Online Catalog

The Online Catalog is an electronic index to the library collections. Catalog terminals are located on each floor of the library. The catalog is also accessible on the Internet.

The catalog is a database searchable by author, title, subject, keyword and more. Once a search is performed, the results provide a record for each item owned by the library. The record provides the location of the item including the collection and floor of the building. Records are divided into searchable fields.

Use the author, title, and subject searches when the author's last name, exact title, or correct subject heading is known. These are direct, alphabetical searches, so they return an alphabetical list that is easy to browse.

The keyword search offers the ability to combine multiple search terms in a more complex search. Use the keyword search when the exact subject heading is unknown or the topic consists of multiple concepts.

Materials in the Boyden Library are organized on the shelf by subject according to the Dewey Decimal Classification System, a numerical system. Labels on library materials display this "call number", which will also include some letters.

Once an item is identified in the catalog and the individual record for the item is visible on the screen, the complete call number (all numbers and letters) should be recorded. Links to maps of the three floors of the library are part of the Virtual Tour and provide assistance in locating items by their call number.