How To

• Catalog Topics
• Search the Catalog
• Use Call Numbers
• Advanced Search Tips
• Find Course Reserves

• My Account Topics
• Save My Reading History
• Save My Preferred Searches
• Renew Materials
• Request Books
• Request Articles

• Other Topics
• Write & Cite

Search the Catalog

To search the Catalog for books, DVDs, periodicals, theses and more

• Type the keyword you want to find. For example:
• Design
• Video Games
• Coco Chanel
• Search by
• Title
• Author
• Topic

Tips

• Make sure to spell correctly
• If no results appear, try another search term
• Make your search term(s) plural
• Search for synonyms
• Use just one or two search terms instead of a long string of words
• There is no need to use punctuation marks or capitals

Search Results

Grouping

Keyword search results are usually grouped by relevance to bring the most likely titles to the top of the list. Each group represents a similar level of relevance and results are sorted within the group by date or title. To get an ungrouped result set, use boolean operators to form a complex query.

 Most relevant titles 

 Highly relevant titles 

 Very relevant titles 

 Relevant titles 

 Other relevant titles 

Finding Your Materials

• When viewing a list of results, click on the title to see more information
• To find similar materials, click on the Subject links near the bottom of the page to see a list of similar subjects
• Click on the subject you are interested in to see more materials on that subject
• Use the Location and Call # to find the item in the library
• Make sure the item is not currently in-use by checking Availability
• Ask at the circulation desk if you can't find what you are looking for -- make sure to bring the Location and Call #

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Use Call Numbers

Reading a Call Number

• SCAD Libraries use the Library of Congress Classification System to arrange books on the shelves
• Books are arranged by subject: books on the same subject are shelved together
• Each book has a unique call number that begins with one or two capital letters followed by numbers
• Most call numbers appear on the spine of the book
• A call number is like an address: it tells where the book is located in the library

Call Numbers by Subject

• General Call Number List by Subject
• Expanded Call Number List by Subject

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Advanced Search Tips for Catalog

Use the Advanced Search option to customize your search.

Limiting Search Results

Field Limits

A field limit causes the system to search only a specific field of information (such as Author or Title)

• To select a specific field, use the drop-down options next to the search box
• Filed limits can be selected on both the homepage and advanced search page

Other Advanced Search Limits

• Location: shows items in specific SCAD Libraries locations only
• Material Type: locates DVD and Video, eBooks or other specific materials
• Language: locates items in specific languages
• Date: limits results by their publication year
• Publisher: limits results to a specific publisher

Multiple Words

When searching multiple words the system will automatically supply the Boolean "and" operator between each word; multiple words entered for the search will all occur somewhere in the retrieved records though not necessarily in the order entered. Both examples on the right will retrieve the same results.

Boolean Operators

Use AND or OR to specify multiple words in any field, any order. Use AND NOT to exclude words. Select the operator you wish to use from the selection list on the Advanced Search form.

Phrase Searches

Search for complete phrases by enclosing them in quotation marks. Words enclosed in double quotes will appear together in all results exactly as typed.

Wildcards

*   Matches any number of non-space characters, starting at the specified position in the word. For example, "comput*" will match all words that begin with "comput" (e.g., "computer", "computation", etc.).
The '*' wildcard may also be embedded in a search string.

?   You may use a question mark ('?') to replace a single character anywhere within a word.

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Find Course Reserves

Course Reserves are required reading that your professor may have set aside. Use the Search by Course or Search by Professor to find a list of titles for your class. Select the correct class or professor from the results list.

For Electronic Materials

• Click on the title to see the document
• Login with your last name and id number
• Ask your professor for the password

For Physical Materials

• Write down the title and call number of the materials you wish to see
• Bring the information to the circulation desk to check out materials
• Students may checkout 2 course reserve materials at a time
• Course reserve materials are in-library use only and have a checkout period of 2 hours but may be renewed at the circulation desk if needed

Save My Reading History

To help protect privacy, SCAD Libraries does not automatically keep a record of the books patrons have checked out. If a patron would like to record a list of books they have checked out, they may choose to

• Login to My Account
• Click on My Reading History located on the left side of the page
• Click on Opt In to start recording your reading history
• Click on Opt Out at any time to delete the record of your reading history

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Save My Preferred Searches

• Log in to My Account
• Search for you subject or author by clicking on New Search at the top right of the page
• When results are displayed, click on Save as Preferred Search on the right side of the search box
• When you next login to My Account, click on Preferred Searches on the left side of the page to see a list of your saved searches
• Click on the Search button on the right side of the search term used for you list to repeat the search
• Mark the second box labeled Mark for Email if you want to be notified when new books which match your search are available

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Renew Materials

Materials may be renewed in 2 ways:

1. By physically bringing the materials to the library circulation desk
2. Online through My Account

To renew materials online

• Login to My Account
• If not the default view, click on Items Currently Checked Out on the left side of the page
• Select the materials you want to renew by checking the boxes in the RENEW column
• Click the Renew Marked button. If you want to renew all materials, click the Renew All button
• If successful, a new due date will appear in the STATUS column. Always check the STATUS column for information on the success or failure of your renewal
• If the materials cannot be renewed, you will see the message Not all renewals were successful. Details will be listed in the STATUS column
• Please contact the library if you have questions or concerns

Items that cannot be renewed online

• Interlibrary loan materials
• Reserves materials
• If you owe overdue fines
• Items that have been requested by someone else ({212040}on hold{7f201d})
• Materials may not be renewed more than 3 days before they are due

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Request Books

SCAD students designated as Atlanta and Savannah may request items; Materials cannot be sent to Lacoste, email library@scad.edu with questions about requesting books.

If you are an eLearner, please see directions at eLearning

Materials that can be requested

Circulating books are shared by SCAD Library (Atlanta) and Jen Library (Savannah). Look for the Request button next to the title or at the top of the page

• Books at the SCAD Atlanta Library with the location of Circulating may be requested by patrons at the Savannah location
• Books at the Jen Library in Savannah may be requested by patrons at the Atlanta location
• Books may only be requested if there is no copy at your location, or if the copy is already checked out

To request materials

• Click on the Request button for the title you would like to request and login
• Choose the location where you want to pick up the item
• Select the copy you wish to request
• You will receive an email when your item is ready to be picked up

Materials that cannot be requested

• Materials that are located in the Lacoste Library
• Special Collections materials, Reference materials, Permanent Reserve materials and other non-circulating materials
• Materials that are on Course Reserve
• Entire issues of periodicals

Please contact SCAD Libraries with questions or problems

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Request Articles

Available for SCAD Library users

If you are an eLearner, please see directions at eLearning

All patrons, including those in Lacoste may request articles to be scanned and emailed from periodicals held in any SCAD Library. Patrons may not request articles to be scanned and emailed from periodicals that are in their current location.

Articles received through the Request service are for personal and educational use only and may not be shared or distributed.

To request articles

• Search in the catalog for the periodical title containing the article you wish to request: Journal Title Search
• Click on the Request button at the top of the page and login
• Fill out all needed information in boxes provided
• The article will be scanned and emailed to you

Articles that can be found full-text in a database, cannot be requested

Please contact your library with questions or problems

For articles not owned by SCAD Libraries, please fill out an Interlibrary Loan Request Form

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Write & Cite

For help with writing or citing, visit the Writers' Studio website (you must be logged in to MySCAD for this link to work). Alternatively, you may visit the Writers' Studio site from the Resources tab on MySCAD.

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