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Catalog

What is the catalog? 

If you’re familiar with libraries of the past, the easiest definition of the library’s catalog is that it is the card catalog for the 21st century. But maybe a better analogy is to say that the library’s catalog is like the combination of an online bookstore and a mail-order catalog. It is simply a way for you to see what the library has to offer, giving you the ability to browse our bookshelves to find items you are interested in checking out.

Find, Reserve & Renew!

Not finding what you need? Below are some tips and tricks to keep in mind when searching the library’s catalog.

Keyword Searches

If you are unfamiliar with library catalog searching, a keyword search may be your most successful. All catalog searches begin as keyword searches. This means that you are searching all of the text that exists in the library’s catalog, including title, author, subject, and notes fields.

For instance, if you do a search for “American pie”, your results will include American Pie the movie, cookbooks with pie recipes, and even CDs that include the song American Pie by Don McLean.

Limiting Searches

So, your keyword search brought back too many results. Don’t worry! You can narrow it down. Your “American Pie” search came back with 48 results, but you know you are only interested in finding the CDs that contain the Don McLean song. Simply click on the MUSIC CD option on the left-hand side of the page to narrow your search results. Now you only have 7 results to scroll through, instead of 48!

How about another example? Say you are looking for books about cancer. You start by searching “cancer” as a keyword. Of course, you get over 200 results. But you know that you are only interested in memoirs about cancer. So you can click on “memoirs” in the tag cloud that appears on the right-hand side of the page. (A tag cloud is a visual depiction of popular keywords, including authors, titles, and subjects. This cloud will help you brainstorm search terms that are directly related to what you are looking for.) Or you could click on “nutrition” and limit your results to only those items that touch on the topic of nutrition in relation to cancer.

Your options for limiting searches are limitless. You can also limit by words in subject, publication date, or location (such as Youth Services or Media Services.)

More Search Options

Looking for a specific edition?
If you are looking for a specific edition of a title, such as the newest edition of a textbook, try searching the catalog using an ISBN search. Simply click on the Classic Catalog link and choose ISBN from the dropdown menu.

Want to limit your search to only those items that are immediately available for checkout?
If you are looking for items that are on the shelves and available for checkout (versus items that are currently checked out to other patrons), click on the Classic Catalog link, enter your search term, and check the box for LIMIT TO AVAILABLE at the top of the screen.

Need to search for books by a specific publisher?
Click on the Classic Catalog link and enter your search term. Then click on the Modify Search button. Enter your search term again and enter the publisher information in the PUBLISHER field.

Browse the “Shelves"

Want to browse for items online, like you would on Amazon.com? Check out our Books, Movies, Music & eMedia pages! If you’re looking for books for kids, try browsing our Kids' site for suggestions. Looking for a teen book recommendation? Check out what our teen blog says about the newest book buzz.

To find out how you can receive email alerts based on your own custom search criteria, try using our Preferred Searches service.

Can’t Find an Item

Can’t find the item you are looking for in the library’s catalog?

1. Check your spelling.
2. Try eliminating punctuation.
3. If your search yields too many results, try narrowing your search by choosing a material type, a publication date, or a subject/tag.
4. Try searching the SearchOhio or OhioLINK catalogs.
5. If the Westerville Library doesn’t own an item, you can always request it from another library. Contact Adult Services. We may be able to find out more information regarding the item that interests you.
6. If you still can’t find what you’re looking for, fill out our Suggest A Purchase form and we will consider ordering the item for you.

Item Status

When searching the catalog, you may come across items that show an unfamiliar “status.” An item’s status may show as any of the following:

Status	Definition
Available	The item is on the shelf and available for reserve or check out. Disclaimer: This does not guarantee that you will receive the item if you place a reserve. We may be unable to locate the item.
Billed	Another patron has been billed for the item, due to failure to return it within 40 days of its due date.
In Transit	The item is being delivered to a patron from another library.
Missing	The library has been unable to find the item. If it is not found within 40 days, it will be removed from the system.
Non-Circ	This item is restricted to in-library use. You must come to the library to view this item.
Off-Site	The item is checked out to a patron from another library.
On Holdshelf	The item is on hold for a patron. That patron will have 4 days to check out the item before it moves on to the next person in line or is placed back on the shelves.
Recently Returned	The item has recently been checked in and may be on a cart awaiting reshelving.