Resource Sharing Has a New Face

You already know that our online catalog is the place to look to see if we own the book, DVD, or CD you are seeking, either in hard copy or digitally. Using the “Articles & More” option, you can even find full-text articles from journals and reference books. And you probably know that you can click the catalog’s SEARCH PARTNER LIBRARIES link to request items from nine large Chicago area libraries. But did you know that you can use WorldCat to search for and request items from libraries all across the U.S.? Once you locate an item you want to borrow in WorldCat, simply click the REQUEST ITEM button and fill out the form. Our Interlibrary Loan staff will try their best to find a willing lender. For more details, please visit our Interlibrary Loan policy page.

If you haven’t tried WorldCat lately, you will be surprised to see its new Google-ish  interface. Once you enter your search terms, you will see facets on the left side of the screen that you can use to refine your search, just like you can in our own catalog. The new interface is mobile friendly, so feel free to use it on any device. And WorldCat now connects to our catalog so you will see immediately if we own an item and whether it is on shelf or checked out. You can even place a hold on it, right from WorldCat.

If you prefer, you can still request Interlibrary Loan items by clicking the Request an Interlibrary Loan link in the lower right corner of every page of our online catalog and filling in our form. And don’t forget about our Suggest a Purchase form for items published or released very recently. Books don’t become eligible for Interlibrary Loan until six months after publication or AV materials until one year after release.

One way or another, let us know what you want to read, view or listen to and we’ll do our best to get it for you.