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LibrarySearch FAQs

 

How do I find a book on my reading list? 

Search for the book you need.  If there is more than one edition and/or an electronic copy of the book, LibrarySearch will group these together into one result.  Click on the View n versions on the right of the title to see all editions.  Locate the edition you need, then choose Find & Request to find out where it is located, the classmark and if it is available to borrow.

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How do I find journals? 

The quickest way to find a journal is to search for the title, then on the left-hand side of your results, choose Journals underneath the Resource Type heading.  Alternatively, you can choose Advanced Search and select Journal Title from the first drop down menu.  If online access is available, click on View Online to open the eLibrary window.  If you require the print version, click on Find & Request to find out which library holds the journal and the available years.

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How do I find an eBook? 

Enter some keywords from the author and/or title of the eBook you require.  Before, clicking Search, choose eBooks from the All Library Collections drop down menu.  If an electronic book is available, click on View Online and Open source in a new window to view the text.  You may be asked to enter your username and password.

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How can I see which books I have on loan? 

If you are a student or a member of staff at Cardiff University, click on Sign In CU Staff/Students and enter your computer username and password.  Click on My Library Account to see a list of the books you have on loan.  Here you can also see any reservations you have on books and any fees you may owe from fines.

If you do not have a Cardiff University computer username and password, click on Barcode/PIN at the top right of the screen and you will automatically be re-directed to the Voyager library catalogue to log in and view your account.

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How do I renew my books? 

If you are a member of staff or a student at Cardiff University, click on Sign In CU Staff/Students and enter your computer username and password.  Click on My Library Account.  On the right-hand side of the list of your current loans, click on the Renew link.

Remember to check the Due Date column to find out when your book is now due.  If the due date has not changed, then it has not been possible to renew the book.  This could be because another person has reserved the book or you have fines exceeding £10.  You can contact the Library to find out more information.

If you do not have a Cardiff University username and password, click on Barcode / PIN at the top right of the screen.  You will automatically be re-directed to the Voyager Library Catalogue to sign in and view your library account.

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How do I reserve a book? 

If you are a student or a member staff at Cardiff University, select Sign In CU Staff/Students at the top right of screen.  Then underneath the search result for the book, click on Find & Request.  If the book you require is out of the library, select the + button next to the library where the book is located.  Under the heading Reservation Options select Request.  This will take you to the Reservation tab where if you select Reserve a hold will be placed on the book.  If there is more than one copy, choose a specific copy from the drop down menu or leave it on Any Copy.  Then click Reserve.

If you do not have a Cardiff University username and password, click on Barcode/PIN at the top right of the screen and you will automatically be re-directed to the Voyager library catalogue to sign in.  You can then search for and reserve the book using Voyager.

Please note: reservations can only be placed if the book is on loan to someone else.

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How do I make an Inter-Library Loan request (Cardiff University staff and postgraduate research students only)? 

The link for staff and postgraduate research students to place an Inter-Library Loan request is located at the bottom of every LibrarySearch webpage.  Selecting the Inter-Library Loan Request (Staff and PRGs only) will take you to the Voyager library page to sign in and place the request.

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What is ArticleSearch? 

ArticleSearch helps you to find journal articles and other publications on your subject.  To have full use of this service you will need to Sign In with your Cardiff University computer username and password.

The default search option is QuickSearch. QuickSearch looks for your keywords amongst a pre-selected collection of journals determined by the supplier of LibrarySearch and shows only those articles to which the library has full text access.  The QuickSearch journal collection is continually growing, but does not offer a comprehensive search of Cardiff University's full journal collection.  

Select an appropriate subject from the drop down menu next to the search box to search across a range of subject databases for journal articles and other publications.  Online access to the full text of the items listed in the results of your subject search may or may not be available.  If there is no full text available online, click on Check for print and click Go to search for a print copy in LibrarySearch.

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How do I export LibrarySearch results to EndNote? 

LibrarySearch results can be transferred to EndNote Web.  You will need to set up an EndNote Web account by going to www.myendnoteweb.com and selecting Sign Up for an account.

To transfer individual results to EndNote Web, click on the Find & Request, Details, or Reviews & Tags tab beneath the search result.  Then click on Send to in the top right-hand corner of the window which opens.  Choose EndNote Web from the drop down menu.  EndNote Web will automatically open in a new window.  Login to your EndNote Web account and you will see a message confirming the result has transferred. Click on My References in EndNote Web to see the result in your unfiled folder.

To export multiple results to EndNote Web, Sign In to LibrarySearch.  Then add the items you require to your e-Shelf by clicking on the star icon next to them.  When you have finished, select the e-Shelf link at the top right of the screen.  Select the results you want to transfer.  Ensure Push to EndNote Web is selected in the Push to drop down menu and select Go.

If you would like to transfer your references from EndNote Web to EndNote, open your EndNote Library, then under EndNote Web in the left hand panel, select Configure and enter your email address and EndNote Web password.  Now under EndNote Web in the panel on the left-hand side, click on Transfer.  Ensure Transfer references from Web to Desktop is selected and then click on Transfer.  Your EndNote Web references will now appear in your EndNote Library.

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How can I save my searches so I can re-use them later? 

Sign In to LibrarySearch.  Complete your search and select Save Search which can be found at the bottom of the left hand column. Enter a ‘Search name’ to define your search.  Then select Save.

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How do I create an alert? 

Creating an alert will mean that you are emailed when new results are found that match your search, for example when new articles are added to ArticleSearch.  Updates will run at scheduled times to see if there are any new items matching your search and you will be emailed the results.

To create an alert you will need to Sign In to LibrarySearch.  Complete your search and select Save search which can be found at the bottom of the left hand column. Enter a ‘Search name’ to define your search.  Select Save & alert and enter an email address that you would like new results sent to.

Alternatively you can set up alerts for previously saved searches by going to My Library Account, the Searches tab, selecting Saved searches & alerts and selecting Update.

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Where do I find my saved searches and alerts? 

To view your saved searches and alerts, Sign In to LibrarySearch and go to My Library Account. Select the Searches tab and select Save searches & alerts.  Here you can click on Update to edit the alert, for example changing the email address they will be sent to, and Delete any alerts that you no longer require.

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How do I create tags? 

Creating a tag allows you to organise items together under an appropriate heading or ‘tag’, for example organising items into groups of similar titles, similar subject areas or texts relevant to a particular year group/course.

To create a tag you will need to Sign In to LibrarySearch.  Under the item which you would like to tag, select Reviews & Tags.  This will show you a list of the item’s current tags and give you the option to Add New Tag.  Selecting this will open a new window where you can create a new tag by typing the term you would like to associate with the item into the text box (max. 35 characters). Alternatively, you can associate the item with an existing tag which you have previously created. Tags can be viewed and used by all users.

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How do I view tags created by others? 

To view tags created by other users, you need to Sign In to LibrarySearch.  Once you have searched for an item select Reviews & Tags under the item.  This will reveal the list of tags associated with this item. Selecting one of these tags will take you to the list of items associated with it.  Alternatively, if you select the Tags tab at the top of the page you can see the most recent and most popular tags or use the search box.

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How do I find a database I want to search? 

To find and then search a specific database you will need to Sign In to LibrarySearch and then select Databases at the top of the page.  By clicking the All databases tab you will see an alphabetical list of databases which can be browsed to find the database you are looking for.  Alternatively use a keyword search to locate the database you are looking for using the search boxes. Selecting Show info will give you a little bit of information about the database.  Clicking the database title will take you to their homepage where you can begin a search.

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How do I select and search databases in LibrarySearch? 

You can search multiple, selected databases using LibrarySearch.  To select these databases you will need to Sign In to LibrarySearch and then click on Databases at the top of the page.  You can then look through the databases alphabetically, use a keyword search, or use a category search to find databases relevant to your subject area.  Once you have found the databases you wish to search, select the tick-boxes next to the database titles.  You can look at your list of selected databases at any point by using the Selected databases tab.  Once you have selected all the databases that you want to search click Selection Completed.  This will then take you back to the LibrarySearch search box, with the drop down menu on the right now showing that it will be searching ‘Selected databases.’  Use a keyword search to find a specific article, related articles or publications from your pre-selected databases.  If the university has an online subscription to the journal article you require it will state ‘Full text available.’  To view this click View Online.  A new window will open where you should select Go and you will be taken to the available full text.  If there is no full text available online, click on Check for print and click Go to search for a print copy using LibrarySearch.

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How do I review a book/journal/article? 

Sign In to LibrarySearch and click on Reviews & Tags underneath the item you wish to write about.  This will then give you the option to Post Your Review. Here you are able to rate the item on a scale of 1 -10, 10 being the highest score.  You can add a few words about the item, for example how useful it was for a piece of coursework – anything that you think other users might find helpful when selecting titles.  Once you have completed your rating and comments, you can choose whether to have your name appear next to your review and tick to agree to allow the Library to use your review in LibrarySearch.

During the Autumn semester, the Library will be running a competition for those who submit item reviews to LibrarySearch.  Anyone submitting a review will be entered into a draw to win a prize.

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How do I read reviews of an item? 

Sign In to LibrarySearch and select Reviews & Tags under the item to view any reviews that have been written about the item.

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