K-State Libraries
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How to Find a Book (Or Other Item)
If you know the title ...
- Open the Catalog by clicking on "Catalog" in the purple navigation bar across the top of every page on our site.
- Check to be sure that "Title" is highlighted in the Search By selection box. If it is not, highlight it by left clicking in the box on the word "Title".
- Type the title in the Search For: box. Do not type an initial "a", "an", "the", or foreign language equivalent.
- Click the Search button.
- If the catalog has more than one item whose title begins with what you typed, the catalog will return an alphabetical list of those items. In this event, use the title, author, publication date, and format information for the items on the list to identify the exact item you want. You can obtain more information about any of the items by clicking on that item's title in the "Title" column to view its complete catalog record.
- If, for instance, you were interested in obtaining the 2nd item in the above list, you would click its title and see the following catalog record. To obtain the item you will need to know its location, call number, and status.
- Notice the status of the 2nd copy is "Not Checked Out". Since its location is "Hale Library Stacks", you would consult the Hale Stacks Guide and find the row containing the call number "PR6029.R8 A5 1954" to learn its precise location within Hale Library.
- After learning that it is located in Stack Level E, you would left-click on Stack Level E, discover that Stack E is on the west end of the 3rd floor, and go to that location.
- After arriving at Stack Level E, you would use the signs on the ends of the ranges to determine which range houses the item.
- After locating the proper range, you would then find your book on that range.
