SEARCHING

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About the UNC-CH Libraries Catalog

The UNC-CH Libraries Catalog is a database containing bibliographic records for the materials held by the UNC-CH libraries. Each record is made up of different fields containing pertinent information about the material, including its title, author, publisher, subject headings, and so on. These fields are searchable through two search interfaces, the Basic Catalog Search and the Advanced Catalog Search.

The Catalog also serves as a gateway to other state and regional library catalogs. From the Basic Catalog Search screen, you can choose to search one of the other libraries in the Triangle Research Library Network (TRLN) including Duke University, North Carolina State University (NCSU), or North Carolina Central University (NCCU). To search these and other library catalogs simultaneously, use the Advanced Catalog Search.

SEARCHING

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Basic Catalog Search

The Basic Catalog Search screen lets you search for library materials in several different ways. How you enter your query depends on the type of search you want to perform.

1. Choose the type of search you would like to perform from the drop-down menu on the right side of the screen.

  • Keyword. Keyword is the default search type. A keyword search looks for the word, combination of words, or phrase you typed anywhere in the record. It is the most useful search to perform if you do not know the exact title of a work or the exact subject heading.

      • Example: attention deficit disorder (finds records containing the phrase attention deficit disorder)

      Example: children and violence and television

  • Title. To search by title, it is necessary to enter the exact title of the work for which you are searching.

      • Example: magic mountain (finds The Magic Mountain by Thomas Mann)

  • Author. To search for a particular author, it is important to enter the author's last name first, followed by their first initial or name (no comma).

      • Example: gordimer nadine (finds a list of works written by Nadine Gordimer)

  • Subject Heading. To search by subject heading, it is necessary to know the specific Library of Congress or MESH subject heading.

      • Example: women in advertising (finds works under the subject of women in advertising)

  • Number. It is also possible to search by call number, ISBN, ISSN, and other types of numbers.

      • Example: HM276.L57 (finds the work, The End of Liberalism by Theodore J. Lowi, with the call number HM276.L57)

2. Enter your query into the search box.

NOTE: The catalog is not case sensitive.

3. Under Optional Search Limits, use the drop-down menus to limit your search to a:

  • particular type of material (such as book or journal/magazine)
  • particular language (such as Italian or Slovenian), or
  • specific date or date range (such as 2000 or 1930-1939)


    • NOTE: You can only limit author, title, subject, and keyword searches.

4. Choose the library catalog you wish to search (UNC-CH Libraries is the default)

5. Click on the Search button to run your query.

  • When you perform a keyword search and your query results in a single record, the full record is displayed. If your query results in more than one record, you will receive a list of brief records. If your query does not find any records, the catalog will return a page indicating that "No matches found in UNC-CH Libraries Catalog."

  • When you perform a title, author, subject heading, or number search, the catalog will return a Search Results page. This page indicates the number of records that matched your search. If your query does not find any records, the catalog will return a page indicating that "No matches found in UNC-CH Libraries Catalog." Depending upon the type you are given options for revising your search.

6. If your keyword search does not find any records, use Revise Search to return to the search screen or consult Reference for assistance.

If your author or title search does not find any records, you may be given alternative searches that might produce results. You can submit one of the alternative searches or enter a new search. If no alternative searches are found, your search is dropped into an index screen.

If your subject heading search does not find any records, your search is dropped into an index screen.


Types of Searches

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Keyword Search

Keyword searching is the default search in both the Basic Catalog Search [link] and the Advanced Catalog Search [link].

Use a keyword search to find materials when you don't know the exact title or the exact subject heading.

Keyword Search Tips:

  • Keyword searching finds the word or phrase you typed anywhere in the record. This differs from author, title, and subject searching where only the respective fields are searched.


  • Example: shakespeare (finds works that have shakespeare in the title, author, subject, publisher, or note fields)


  • A Keyword search gives you the flexibility to narrow or broaden your search using Boolean logic, field qualifiers, proximity operators, and truncation.


  • Example: au shakespeare and ti romeo


Limiting Keyword Searches

Boolean Operators

The Boolean Operators' "and," "or" and "not" are used to combine words or phrases. The operators can be used to limit or broaden a search.		To narrow a search use:

and - both terms must be in the record

not - this term must not be in the record

To broaden search use:

or - either term can be in the record		Examples:

children and advertising

windows not microsoft

film or cinema or motion pictures
Proximity Operators

Proximity operators are similar to the "and" Boolean operator, but allow you to narrow a search more precisely.		Near specifies how many words may intervene between your search terms. Word order does not matter.

Within specifies that one term will follow another within a given number of words. Word order is important when using this operator.		Examples:

postmodern n3 literature

environmental n4 scan

origin w2 species

southern w4 folklore
Field Qualifier

A field is a section of the catalog record. Limiting asearch to a particular field will make your results more specific.		Use these two-letter codes in a keyword search to restrict the search to that field:

ti=title
au=author
su=subject heading
pu=publisher/place/date
nt=words in notes

*Note that multiple fields can be combined with Boolean operators in a keyword search.		Examples:

ti body artist
au delillo
ti dying animal and au roth
su economic impact
ti globalization and su economic impact
pu university of north carolina press and pu 1997
nt translation and au paz
Nesting

Nesting enables you to combine several search statements into one search.

Use parentheses to clarify the relationship between the combined search terms.		Examples:architecture and (rome or roma)

history and (tattoos or body art)

(teenagers or adolescents) and (gangs or crime)
Truncation Symbol

A truncation symbol allows you to search for different word endings or plurals

Use the ? at the end of a word to broaden your search and find variations or the pluralization of a word.

*Note that truncating a word too soon may produce unintended search results.		Examples:

Environment?

Finds environment, environments, environmental, environmentalist, etc.

Car?

Finds cars, carpet, carmel, carrot, cartoon, etc.


Title Search

Use the Title Search to find specific titles of materials in a library's collection.

To perform a Title Search at the Basic Catalog Search screen:

1. Select Title from the drop-down menu under Select Search Type.

2. Enter the title exactly, omitting initial articles

3. Click on the Search button, or press Enter.

Title Search Tips

  • Delete all initial articles (such as "a," "an," and, "the", and their foreign equivalents).


  • Enter subsequent articles that are embedded among or between words.

    Example: short history of the world (instead of "a short history of the world")


  • If you do not know the exact title, use keyword to search for words in the title field.


Author Search

Use the Author Search to find materials by a particular author.

To perform an Author Search at the Basic Catalog Search screen:

1. Enter the authors' last name, followed by their first name or

2. Select Author from the drop-down menu

3. Click on the Search button, or press the Enter key.

Author Search Tips

  • Authors may be an individual, several individuals, a corporate author or institutional authors.


  • If an author's first or last name is entered incompletely, right hand truncation will take place and a browseable list of catalog records closely matching the truncated author's name entered in the search box will result.

    Example: au betts doris


    • Example: au sas institute

  • If you do not know the exact author, use keyword to search for words in the author field.


Subject Heading Search

Subject headings describe a work's content and give access to materials when individual items are not known. Librarians assign subject headings using Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) such as United States-History or Medical Subject Headings (MESH) such as Human Anatomy - Research.

Use a Subject Heading Search to find information about specific subjects, including information about individuals.

To perform a Subject Search at the Basic Catalog Search screen:

1. Enter the subject heading.

2. Select Subject from the drop-down menu.

3. Click on the Search button, or press the Enter key.

Subject Heading Search Tips

  • A Subject Heading search looks for your word or phrase only in the Subject Heading fields of the record.

    Example: United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865


  • By entering a person's last name first in a search, the Subject Search may be used to retrieve information about, but not by an individual.

    Example: vonnegut kurt (finds materials ABOUT Kurt Vonnegut.)


  • When entering a subject heading, replace punctuation with a space.


  • If you do not know the exact subject heading, use keyword search for words in the subject heading fields, then look at a record to identify the appropriate subject heading.


Number Searches

Use a numeric search to find material by its call number or other numeric identifier. Here is a brief explanation of the number searches available in the UNC-CH online catalog:

Call Number

To search for a particular item by its call number, type the full call number.

Example: A numeric search for the LC call number PQ4732.S46 C613 1958 will retrieve Italo Svevo's Confessions of Zeno.

Example: A numeric search for the National Library of Medicine call number QT 104 S549 1974 will retrieve Human Anatomy and Physiology; A Cellular Approach by David Shepro.

Things to Keep in Mind:

  • Punctuation and spacing are important and may vary. If leaving a space does not work, try removing the space.


  • To find a list of books beginning with the same call number (and, therefore, on a similar subject), enter a truncated call number.


ISBN (International Standard Book Number)

Most books have their own unique ISBN. Enter this 10-digit number without spaces or hyphens. You may truncate the number.

Example: An ISBN search on 0262193736 will retrieve the book Internet Dreams, by Mark Stefik, published by MIT Press.

The first four digits of the ISBN correspond to the publisher. You can also search for works by a particular publisher by entering the first four digits of the ISBN.

Example: An ISBN search on 0262 will retrieve all books published by MIT Press.




ISSN (International Standard Serial Number)

Most journals (serials) have their own unique ISSN. Enter this eight-digit number separating the two sets of four digits with a hyphen or a space. You may truncate the number.

Example: An ISSN search on 0022-5037 will retrieve the Journal of the History of Ideas.




OCLC Number

OCLC is a cataloguing service used by the library. It assigns a number to each new bibliographic record that it produces. Enter the number exactly as it appears in the MARC record. You would only perform this search if you knew the number of the item you were searching for. You may truncate the number.

Example: An OCLC # search on 99010131 will retrieve The Practice of Programming by Brian W. Kernighan and Rob Pike.




LC Card Number

LCCN (Library of Congress Control Number) The Library of Congress control numbers are assigned by the Library of Congress and printed in the books by publishers. It usually consists of two digits, a hyphen, and the remaining digits. When searching for an LCCN, always type all eight digits without the hyphen.

LCCN Search Example:

Printed as: 95-20785
Search as: 9520785

When the segment after the hyphen of an LCCN is less then 6 digits, fill in additional leading zeroes for that segment when replacing the hyphen.

LCCN Search Example:

Printed as: 95-27
Search as: 95000027




Government Document Number

A Government Document Number is alpha-numeric classification number assigned by the Superintendent of Documents. To search by Government document number, enter the call number exactly as it is written, including all punctuation and spacing.

Example: Y 4.B 85/2:S.HRG.106-717 retrieves




Technical Report Number

A Technical Report Number is an alpha-numeric device assigned by the issuing agency, such as the National Technical Information Service (NTIS), to number its technical reports, much like a series number assigned by a commercial publisher to its series publications. Some numbers are formulated according to the Standard Technical Report Number (STRN), some are nonstandard.

Type in the technical number as presented on the item, keeping spaces that occur after letters and retaining punctuation.

Technical Report Number Search Example:

nsf 80-61
gao/rced-91-149




OPTIONAL SEARCH LIMITS

It is possible to limit your search further using the Optional Search Limits. You can use the limits to specify the type of material you are searching for, the language of the material, the publication date of the material, or all of the above.

NOTE: You can only limit author, title, subject, and keyword searches.

By material

Select the the appropriate type of material from the drop-down menu.

Example: To limit your search to journals, select Journals/Magazines

By language

Select the appropriate language from the drop-down menu.

Example: To search for the materials in Spanish, select Spanish from the list.

By date

Select the appropriate date or range of dates from the drop-down menu.

Example: To search for materials published in the nineties, select 1990-1999.




Advanced Catalog Search

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The Advanced Query gives you the ability to construct sophisticated keyword searches and search multiple library catalogs simultaneously.

1. Under Select Catalog(s) to Search, click the box next to the library or libraries you would like to search (UNC-CH Libraries is the default).

2. At this point you can either use the search boxes in the Create Your Search section to combine and limit your keywords to specific fields or you can type your search directly into the Your Search box located just below.

Create Your Search Tips:

  • In the Create Your Search boxes, type the words or phrases that describe what you are trying to find (one word or phrase per box).


  • Use the drop-down menu(s) to limit your words and phrases to a particular field or leave it on the keyword default (the keyword default searches the entire record).


  • As you type, the search will appear in the Your Search box below with the appropriate Boolean operators and field qualifiers. Nested boolean statements and truncation symbols can also be used to form your search.

3. If you would prefer not to create your own search, you may type your search directly in to the Your Search box.

Example: au vonnegut and ti breakfast

4. Under Optional Search Limits, use the drop-down menus to limit your search to a:

  • particular type of material (such as book or journal/magazine)

  • particular language (such as Italian or Slovenian), or

  • specific date or date range (such as 2000 or 1930-1939)

5. Click on the Search button to run your search.

  • If your search results in a single record, the catalog will return a full record display of the record.

  • If your search results in more than one record, you will receive a list of brief records.

  • If your search does not find any records, the catalog will return a page indicating that "No matches found in UNC-CH Libraries Catalog." At this point, you can click on the "Revise Search" link to return to the Advanced Catalog Search screen and revise your search, or consult reference for assistance.




SEARCH DISPLAYS

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Search Results

When you perform a title, author, subject heading, or number search, the catalog will return a Search Results page. This page indicates the number of records that matched your search. If the search results in no matches, you can click on Revise Search to revise your search or contact a reference library for assistance.

If your search resulted in matched records, this page will provides access to additional information and links to individual records.


 

Brief Records

When you perform a Keyword search, the catalog returns a Brief Records page. This page indicates the number of records that matched your search. If the search results in no matches, you can click on Revise Search to revise your search or contact a reference library for assistance.

If your search resulted in one or more matches, the page provides a list of records that display the title, author and publication date of the item, followed by the library location, call number and status of the item. Each item is hyper-linked to a full record.

If your search results in 2000 or fewer records, you can use the sort feature to sort your results by author, title, subject, type of material, or publication date.


Full Records

From the Brief Records screen, you can choose to view the Full Records results list. The Full Records list provides a full description of each of the items matching your search From this list you can click on the link naming the catalog you searched, for example UNC-CH Libraries, to get a single Full Record Display.


Full Record Display

A full record display provides additional information about the item, including the subject headings that are hyper-linked to the subject heading, a description of the item, and other related information including the ISBN or ISSN.

From the Full Record Display, you can display the record in MARC Format.


MARC Format

The MARC format display allows you to view the entire MAchine Readable Cataloging (MARC) record for a title. This detailed format is used by libraries to describe each record in a standardized way.


Sort Search Results

If your search results in 2000 or fewer records, you can use the sort feature to sort your results by author, title, subject, type of material, or publication date.


Summary Search Results

When you perform an Advanced Catalog Search, the catalog returns a Summary Search Results page. The Summary Search Results page reports the number of records identified in each of the catalogs you selected on the Advanced Catalog Search page.


Merge Search Results

If more than one catalog was searched, you can merge the results from each catalog or display the results from each catalog separately.


Download Results

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Download Record

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SERVICES

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Borrower Services

Faculty, students, staff, and other registered library users of the UNC-CH Libraries may use Borrower Services to:

  • View and renew materials you have checked out
  • View and cancel your hold requests
  • Change your PIN number

To access your borrower information you login using your 9-digit PID or library card number and your PIN. For security reasons this information is encryted and displays as a series of asterisks.
If you are students, facutly member, or staff member at UNC-Chapel Hill enter your PID (UNC OneCard Personal Identification Number) and PIN number (initially set as the last four digits of your PID). Do not enter spaces or dashes found in your card number.

If you have been issued a library card by one of the UNC-Chapel Hill Libraries enter your library card number and PIN number (contact the library which issued your library card to obtain your PIN number). Do not enter spaces or dashes found in your card number.

Remember: If you are viewing this information from a shared machine, be sure to close the browser window containing your borrower record when you are done.








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