Finding a Book Using the Library Catalog
Milne Library has a wide variety of books for users to browse and check out! Our collection includes:
- Academic books on several subjects such as biology, AI, literature, women's studies, trans studies, politics, history, theatre, and much more
- Fiction
- Children's books
- Graphic novels and manga
- Art and photography books
Users can search our collection electronically by using the Library Catalog. Below are steps for accessing and searching the library catalog to find books.
Step 1: Got to the Milne Library website Home Page. Underneath the search bar, select the "Advanced Search" link.
Step 2: Once you are on the Advanced Search page, make sure you select "Library Catalog" under the "search for" options.
Step 3: Next, enter your keywords in the search boxes. If you need a refresher on keywords and Boolean operators, you can check out this tutorial video.
Step 4: After you hit enter on your keyboard or select the "search" link in the right bottom corner, scroll down the results list and to the left-hand side of the results there is a list of filters that will help you narrow your search results. In this list of filters, under availability select "held by library" if you wish to see only print books in the search results.
Step 5: Once you filtered by "held by library," your search results should only contain print books in the library. Select a title that looks relevant to your topic. In the record that pops up, look for the call number, a series of letters and numbers, which acts as an address for the book and will help you find the book on the shelf.
Step 6: Once you take note of the call number, check out the floor plans to see which floor the book is on. Go to the correct shelf that denotes the correct section the call number is located in. If you need a reminder on how to read call numbers to go the "Reading Call Numbers" box below.
Step 7: Once you have retrieved the book from the shelf, take the book to the circulation desk on the first floor of the library and check it out. Students can check out as many as 99 books at a time and have the books for an entire semester before they are due back to the library.
Reading Call Numbers
Library of Congress Call Numbers
The Library of Congress Classification System is a comprehensive system designed for large library collections. The system uses a combination of letters and numbers to organize materials by subject.
RC On the spine of the book, the call number reads vertically
86.7
.F66
2014
In the Milne Library catalog record, the call number in the example given above appears on a single line, with spaces between the parts:
RC 86.7 .F66 2014
In LC Classification, the first letter of the call number (R) indicates the general subject area, in this case, medicine. The second letter, if present, indicates the subsection in the subject of medicine, in this case, internal medicine.
How Are Books with LC Call Numbers Shelved?
Read the call number line by line: Read the first line in alphabetical order: A, B , BF, C D. L, LA, R, RC…
RC
86.7 Read the second line as a whole number (in this case, includes a decimal number).
.F66 In the third line, read the letter alphabetically and the number as a decimal even if there is no decimal point. Call numbers could include another line like this.
2014 2014 represents the year of publication.
Shelf order:
RC RC RC RC
86.7 86.7 86.7 86.7
C373 C78 .F66 H32
1982 1976 2014 2000
Do not forget to read the third line as a decimal number.
Location Abbreviations:
These abbreviations appear before the call number, for example,
REF
RC
86.7
C373
1982
Child Coll. Children’s Collection, 2nd floor
YA Young Adult, 2nd floor
EMC (K-12, Syll., Curr.) SB floor
EMC Media (CDs, DVDs,) SB floor
Map See Reference Desk for help
NYS New York State, SB floor
OVERSIZE Oversize Book Room, 3rd floor
REF Reference 1st and SB floors
Floor Plans
Milne Library First Floor
Milne Library Second Floor
Milne Library Third Floor
Library Basement
