
authors appearing in the catalog.
1. Searches must be
entered last name first, no comma is necessary between
the names.
2. You may enter just the first few letters of the
author's last name,.
3. Punctuation is ignored.
Title
Searching
Title searches will bring you an alphabetical list of all
titles appearing in the catalog.
1. Initial articles (A,
The, An, etc.) must be omitted. This includes languages
other than English (omit El, Los, Les, La, Un, Une,
etc.), except for proper nouns (e.g. Los Alamos, Le
Corbusier)
2. You may enter just the first few letters of a title
(excluding initial articles).
Subject
Searching
Subject searches will bring you
the very specific Library of Congress Subject Heading
(LCSH) index. KEYWORD searching is usually better as Subject
searches must be entered in precise LC Subject Heading
order. You may enter just the first few letters of a word or
subject heading.
Easy Tips for
searching the catalog.
- For MOST searches,
Keyword works best. ( you should use two or three
words )
- Title searches for
titles which exist in multiple editions (like Moby
Dick); you do much better if you search under Author
or in Keyword (Melville Moby)
- The Next Record/Previous
Record links on the Hitlist page provide a fast way
to navigate through the results of your search.
- Use the 'Refine your
search' form at the bottom of both Hitlist and Full
Record screens to save extra clicks.
What does Status
mean?
Available
The item is presumed to be on the shelves, but it never
hurts to call ahead and make sure that the item you want is
actually in the library. Be aware that if the item is
a Reference Book, even though it says available, it
generally does not leave the library.
Checked Out
The item has been borrowed and is not available at this
time. Check with your local library to find out if there is
another copy in the system that is available, or consider
placing a hold for the item.
Storage
The item is may be unavailable for circulation
for some reason.
In Transit
The item has been returned to a library in the BCCLS system
and is on the way to its home library.
Your Library
Card
Check Your Library Card
To check your record, you need to have a PIN set up for your
library card. Your home library can set your PIN. This
feature will let you see which items you currently have
charged out, and if there are any fines present on your
record. You can also change your PIN.
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