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Library Catalogue help

The Library Catalogue is available at https://www.lib.bris.ac.uk/ALEPH/ (or via Quick search on the Library homepage)

Video tutorials on using the library catalogue are available, and also a number of Library Catalogue guides in print in our libraries, or for download from our Library guides page.

 

What does the Library Catalogue include?

The Library Catalogue contains details of the following print and online resources:

Please note that the Library Catalogue does not include details of all the individual journal articles in the journals we hold or book chapters in the books. Consequently, searching the Library Catalogue is not equivalent to searching the literature of a subject. Advice on locating a particular journal article or book chapter is given below, and on searching the literature of a subject on the Search tips page

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How do I find books, etc, using the Library Catalogue?

The catalogue has two search pages, Basic Search (the catalogue 'home' page) and Advanced Search. You can also access your Previous searches in the current session.

Basic Search

Basic Search allows you to find records by searching for key words or names. You can search for these in All fields of the record and for All materials, Alternatively, you can specify a Field to search within and/or limit your search to a particular Material type.

Searching for a particular book?

  • Try 'Find in all fields' with the author's last name and a significant title word, eg orwell farm.
  • If you are trying to locate a book chapter reference try this approach and search for the title of the whole book and/or the author/editor of the whole book.
  • If you only know the title try 'Title contains word(s)' and enter a few title words - entering a full long title is usually unnecessary.
  • Further advice on using our book collections and eBooks can be found on our books collection page.

Searching for books on a particular subject?

  • Try 'Find in all fields' with one or more keywords, eg history china or history chin? or "chinese history".
  • If you change the 'Field to search' to 'Title contains' or 'Subject contains' you may find better results.
  • Alternatively, if you know the classmark of a useful book on the subject you could use the 'Classmark' or 'Shelflist' options.
  • If you are finding lots of theses or undergraduate reports which you are not interested in, you could try 'Find in all fields' and specify not thesis and not undergraduate, eg "thin films" not thesis not undergraduate.
  • If you are looking for an eBook on a particular subject you can use any of these approaches together with selecting 'eBooks' from the 'Material Type' drop-down list. Please note that many more eBooks are available in packages listed in the Material type - eBooks category on MetaLib.

Searching for books by a particular author?

  • Try 'Author contains' with full parts of the name (initials will not work), eg stephen hawking.
  • If you have the last name and initial only use 'Author (person - last name first) begins with' instead and enter hawking s.

Trying to locate an individual journal article?

To locate an individual journal article you should search for the title of the journal (not the title of the article):

  • Try 'Journal title contains' with keywords from the title, eg internat? econ?
  • Alternatively, use 'Journal title or book series begins' and enter the start of the journal title in full, eg international journal of economic.
  • Another approach is to use 'Title contains', change the material type to 'Printed journals' and use keywords from the journal title (this should have the same result as option 1).
  • If we do not have the printed journal, remember to search the eJournals catalogue to check whether we have access to the title as an electronic journal. You can link to the eJournals catalogue by using the eJournals link in the footer of the catalogue.
  • Further advice on using journals can be found in our journals collection page.

Trying to find other library materials, such as an eBook, a University of Bristol thesis, or DVD?

  • To restrict your search to eBooks (electronic books), change the material type to 'eBooks'. Please note that many more eBooks are available in packages listed in the Material type - eBooks category on MetaLib.
  • To restrict your search to University of Bristol theses, change the material type to 'UoB theses'.
  • To restrict your search to visual materials, including DVDs, videocassettes, and pictures (not maps) change the material type to 'Visual materials'.
  • Further advice on searching for other library materials can be found in our collections pages.

Trying to search the literature?

  • Searching the Library Catalogue is not equivalent to searching the literature of a subject. Advice can be found on the Search tips page.

Please note:

  • You may use a ? character or * (asterisk) to search for records that contain parts of a word: eg chin? (for china, chinese, chin, etc) or anim* (for animal, animate, animals, etc).
  • You can search for a phrase by enclosing the words in inverted commas, eg "global warming".
  • The system is not case sensitive, so you can enter lower or upper case letters for the same result.
  • On order items are not found using certain search types. Use one of the 'Basic Search' 'contains' type searches or Advanced Search to find on order items. On order items cannot be found by using other fields to search in 'Basic Search'.
  • See the Search tips page for more advice, including advanced search techniques.

Advanced Search

Advanced Search allows you to find records by entering key words or phrases and choosing the fields you want to search in. You can also limit your search to a particular language, format, publication year, or branch library location.

Advanced Search is accessed using the Advanced Search link on the Basic Search page.

  1. The default is to search within All fields. If you wish to restrict your search to a particular field use the down arrow beside 'Find in all fields' and choose from the options in the drop down list - Title, Author, Subject, ISBN, ISSN, Publisher, System Number and Barcode.
  2. Enter your search term(s) into one or more of the three search box(es) and choose Words adjacent if you wish to search for these as a phrase. The system is not case sensitive, so you can enter lower or upper case letters for the same result. You may also use a ? character or * (asterisk) to search for records that contain parts of a word, eg chin? will find china, chinese, chin, etc. See the Search tips page for more advice, including advanced search techniques.
  3. You may restrict your search to a particular Material type (eg eBook, UoB theses) or Limit search to a language, library or publication year range.
  4. Click on Search. The search hits will display as ‘No. of records’ for each of your searches and a ‘Total’ for records matching all of your search criteria. Click on any of these numbers to see the search results.

Previous Searches

Use the Previous Searches option in top navigation to view a list of your previous searches in the current session. Against each of these will be the Material type searched ('All material' if no material type was specified) and the 'Field' searched ('Words' if all fields were searched). Field codes are explained on the Search tips page.

  • To view the results of a previous search select the search you are interested in by clicking in the tick box next to it, and then use the View option.
  • To delete searches that are no longer required, click in the boxes next to them and use the Delete option.
  • To combine previous searches select the searches that you wish to combine by clicking in the boxes next to them. Then use the Cross option to widen or narrow your search by using OR (to widen your search), AND (to narrow your search) or NOT (to narrow by excluding).

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How do I refine my search?

To refine your initial search:

  • 'Basic Search' allows you to specify the field to search (eg title, author, subject, classmark) and/or to limit your search to a particular 'Material type' (eg eBook, UoB theses) .
  • 'Advanced Search' allows you specify the field to search (title, author, subject, ISBN, ISSN, Publisher, System Number and Barcode) and/or restrict your search to a particular 'Material type' (eg eBook, UoB theses) and/or to limit your search to a particular language, date range or branch library location.

Alternatively, you may refine your search from the Results List:

  • At the bottom of your 'Results List' you can Revise your search by amending your search terms and/or by limiting the results to a particular material. Your search term(s) are displayed in the top box together with the code(s) for the field(s) you searched in (this is shown in fuller form at the top of the page under the 'Results List' heading). A list of the field codes is available on the Search tips page.
  • At the top of your 'Results List' you can Refine your search by incorporating another search term to widen or narrow your search by using OR (to widen your search), AND (to narrow your search) or NOT (to narrow by excluding).

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How do I use my search results?

Results List

The 'Results List' allows you to see brief details of the records retrieved from your search.

  • Use the library name link to go to the Holdings page to see where the title is located in a particular library, to check if it is on loan and to reserve a copy. The information in the brackets after the library name indicates the (total number of copies in the library / the number of these currently on loan). If the library name is Store the link will open the 'Store request form' instead, see Store items below for advice.
  • EBooks will have a View electronic version link in the 'Electronic version' column and no library names in the 'Library (copies/on loan)' column. When you use the 'View electronic version' link it is likely that you will be prompted for your UOB username and password.
  • Use the record number link (found in the first column, headed '#') to go to the Full View of Record page where the full details of a record, including ISBN or ISSN if there is one, are displayed. To see where the title is held, reserve items, etc, you will need to go to the Holdings page by using the 'Library name' link or 'All copies' link.
  • Use Next Page to view more of the records retrieved from your search and Previous Page to go back to records you have just viewed.
  • If a column heading (author, title, year) is a link, you can use it to re-sort and redisplay the records in a different order. If there are over 500 search results they are not sorted.
  • If Google books holds the relevant information the catalogue will also show the following information on the 'Results list' page, though please note that you may need to allow unsecure/unsafe content in your browser to see this (see the known problems page for full details):
    • an image of the book's cover
    • a 'Preview via Google Books' link next to the cover image
    • a 'View full-text via Google Books' link next to the cover image
    Please note that the University Library has no control over the accuracy and availability of Google Books information, and we do not assume liability for material provided by third parties. There is no subscription cost for this service.

Other actions:

  • Revise your search is available at the bottom of the 'Results List' page. See the Refining your search section for more details
  • Refine is available towards the top of the 'Results List' page. See the Refining your search section for more details
  • Tick boxes to the left of each record can be used to select records for subsequent use (or use Select All to select all the records in the Record list). Deselect can be used to deselect records which have been selected. Once you have selected records you can View Selected (one record at a time), Create Subset (a new Results list of just the selected records) or Save the selected records (see below). Please note that there is no option to email records.
  • Save allows you to save records to disk in a variety of formats (see below for details of the EndNote format). To save records to disk select them first by using the tick boxes (or use 'Select All' to select all of the records in the results list) and then use the 'Save' link. Choose the format you want and then use 'Go'. Then use the 'Save selected' button to save the records. Depending on your browser:
    • In FireFox the standard 'Save' pop-up will display.
    • In Internet Explorer, and using formats other than the EndNote, records display in the catalogue window and can be saved as a text (.txt) file on your computer.
    One of the 'Save' formats is EndNote (RefMan RIS Format) for use with reference management options such as EndNote, EndNote Basic (formerly EndNote Web), and RefMan. RIS Format saves data to enable easy importing later. Endnote is available to all academics, researchers and postgraduates, who can have it installed on their UoB PCs. EndNote Basic (formerly EndNote Web) is the web-based version recommended for undergraduates. To find out more about EndNote and EndNote Basic see the EndNote advice page.
    • If you 'Save' as EndNote (RefMan RIS Format), depending on which plug-ins are installed, you may be given the option to save directly into your EndNote 'library', if you have the EndNote software on the computer, or export into EndNote Basic (in Firefox use the 'Export Helper' option to enable this). Alternatively, a 'Save file' popup will display and the records can be saved as a RIS file (.ris) file. This file can later be imported into EndNote (use the Import button and choose the 'Import option' named 'Reference Manager (RIS)'), EndNote Web (Use Collect > Import and choose the 'Import option named ' RefMan (RIS)'), or RefMan.

    Tip: You can also search the Library Catalogue from within EndNote / EndNote Basic (do this by selecting Online Search of 'U Bristol') to make the collection of references easier.

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Holdings

The 'Holdings' page, which is normally accessed using the 'Library name' link on the Results List or the 'Library name' link or 'All copies' link on the Full View of Record, allows you to:

  • Find out where an item is held and what its classmark (shelf location) is.
  • See how many copies there are of an item.
  • Check the loan status of the item, eg 'Standard loan' (this is 28 days for undergraduates and taught postgraduates, and 84 days for research postgraduates and staff).
  • Find out if it is on loan. If it is, the date it is due for return will be displayed.
  • See if it has been reserved and, if so, check how many reservations there are for the item. The information in the bracket after the number of reservations represents (number of reservations / total number of reserveable copies in the branch library)
  • Place a reservation for the item yourself, if it is on loan (you cannot reserve a book which is not on loan), by using the Reserve link (you will be asked to Sign-in using your UOB username and UOB password if you are not already signed-in). Follow the instructions on the screen to order and then confirm your reservation. The Library will notify you when it is ready for you to collect.
  • Place an advance booking for a short loan item by using the Booking link (you will be asked to Sign-in using your UOB username and UOB password if you are not already signed-in).

Please note: On journal 'Holdings' pages the itemised list of volumes may not be a complete list of what is held - see the Vols. in library statement for the full details of which years/volumes are held.

Tip: You can use the classmark to search for other items on the same subject by using Basic Search and selecting the 'Classmark' or 'Shelflist' field to search in.

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Full View of Record

'Full View of Record', which is normally accessed using the 'record number' link (found in the first column, headed '#') on the Results List, allows you to see the full bibliographic records of the titles retrieved from your search and the branches in which they are held. You can change the format of the information displayed on this page from 'Standard' to 'Catalog card', 'Citation', 'Name tags' or 'MARC tags' (the last two of these are detailed cataloguing views) by using the 'Choose format' links at the top and bottom of the record.

  • Use Next Record to view the next record retrieved from your search and Previous Record to go back to the previous record.
  • Use the Library name link to go to the 'Holdings' page to see where the title is located in a particular library, to check if it is on loan and to reserve a copy. Alternatively, use the All copies link to see this information for all libraries holding the item.
  • EBooks will have a View electronic version link and no 'Library names' or 'All copies' links. When you use the 'View electronic version' link it is likely that you will be prompted for your UOB username and password.
  • In the 'Standard' format you may find that titles or names in the record may be links. You can use these links to view related records in the catalogue.
  • The Library info symbol next to a branch library name takes you to details of its address, opening hours etc.
  • If Google books holds the relevant information the catalogue will also show the following information:
    • an image of the book's cover
    • an 'About this book' link next to the cover image
    • a 'View full-text via Google Books' link next to the cover image
    Please note that the University Library has no control over the accuracy and availability of Google Books information, and we do not assume liability for material provided by third parties. There is no subscription cost for this service.

Other actions:

  • Save allows you to save a record to disk in a variety of formats, including EndNote (RefMan RIS Format) for use with the EndNote reference management software. See the Save section in 'Results List' above for more details.

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On order items

Please note that there is a time delay between a Subject Librarian ordering an item and it appearing on the catalogue, as orders are passed to, and then entered on the system by, our book/serials ordering section. Once it is on the catalogue:

  • Use one of the 'Basic Search' 'contains' type searches or 'Advanced Search' to find on order items. On order items cannot be found by using other fields to search in 'Basic search'.
  • When you find an on order item on the catalogue you will find the words On Order on the Holdings page.
  • Once the item has arrived this will change to Cataloguing, and then to Not yet classified. Once an item has been catalogued it can be found by any 'Field to search' within 'Basic search'.
  • On order, Cataloguing and Not yet classified items can be reserved, in which case we will contact you when the item becomes available. For further details see Reserving items that are on loan.

Request Store items

The University Library has a Library Store, which contains lesser-used books and journals.

  • When a Store holdings link on the Results List page is used, the Store request form will automatically open in a new window (unless a Catalogue terminal is being used, or a browser with javascript turned off). This form can be used by members of the University Library to request an item from Store. Readers who are unable to use the online form may ask Issue Desk / Counter staff to submit the form for them.
  • Once the form has opened in the new window you will need to fill in the details of the item and its Store location:
    • Go to the Library Catalogue Results List page which includes this item (this should be in the original window)
    • Use the 'record number' to the left of the title to access the Full View of Record of the item
    • Use the "Store" link to go to the Holdings page, which includes the Store Location (eg Store 176392 or YXP.G.B. Br (these instructions are also on the bottom of the form)
  • Items requested will normally be available within 3-5 working days and can be collected from the branch library specified on the form. An email will be sent to the requestor when the item is ready for collection. Store items can be returned to any staffed branch.

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How do I make a reservation?

Reserve an item currently on loan

You may reserve items that are on loan (you cannot reserve an item which is on the open shelf):

  1. Go to the Holdings page for the item you require by using the 'Library name' link on the 'Results List' page.
  2. Find out if it is on loan. If it is, the date it is due for return will be displayed.
  3. See if it has been reserved and, if so, check how many reservations there are for the item. The information in the bracket after the number of reservations represents (number of reservations / total number of reserveable copies in the branch library)
  4. Use the Reserve link to place a reservation for the item yourself (you will be asked to Sign-in using your UOB username and UOB password if you are not already signed-in).
  5. On the 'Hold request' screen which displays use the Go button to confirm your reservation. If you do not use the Go button the reservation will not be made.
  6. If reservations have already been made for the item, you will join a queue.
  7. The Library will notify you, usually by email to your University email address, when it is ready for you to collect. If you are first in the reservation queue this should be within 7 days of you placing the reservation (though this is dependent on the person with it on loan returning it on time). You can check your Reservations in My Library Account, with an option to delete any that are no longer required.
  8. Remember to Sign-out when you have finished to ensure that subsequent users cannot access your library details.

Booking short loan items in advance

You may book Short Loan Collection (SLC) items in advance, for a particular day and time period in the future:

  1. Go to the Holdings page for the item you require by using the 'Library name' link on the 'Results List' page.
  2. Use the Booking link to book a short loan item for a particular day and time period in the future (you will be asked to Sign-in using your UOB username and UOB password if you are not already signed-in).
  3. From the table provided, select a day and time, and click on Request next to it. If an item has already been booked for a particular slot this will be indicated.
  4. You will be taken to the 'Full View of Record' for the item and a message should display saying "Your advance booking request has been registered".
  5. On the particular day and time period you have booked the item for it should be ready for you to borrow for that period. You can check your 'Booking requests' in My Library Account, with an option to delete any bookings that are no longer required.
  6. Remember to Sign-out when you have finished to ensure that subsequent users cannot access your library details.

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How do I sign-in to the catalogue?

You can Sign-in to the catalogue by using the Sign-in option in the top navigation bar.  Alternatively, you will be prompted to sign-in to the catalogue to use 'My Library Account', make Inter-library loan requests, place a reservation for an item currently on loan, or make an advance booking for a SLC (Short Loan Collection) item.  When you sign-in to the Library Catalogue the top bar of the navigation turns red. To protect your interests, a sign-in expires after 20 minutes of inactivity and will be signed-out, clearing any previous searches and search results.

Students and staff (including honorary staff) - sign-in to the catalogue using your UOB username and UOB password:

  • UOB username : your University of Bristol username, e.g.:
       ab1234 (undergraduates, some postgraduates)
        or
       lwabc (staff, some postgraduates)
  • UOB password : the password you use with your UOB username.

External users (including UOB graduates, former UOB staff, Sconul Access scheme for students and staff from other universities, individual memberships, etc) - sign-in to the catalogue using your Library Number and Library PIN in place of the UOB username and UOB password respectively:

  • Library Number : this number applies only to external users and is given at registration. Help with this is available from Membership Services or the Issue Desk in the Arts & Social Sciences Library.
  • Library PIN : if you do not know your PIN or if your Library PIN exceeds 4 digits please go to Membership Services or the Issue Desk in the Arts & Social Sciences Library.

Important: Remember to Sign-out of the catalogue (by using the Sign-out option in the top navigation) when you have finished to ensure that subsequent users cannot access your library details or make reservation, booking or inter-library loan requests in your name. This will also clear any previous searches and search results. When you are signed-out of the Library Catalogue the top bar of the navigation changes back from red to the original blue.

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What can I do in My Library Account?

My Library Account allows you to look at information about you and your use of the library.

You will need to Sign-in using your UOB username and UOB password to use 'My Library Account'.

The following options are available within 'My Library Account':

  • Loans allows you to look at a list of the items you have on loan and to link to an option to renew these loans. It also tells you the date that items are due for return and if any fines have been incurred to date (note that fines displayed will continue to increase until the item is returned or renewed). You will not be able to renew the loan of items that have been requested by other readers, or short loan items, or renew any loans if you have overdue loans.
  • Loan History List allows you to look at your previous loans, up to a maximum of 100, with advice on how to obtain a full list. Please note that details of items borrowed and returned which are older than 999 days (approx 2 yrs, 10 mths) will be deleted on an ongoing basis.
  • Reservations allows you to look at a list of the items you have reserved and cancel any that are no longer required.
  • Booking Requests provides information about the short loan items you have booked for a time period in the future and an option to cancel any that are no longer required.
  • Cash Transactions allows you to look at your cash transactions including fines and inter-library loan charges.
  • Inter-Library Loan Active Requests gives details of items you have requested from outside the University Library.
  • Inter-Library Loan Total Requests gives details of items you have requested from outside the University Library, plus ones you have received in the past.

Important: Remember to Sign-out of My Library Account when you have finished to ensure that subsequent users cannot access your library details or make reservation, booking or inter-library loan requests in your name.

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How do I request an inter-library loan?

The Inter-Library Loans option in the main navigation can be used to request material which is not available in our libraries or online. You will need to sign-in using your UOB username and UOB password to make a request. This service is available to all academic members of staff, postgraduate and undergraduate students (though undergraduates should check whether they can get an Inter-library loan voucher to pay for the request first - advice can be found in the 'Inter-Library Loans and ILL vouchers' section of 'Getting started' of your subject pages). Non-academic members of staff should talk to the Inter-Library Loans staff or staff in their branch library before making requests.

Further details are given on the Inter-Library Loans service pages on the Library website:

You can track the progress of your inter-library loan requests, and view your past requests, within My Library Account.

Important: Remember to Sign-out of My Library Account when you have finished to ensure that subsequent users cannot access your library details or make reservation, booking or inter-library loan requests in your name.

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