Video: Getting Books

Learn how to find books in the library buildings.

• Transcript

  Once you've found a book in the catalog that you're interested in, click on the book's title to see more information on the full record page.

  The “Where to Find It” section of the record page will contain all the information you need to get the book. 

  Many of our books are e-books, and you can read them right in your browser. Just click on “View Resource Online” link. You may be asked to log in with your Unity ID and password, especially if you are off campus. 

  The records for print titles will show you if a book is currently available and the library where it is located. 

  If you don’t mind waiting, you can click the “Request Item” link to have the book pulled from the shelf for you to pick up at any of our libraries. Items are usually ready to be picked up within 24 to 48 hours.

  If you want the book sooner than that, however, here is how you can go about getting it yourself. 

  First, you need to make note of its specific location. Most commonly, print items will be in one of three locations: in the bookBot at Hunt Library, on Reserves at a library service desk, or on open shelves at any of our libraries. 

  Getting an item from the bookBot is very simple. 

  If an item is in the BookBot, click the Request Item link from the book’s record page. You will next be asked for your preferred pick-up location. Items from the bookBot will be ready at the Ask Us desk at Hunt library within one hour of request, or at another branch in one business day. 

  If a book is listed in the Textbook Collection or On Reserve, you will find it at the service desk of the library or libraries listed in the record. These items check out for a limited time - usually 2 hours.

  Finally, an item may be listed as being in the stacks, which means on an open shelf where you can retrieve it yourself.

  To do this, you will need to make note of the floor the item is on, and its call number. The call number is a set of letters and numbers which identifies the book and where you can find it on the shelf. I’m looking for the call number F217 .B6 G73 2003

  Once you're on the correct floor of the library, look for call number ranges posted at the end of each row of books, listing the first and last call numbers in that row. 

  To find the row that contains your book, first look at the letters at the beginning of the call number. 

  These are organized alphabetically. So in this example, we want to find the F section. 

  When you are in the right section of letters, then look at the next number. The number of the book we want is F217. Here is the appropriate aisle, since F217 falls between F215 and F229.

  Looking at the call number tags on the book spines, find the F217s, to get to the general location of the book. 

  If there aren’t many books on this topic, you may be able to find the book without having to look at the following letters and numbers. However, if this is a popular topic, you will have to read further down the call number. 

  The alphanumeric codes after the period are read in sequence and the numbers are treated as decimal numbers. So, .B6 appears after .A65, and .B6 G73 is between .B6 D80 and .B6 J6

  And here is our book! 

  We know this can be a bit confusing, so if you have any trouble locating the book, ask a librarian for help. We're available via chat, phone, text, or in person.