Library Search enables you find a book in the library.
Sometimes you may need Library Search to find a specific book; sometimes you may need to find a book about a topic.
The video and the content below explain the ways you can do this.
You will sometimes know the exact book that you want to find. In the example below I want to find a book called EYFS: a practical guide by Penny Tassoni.
Step 1: Type in as many words from the title of the book that you know. When you start to type EYFS practical guide, Library Search will begin to predict which book you might want. If you see your book, click the predicted title to select it.
But if you are not sure, then you can click the magnifying glass with the word 'Books' to limit the search to only books that match this title.
Step 2: Library Search has found the book, but I want to know its location. To do this, click the title or where it says 'Available at'.
Step 3: You can see that the Devonshire Library (Buxton) has this book. Don't worry, the process is the same for the Leek library.
Library Search tells us that there are 4 copies of this book. In the example below, 4 copies are available, but this can of course change if others have borrowed the book.
To find the book, you need to look for its location in the library. This is provided by the book's 'Classmark'. It looks like this 372.21 TAS.
Don't be put off by this. 372.21 is just a code for the subject of this particular book, and TAS is just the author's surname.
Step 4: You can now find the book on the shelf by using the 'Classmark'. Signs in the library will indicate which shelf to look on, and the book will also have the Classmark clearly visible 372.21 TAS.
Step 5: Enjoy your reading and good luck with your studies!
You will sometimes want to know what books are available about a specific topic, rather than knowing a specific title. In the example below I want to find a book about childcare.
Step 1: Type your topic, childcare, into the search box. When you start to type childcare, Library Search will show you a drop down menu. Select the magnifying glass with the word 'Books' to limit your search to only books.
Step 2: Library Search will now display all the books that are available. You can now filter these results to only show books that are located in Buxton or in Leek. To do this click the 'Library' drop-down menu on the left-hand side of the screen. You should now see a list of libraries.
I want to see what books about childcare the Leek library has, so I simply click 'Leek Hub'.
Step 3: You will now see only the books that are available at the Leek library. Click a book's title or where is says 'Available at' to find its exact location in the Leek library. You can also remove the Leek Library filter from this page (the top-left corner allows you to deselect the filter).
Step 4: You can see that the Leek library has this book. The Devonshire library (Buxton) also happens to have the same book.
Library Search tells us that there are 6 copies of this book in the Leek library. In the example below, 6 copies are available, but this can of course change if others have borrowed the book.
To find the book, you need to look for its location in the library. This is provided by the book's 'Classmark'. It looks like this 372.21 MEG.
Don't be put off by this. 372.21 is just a code for the subject of this particular book, and MEG is just the author's surname.
Step 5: You can now find the book on the shelf by using the 'Classmark'. Signs in the library will indicate which shelf to look on, and the book will also have the Classmark clearly visible 372.21 MEG.
You will often use Library Search to find books you want, but sometimes you will want to browse the shelves. Below are some of the key shelf numbers that relate to relevant subject areas for your course.
