University Library > Guides > How to Use the Catalog

How to Use the Library Catalog: 1. Basic Search

Table of Contents

Accessing Searching

Headings Lists The Item Record

Print/Save/Email Catalog Help

HALcat, the Andersen Library Catalog, contains records of library holdings, including books, government documents, periodicals (journals, magazines and newspapers), VHS recordings, DVDs, CDs, etc. physically contained in the library. The Catalog also has records for some online books, journals, documents and databases which may be used by UW-W students, faculty, and staff. It does not find periodical articles; for that use online databases. This guide focuses on the Basic Search. Please, refer to How to Use the Library Catalog: 2. Additional Features, the Universal Borrowing Tutorial and the Library Catalog Tutorial for assistance with other search options.

Accessing

To access the Library Catalog from any Andersen Library webpage, select Books from the Find menu and click on Andersen Library Catalog. It is also searchable directly from the library homepage, or by clicking on Catalog on the left side of the homepage. For these instructions, start by clicking on Catalog on the left side of the homepage.

To exit the catalog, click on the Andersen Library logo at the top of the page, or the Harold Andersen Library link at the bottom.

Searching

1. Select the Basic Search tab (default option) from among the following by clicking on it on the display:
   • Basic Search
   • Advanced Search
   • Course Reserves
   • Search History
2. Select an option from the menu by clicking on one of the following:
   • Keyword (use and, or, not)
   • Author (Last name, First name)
   • Exact Title
   • Title Keyword (omit a, an, the, la, etc.)
   • Journal Title
   • Subject Keywords
   • Subject Browse
   • Keywords (ranked by relevance)
   • Call Number
3. Type search term(s) in the textbox. The term(s) used depend on the research topic and the type of search being conducted:

   Keyword (use and, or, not) Search Techniques

   To retrieve records with:	Search for:
   various forms of a word, such as sail, sails, sailor or sailing	sail?
   a phrase (articles, pronouns and prepositions are ignored)	"endangered species act"
   more than one word, adjacent or not, use AND	endangered and species
   synonyms or other related words, use OR	england or britain or "united kingdom"
   multiple words, including synonyms, use ( ) around OR phrase	crim? and violen? and (juvenile? or teen?) not urban

   Author Search Techniques

   Type in the last name then the first name. Omit punctuation.

   ibsen henrik

   Exact Title or Title Keyword Search Techniques

   Type in the title of a book, video, etc. Omit initial article.

   catcher in the rye

   Journal Title Search Techniques

   Type in a journal, magazine or newspaper title. Omit initial article.

   new england journal of medicine

   NOTE: The Journal Title search is only guaranteed to find periodicals to which the library has a print subscription. To save time, check for print and online holdings simultaneously using the Citation Linker or Journal Holdings List.

   Subject Keyword Search Techniques

   Type in a Library of Congress Subject Heading or words from one.

   american literature 19th century

   Call Number Search Techniques

   Type in known call number, including punctuation

   PN1997.85 .H42 1987

   Keyword (Ranked by Relevance) Search Techniques

   various forms of a word, such as sail, sails, sailor or sailing	sail?
   a phrase (articles, pronouns and prepositions are ignored)	"endangered species act"
   essential or required terms, use +	+marx +"political science"

4. Click on to run the search to retrieve a list of records for library materials.

Headings Lists

All searches produce a list of results; these fall into two basic categories, the Headings List and the Title List.

Authority Headings List

Clicking on an authors name or a Subject Heading in a catalog record results in an authority headings list. This list does not contain item information, but rather lists headings, which in turn link to lists of library materials that have been assigned that heading. For example, clicking on the subject Jargon (Terminology) returns a list beginning with the following:

d

• Click on Note to display additional information about the heading
• Click on See also to display related subject headings or personal name
• Click on a heading to see a title list of materials using that heading

To see more headings in the same list, click on either the Previous or Next tab, or on a page number.

To return to the Headings List from another screen click on Headings List.

To start another search click on New Search.

Title List

Keyword (use and, or, not), Keyword (Ranked by Relevance), Title Keyword, Exact Title, Journal Title and Subject Keyword searches result in list of items held in the library, arranged in a pre-determined order:

• Exact Title/Journal Title - alphabetical order by title
• Title Keyword/Keyword (use and, or, not)- chronological by publication date (newest first)
• Keyword (ranked by relevance) - ranked by the relative frequency, location and proximity of the search terms

It is possible to change the order by choosing a different option from the Sort by menu.

The holdings statement (call number, status and location) of each single item is listed under its title, author and date. If the item consists of several volumes or copies, you will be instructed to click on the title to get the holdings information.

To find out more information about an item click on the title.

Write down an item's title, location and call number before going to find it

To see more headings in the same list, click on either the Previous or Next tab, or on a page number.

To return to the title list from another screen click on Titles. 

To start new search click on the Search tab. 

The Item Record

The Record View of an item record is displayed first. This contains facts such as the author, title, publisher and place of publication. Also included are descriptive subjects which are clickable links to lists of subject headings.

• Title - The title of the work.
• Author - The name of the primary or principal author of the work
• Publisher - The place of publication, publisher and date of publication of the work
• ISBN - Unique International Standard Book Number assigned to every book published in the last 30 years
• Format - The format of the work (book, nonmusical sound recording, etc.)
• Subjects - The Library of Congress, or other, Subject Headings assigned to the work
• Held at and Database - The name of the library who's catalog is being searched (since the catalog can be used to search other UW system libraries, this can be very useful information)
• Location - Area in library where item is shelved.
• Call Number - Item's shelf location. For Internet items, a link is provided in the Linked Resources field. Periodicals are shelved alphabetically by title, so do not usually have call numbers.
• Status - Indicates item availability. "Non-Circulating" indicates an item must be used in the library

Click on the Staff View button to display more details about the item in MARC format.

To start new search, click on Search at the top or bottom of the page.

Printing, Saving & Emailing

To do several records at once, start by marking the box next to each title on the Title list.

Click on Print. The print menu will automatically pop up. There are no HALcat features for saving or emailing. To save, cancel the print menu and use the browser's save option. To email, attached the saved document to an email message.

Help

To read online instructions on how to use the catalog click on Help at any time while in the catalog.

For assistance using additional catalog features, read How to Use the Library Catalog: 2. Additional Features.

For assistance, contact a reference librarian at (262) 472-1032, by email or chat or in person at the Library's Reference Desk.

Last Revised: MS - 11/12/2009