How to Use the Online Catalog

Renewing Items with the Online Catalog

Prerequisites:
You must have already obtained a Personal Identification Number (PIN) for your library account.
1. Go to our online catalog .

2. Click the 'My Account' tab.

3. Enter your 14 digit library card number & PIN in the appropriate boxes.

4. Click 'Login'.

5. Click 'Items Out' or the 'Checked Out' box at the top of the screen.

6. Click on the check box by each item to be renewed. All items may be renewed by clicking on the check box just under the 'Renew' box at the top of the list.

7. Click 'Renew', either at the top or the end of the list. If any items could not be renewed, that information will be displayed.

8. Congratulations, you just saved a trip to the library!

Go to the Online Catalog

Go to AquaBrowser Library

Placing Requests

Requests may be placed for two reasons. The first is to be placed on a waiting list when no copies of a title are available. The second is to request an item that is available, but is in a branch other than your regular branch.

In the first case, the first available copy of the title will be held for you at the branch or bookmobile stop you desired. In the second, the library branch that has a copy of the title will send the item to the branch or bookmobile stop you desire. In either case, you will be informed, usually by phone, that the title is available for you to check out at the desired library branch.

To place a request, do the following:

Search for the title you are interested in. See Searching the Catalog for more information on searching.
If your search brings up a list of titles, select one by clicking on the title you are interested in. Often a title is available in several formats, such as hardback, audiotape or CD, large print, and videotape or DVD. Select a title and format entry.
The full record will be displayed. On this record you can see how many are on a waiting list for this title in the selected format. You can also see where the copies of the title are located and their status. Status may be: shelf (checked in), due date (checked out), processing, lost, or transit hold (in transit between branches).
Select the Request Item button on the right side of the page. If you are already logged into your account, a Confirmation screen appears. If not already logged in, a login screen displays. You must log in by entering your Rangeview Library District card number and your Personal Identification Number. You must have a PIN to access your personal information on the library system, including requesting titles and renewing items.
A Request Confirmation screen then appears. It will list the title of the item and its author, but not its format. It displays how you will be notified when the title is available. It also shows where the item will be held for you. The location where the title will be held can be changed by you to any of six branches and the Bookmobile. If Bookmobile is selected, please enter the name of the Bookmobile stop in the Comment field. Otherwise the Comment field may be left empty. A date on which your hold will expire is also displayed. This date is just under one year from the date you placed the hold.
Now you may click on the Request button to confirm your request, click on the Cancel button to cancel your request, or click on the Cancel and Logout button to cancel your request and log out of your account.
If you click on the Request button, a screen appears that states that your request has been successfully placed. It also displays the information of title, author, how you will be notified, where the copy of the title may be picked up, and the date the hold will expire. Then you may click on Return to Searching or Logout and Return. Both will take you back to the screen from which you made the request.
If you click on one of the Cancel buttons, you will return to the screen from which you made the request.

"My List": Managing Book Lists on the Online Catalog

This information tells you how to use booklists (by default, My List) in the Rangeview Library District Online Catalog. Booklists allow you to save results of searches in the catalog. The results may be saved for just the time you search the catalog or they may be saved longer when you log into your account.

The automatic booklist is named My List. When you are not logged into your account, it is a temporary list and items placed in it will disappear when you end your session on the catalog. When logged into your account, My List is your personal list and items will stay in it after you end your session. Items in your personal My List may be transferred to other lists that you create and name.

The catalog allows you to add selected materials to the My List booklist. If you are not logged in, then My List contains selections only while you remain in that session. If you add items to My List while not logged in, then login, the new items are appended to your personal My List.

Items are added to My List whenever the button Add to my list is clicked. The button appears on search screens with titles of materials.

After you are logged in, and you click on My List (upper right corner of most screens), you may manipulate your lists. You may move items, including newly added items, from My List to existing named lists you have created or to a new list, which then needs to be named. A named list is a booklist that is named something other than My List by the logged-in user. For example, you might set up a list of books by an author, and name the list, Stephen King, or set up a list by series, such as Cat Who.

The My List page has a button called Manage Lists. This allows you to see the lists you have created, their creation date, and their expiration date. You may also rename or delete a named list through this screen. A named list is deleted at the end of the expiration date. My List is never deleted but all the items are removed from it on the expiration date.

Expiration dates are currently 90 days from creation date. Adding to or removing items from a named list changes the creation date and the expiration date, as displayed on the Manage Lists screen. Expiration dates can be changed in the following ways:

Add new selections to your logged-in My List (changes the My List expiration date to 90 days from the current date)
Add to or delete items from a named list
Rename a named list
Create a new named list and move items to it.

Searching the Online Catalog

The Online Catalog Welcome screen has one drop down Search box and a second box to enter the search requirements (such as title, author, series name, etc). This Search box is the same as the Basic search found under the Search tab. The search initially displayed is the General Keyword.

The Search tab has 4 sub-tabs; Basic, Advanced, Power, and History. Each of these search types are explained below.

Basic Searches

A Basic Search allows you to select one type of Search:

General Keyword
Title Browse
Author Browse
Subject Browse
Title Keyword
Author Keyword
Subject Keyword
Series Keyword
Genre Subject Browse
Large Print Title Browse
Nonmusical Sound Recordings Browse
Video Title Browse
DVD Title Browse
VHS Title Browse

The Basic Search has a drop-down box which allows you to select the search type and a second box to enter the search requirements (such as title, author, series name, etc). Each of these Search types are explained next.

Browse vs Keyword Searches

Browse searches allow you to enter some information, such as a start of a title. Then the system will search for items starting at that point and go to the end of the catalog. Each type of browse search will be explained.

Keyword searches try to match the information entered with the list of words maintained by the system. The search will only bring back those items associated with words found in the keyword lists. Lists of keywords are kept for Title, Author, Subject, and Series for the Basic Search. Additional keyword lists will be explained in Advanced and Power Searches. Each type of keyword search will be explained.

Title Browse Searches look for a match to the title entered. It begins matching with the first word. If you were looking for a book titled At Home in Mitford, you could enter the entire title or just At. The case of the entry doesn't matter, so it could be entered as at, At, AT, or aT.

The Search Results screen displays 10 titles at a time. There are links to Previous 10 and Next 10, allowing you to see results before and after the screen you are on. The first item to match or most closely match the data you entered will display on the first line of the Results screen list.

Author Browse Searches look for matches with an author's name. Names are usually entered last name, first name. A list of authors is displayed on the Results page and a specific author may be selected from that list. A list of items in the library by that author will then be displayed.

The Search Results screen displays 10 authors at a time. There are links to Previous 10 and Next 10, allowing you to see results before and after the screen you are on. The first item to match or most closely match the data you entered will display on the first line of the Results screen list.

Subject Browse Searches look for matches with a subject. Subjects are assigned to an item when it is cataloged.

The Search Results screen displays 10 subjects at a time. There are links to Previous 10 and Next 10, allowing you to see results before and after the screen you are on. The first item to match or most closely match the data you entered will display on the first line of the Results screen list.

Genre Subject Browse Searches look for matches for types of fiction, such as adventure, mystery, science fiction, and so on.

The Search Results screen displays 10 genres at a time. There are links to Previous 10 and Next 10, allowing you to see results before and after the screen you are on. The first item to match or most closely match the data you entered will display on the first line of the Results screen list.

Large Print Title Browse Searches looks for titles of books in large print.

Nonmusical Sound Recordings Browse Searches look for titles of books or dramatizations on audio cassette tape or CD.

Video Title Browse Searches look for the titles of video presentations on DVD or video cassette tapes.

DVD Title Browse Searches look for titles of movies on DVD only.

VHS Title Browse Searches look for titles of movies on video cassette tape only.

General Keyword Searches looks for matches in all the keyword lists. So an item would be listed if its associated keyword is found in the title, author, subject or series keyword lists.

Title Keyword Searches look for matches with keywords relating to the title. For example, entering MITFORD, brings on the Results page a list of books beginning with At Home in Mitford and including all the books belonging to the Mitford series, even though Mitford is not included in the actual titles.

Author Keyword Searches look for matches with keywords relating to the author. For example, entering MITFORD, brings on the Results page a list of items having Mitford as an author (or other contributor, such as performer or illustrator).

Subject Keyword Searches look for matches with keywords relating to a subject. For example, entering MITFORD, brings on the Results page a list of items having Mitford as a subject.

Series Keyword Searches look for matches of Series keywords. This may include items authored by someone other than the original author. For example, entering Rama as a keyword brings up 6 books, the first written by Arthur C. Clarke, 3 written by Clarke and Gentry Lee, and 2 written by Lee.

Advanced Search

Advanced Search allows you to combine two or more of the search categories. This search page has the keyword searches described above plus the following searches. Author, series, subject, and title browse searches are not available.

Dewey Call Number Searches look for matches of Dewey Decimal numbers with the data entered. This is a browse search so the data entered is a starting point into the catalog. Most fiction and media use the first three letters of the author last name as a call number. Non-fiction uses the Dewey number, such as 659 or 810.6.

Uniform Title Browse Searches look for matches of titles that have had a Uniform Title created for them. Uniform titles are often used with music items.

Extra Words is a browse search. It allows browse searches to be limited to by special codes, such as "cdx" for cd searches, "dvdx" for dvd searches, and "vtx" for video tape searches. This search is a transition the previous online catalog.

Spanish Keyword Searches look for matches of keywords in Spanish. For example, entering "Hola" brings back eight titles.

Bib # Searches are used by library staff.

Power Search

A Power Search allows you the use AND, OR , or NOT with your combined searches. So you might be able to search a subject and limit the results to only certain authors. The searches different from the Advanced Searches are listed below. Power searches use the same searches as Advanced, with some exceptions.

The differences are the Bib# search is replaced with the Barcode Search and the ISBN Exact Match Search has been added.

Barcode Search matches the barcode of the item. The barcode can be found on the outside of the item. Used mostly by library staff.

ISBN Exact Match Search matches the International Standard Book Number Used mostly by library staff.

History allows you to review your searches, reuse them, or edit the search and start it again. You may also clear the Search History. When the session times out or you exit the browser, the search history is removed.

Library Collections Abbreviations

The Library District uses collections to group items together, when possible. Collections are different than call numbers. Call numbers are used to group items by subject. Call numbers may or may not include collection abbreviations.

The catalog screen which displays the full information on an item displays the collection abbreviation. It separates it from the call number itself.

Collections may group items by item type (book, audio tape, video, etc.), age groups (easy readers, intermediate, teens) or themes (particularly in literature, such as mysteries, westerns, science fiction, etc).

This list explaining collection abbreviations may help you as you search for the item that you want.

AT - audio tape
BB - book bag (book and audio tape for children)
CD - compact disk, either music or book
DVD - digital video disk - movies
E CAP - easy alphabet and counting books
E READ - easy readers, graded readers through 3rd grade
F - adult fiction
HOL - holiday books
J - juvenile
KIT - filmstrip, audio tape, pamphlet; does not circulate
LP - large print books and magazines
MYS - adult mysteries
NEW - 7 day circulating items, bestsellers
SF - adult science-fiction and fantasy
TEEN - middle and high school age items
VT or VTX - video tape movies and programs
WEST - adult westerns