First, thank you for your patience and continued use of Hennepin County Library. Customers are clearly appreciating greater access to the wealth of items in all our libraries now that we have one robust catalog. This has increased the demand for items, and we are working on solutions to manage the high usage and continue to meet customer needs. We will continue to make sure requests are filled in as timely a manner as possible. Thank you for your understanding as we develop a plan for accommodating these high volumes.

One Catalog FAQ]]> Meg C. Wed, 16 Sep 2009 07:21:43 CDT http://www.hclib.org/blogs/CatalogNews.cfm?ID=706 li {margin-left: -10px} August 27, 2009

As of Thursday, Aug. 27, you can now access the entire 5-million-item collection of books, DVDs, CDs and more with one click. Use your current library card, whether it is a Minneapolis or suburban card.

• What happened and why?
• Can I request items from any of the 41 libraries now that the catalogs are combined?
• What about my account in the Minneapolis catalog and does my library card still work?
• Were my holds/requests and checked out items transferred from my Minneapolis account?
• What if I had fines or fees on my Minneapolis account?
• How do I log into my account in the combined catalog?
• How do I pick up my holds?
• How do I designate my holds pickup location?
• Why am I having trouble getting the right items when I order a TV series on DVD, a boxed CD set or other multi-volume items?
• Does my Minneapolis library card still work?
• I had turned on "Reading History" in my Minneapolis account. Did that come over?
• I had turned on "Ratings" in my Minneapolis account. Did that come over?
• I have an account in the suburban catalog only, will I notice any differences?
• Why do some catalog entries look different in the combined catalog?
  

What happened and why?
As part of the merger between Hennepin County and the former Minneapolis Public libraries, our two catalogs became one on August 27. This not only reduces operating costs, it also gives customers and staff access to the entire 5-million-item collection in one place, the current suburban catalog. Thank you for your patience during the transition.

Can I  request items from any of the 41 libraries now that the catalogs are combined?
Yes! As of August 27, you can place a request on any circulating ("request-able") item in our combined catalog for pick up at any Hennepin County Library.

What about my account in the Minneapolis catalog and does my library card still work?
All customer accounts have been moved to the combined catalog and, yes, your Minneapolis library card works in the combined catalog.

• If you had two accounts (and library cards), one in the former Minneapolis Public Library system and a different one in the suburban Hennepin County Library,  they both still work.  They are still two separate accounts. These will be combined at a later date.
• If your Minneapolis library card was also registered in the suburban Hennepin County Library catalog, we have combined your two accounts and preserved the information in both of them.

Were my holds/requests and checked out items transferred from my Minneapolis account?
Yes, all the activity on your account was transferred to the combined catalog. Requests from both catalogs have been combined, so your place in the ?queue? may change if there are also requests on that title in the suburban catalog. In order to reorder the combined request queues fairly, all requests were ordered by when they got into the queue, relative to when the title became available to request.

What if I had fines or fees on my Minneapolis account?

• Any fines or fees on your Minneapolis account have been transferred to your new account in the combined catalog.
• If you had accounts in both the Minneapolis and suburban Hennepin County Library catalogs, the accounts were combined and any fees or fines were combined as well. If that combination puts you over the limit for borrowing items, you will need to pay down the balance so you can borrow items again.

How do I log into my account in the combined catalog?

• Log in with your library barcode and PIN
• Your PIN has been changed if you had a Minneapolis account only.
• PINs in the combined catalog are four digits long, numbers only.
• Your new PIN is the last 4 digits of your phone number.
• If there was no phone number in your account, the PIN is '0000'.
• You can change your PIN when you log in to your account.

How do I pick up my holds?

• If you had a Minneapolis account, you will be assigned a "pickup number" which a staff member will write on your library card. This number is used to locate your held items on the holds shelf.
• When you go to pick up your held items in a Minneapolis library for the first time after August 26, please see a staff member to get your pickup number.
• You may also look up your pickup number yourself by logging in to your account and clicking on the Personal Information tab;
• If you had accounts in both catalogs, you already have a pickup number, and that stays the same.

How do I designate my holds pickup location?

• If you had a Minneapolis and suburban Hennepin County Library account, your default pickup location is the one that was in your suburban account. You can choose and change your regular pickup location by going to My Account and clicking on the Personal Information tab. Choose your library from the regular pickup location dropdown menu.

Why am I having trouble getting the right items when I order a TV series on DVD, a boxed CD set or other multi-volume items?
After consolidating the city and suburban catalogs, a problem cropped up regarding the way DVD sets, boxed CD sets and other multi-volume items were catalogued. This means that when you place holds on these items, you may get an entire series or set or only portions of them. In the combined catalog, you place a hold on the title (?Lost Season 1?), not on the item itself (Lost Season 1, disks 1-3?), so you won?t know if ?Lost Season 1, disks 1-3? will show up for you, or some other set of disks for ?Lost Season 1?, or the entire season.

Fixing this is a top priority, and we have already started working to standardize these items in our catalog so that every item listed under a title is uniform. So if you place a request on the title ?Lost Season 1?, or "Lost Season 1 disks 1-4", or "Lost Season 1 disks 5-8", you`ll always get the full set of disks listed for that title. If you currently have a request on a specific item or disk, your request will be automatically expanded so that you`ll receive the first available copy of the full set of disks for that title once you reach the front of the line.

I had turned on "Reading History" in my Minneapolis account. Did that come over?
Yes and no. Reading History is not currently available in this version of the combined catalog, but will be in the near future. By September 21, your Reading History will be migrated to a MyList on your new account titled "My Reading History from Minneapolis Catalog." Each MyList can have up to 200 titles. If you have more than 200 titles on your Reading History, multiple MyLists will be created on your account. You can continue adding titles to your new MyList(s), keeping your reading history up to date if you wish. The date each title was checked out will not migrate to the MyList. When the combined catalog has a Reading History feature in the future, your MyList (Reading History) can be transferred to that feature, still connected to your account.

I had turned on "Ratings" in my Minneapolis account. Did that come over?
Ratings you entered were NOT migrated. That feature is not available in this version of the combined catalog, and there are no plans at this time to develop that feature for this catalog.

I have an account in the suburban catalog only, will I notice any differences?
You now have access to an additional 1.3 million unique titles in the combined catalog. Other than access to this new wealth of resources, your account and catalog looks much the same. (see ?Why do some catalog entries look different in the combined catalog??).

Why do some catalog entries look different in the combined catalog?

• The combined catalog has entries from two formerly separate library systems, each with slightly different cataloging procedures, so you will see some titles where the copies may have different descriptions of where to find them on the shelf, or different kinds of call numbers (Dewey, Library of Congress).
• All the information you need to find your item is in the catalog entry. If you are looking for an item on the shelf, take note of the information for the item that?s in the library you?re visiting.

• What's happening and why?
• What's the timeline for combining the catalogs?
• Will I be able to request items from any of the 41 libraries after the catalogs are combined?
• What about my account in the Minneapolis catalog?
• Will my holds/requests and checked out items be transferred from my Minneapolis account?
• What if I had fines or fees on my Minneapolis account?
• How will I log into my account in the combined catalog?
• How do I pick up my holds?
• Will my Minneapolis library card still work?
• I had turned on "Reading History" in my Minneapolis account. Will that come over?
• I had turned on "Ratings" in my Minneapolis account. Will that come over?
• I have an account in the suburban catalog only, will I notice any differences?
• What does the red "dot" mean next to titles in the combined catalog?
• Why do some catalog entries look different in the combined catalog?
• Will I still be able to check out Museum Adventure Passes?

What's happening and why?
As part of the merger between Hennepin County and the former Minneapolis Public libraries, our two catalogs will become one beginning August 27. This will not only reduce operating costs, it will also give customers and staff access to the entire 5-million-item collection in one place, the current suburban catalog.

What's the timeline for combining the catalogs?
The fully merged catalog will debut on August 27, 2009, following this timeline:

• Sunday, August 23, 5 p.m.
• The Minneapolis catalog will be shut down and no longer available.
• Sunday, Aug. 23, 5 p.m. ? 8 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 27
• The items (books, DVDs, CDs and magazines) from the Minneapolis collection will not be available online in the merged catalog. However, the merged catalog is available for use in library and from any computer with Internet access.
• You may still come into any Hennepin County Library and check out or return items.
• You may renew Minneapolis items in person at any Minneapolis library with item in-hand.
• Wednesday, August 26
• The merged catalog is not available at all on this day as final migration of data takes place.
• All Hennepin County libraries normally open on Wednesdays are open on this day. Customers may check out or return items and use the public computers.
• Thursday, August 27
• You will be able to access all 5 million items in the combined catalog.

Will I be able to request items from any of the 41 libraries after the catalogs are combined?
Yes! As of August 27, you can place a request on any circulating ("request-able") item in our combined catalog for pick up at any Hennepin County Library.

What about my account in the Minneapolis catalog?

• All customer accounts will be moved to the combined catalog.
• August 21 - Customer accounts will begin migrating.
• August 21 - 26 - Migrated accounts will be incomplete.
• August 26 - All remaining activity will be migrated.
• If you had accounts in both the Minneapolis and suburban Hennepin County Library systems, those accounts will be combined when your Minneapolis account is moved.

Will my holds/requests and checked out items be transferred from my Minneapolis account?
Yes, all the activity on your account will be transferred to the combined catalog. Requests from both catalogs will be combined, so your place in the ?queue? may change if there are also requests on that title in the suburban catalog. In order to reorder the combined request queues fairly, all requests will be ordered by when they got into the queue, relative to when the title became available to request.

What if I had fines or fees on my Minneapolis account?

• Any fines or fees on your Minneapolis account will be transferred to your new account in the combined catalog.
• If you had accounts in both the Minneapolis and suburban Hennepin County Library catalogs, the accounts will be combined and any fees or fines will be combined as well. If that combination puts you over the limit for borrowing items, you will need to pay down the balance so you can borrow items again.

How will I log into my account in the combined catalog?

• You will log in with your library barcode and PIN, so you will no longer enter your name to log in.
• Your PIN will be changed if you had a Minneapolis account only.
• PINs in the combined catalog are four digits long, numbers only.
• Your new PIN will be the last 4 digits of your phone number.
• If there was no phone number in your account, the PIN will be '0000'
• You can change your PIN when you log in to your account.

How do I pick up my holds?

• Once the catalogs are combined, if you had a Minneapolis account, you will be assigned a "pickup number" which a staff member will write on your library card. This number is used to locate your held items on the holds shelf.
• When you go to pick up your held items in a Minneapolis library for the first time after August 26, please see a staff member to get your pickup number.
• You may also look up your pickup number yourself after August 26 by logging in to your account and clicking on the Personal Information tab;
• If you had accounts in both catalogs, you already have a pickup number, and that will stay the same.

Will my Minneapolis library card still work?
Yes, your Minneapolis library card will work in the combined catalog. If you had library cards in both the suburban Hennepin County Library and in the former Minneapolis Public Library system, both of those cards will still work. We will combine your two accounts and preserve the information in both of them.

I had turned on "Reading History" in my Minneapolis account. Will that come over?
Yes and no. Reading History is not currently available in this version of the combined catalog, but will be in the near future. Here is the plan during this transition.

• Your Reading History will be migrated to a MyList on your new account titled "My Reading History from Minneapolis Catalog"
• Each MyList can have up to 200 titles. If you have more than 200 titles on your Reading History, multiple MyLists will be created on your account.
• You can continue adding titles to your new MyList, keeping your reading history up to date if you wish.
• The date each title was checked out will not be able to be migrated to the MyList.
• When the combined catalog has a Reading History feature in the future, your MyList (Reading History) can be transferred to that feature, still connected to your account.
• Another option to preserve your Reading History, before 5 p.m., August 23 is to:
• Go into your account on the Minneapolis catalog and click on "Reading History".
• Choose "Export Reading History".
• Choose "Select All" and email the list to yourself, or save it on a disc or simply print out the screen.

I had turned on "Ratings" in my Minneapolis account. Will that come over?
Ratings you have entered will NOT be migrated. That feature is not available in this version of the combined catalog, and there are no plans at this time to develop that feature for this catalog. If you would like to preserve your ratings information, go into your account on the Minneapolis catalog before 5 p.m. on Aug. 23, click on "My Ratings" and print out the screen. There is no "export" option for this feature.

I have an account in the suburban catalog only, will I notice any differences?
You will have access to an additional 1.3 million unique titles in the combined catalog. Other than access to this new wealth of resources, your account and catalog will look much the same as it does today (see ?Why do some catalog entries look different in the combined catalog??).

What does the red dot mean next to titles in the combined catalog?
The process of moving millions of records from the Minneapolis to the suburban catalog will take about a month. During this process, titles from the Minneapolis catalog (marked with a red dot) will appear in the suburban catalog, but will be incomplete. On August 27, the migration will be complete and you will be able to access all of these items.

Why do some catalog entries look different in the combined catalog?

• The combined catalog will have entries from two formerly separate library systems, each with slightly different cataloging procedures, so you will see some titles where the copies may have different descriptions of where to find them on the shelf, or different kinds of call numbers (Dewey, Library of Congress).
• All the information you need to find your item will be in the catalog entry. If you are looking for an item on the shelf, take note of the information for the item that?s in the library you?re visiting.

Will I still be able to check out Museum Adventure Passes?
Unfortunately, Museum Adventure Passes will not be issued during these times at these locations:

• Minneapolis libraries on Aug. 25 and 26;
• Suburban libraries on Aug. 26.

Some of the major changes that will take effect on June 29:

• The standard loan period remains the same: 21 days for most items, and 7 days for DVDs and videos. Suburban libraries' 14-day loan period for high demand items will be eliminated.


• Previously at libraries in Minneapolis, customers could renew items a maximum of two times. Effective June 29, customers at all libraries, in Minneapolis and in suburban Hennepin County, may renew items (including DVDs and videos) up to three times, unless the item is requested by another customer.


• The maximum number of items a customer can check out remains at 100. All formats (books, DVDs, CDs, videos, periodicals) will contribute to this total.

Generally, if there were differences between lending rules in Minneapolis and suburban Hennepin County, the new, consolidated lending rules opt for the less restrictive customer limit.

For more details see the Lending Rules page.

Our handy Google Search Gadget has been available to iGoogle users for some time. Now everyone can take advantage. If you can copy and paste code into your website, you can add catalog search right where you need it most!

Here's what it looks like:

To add it to your website, copy and paste the following code into your website editor:

Note: the gadget currently searches the Suburban catalog but will include all materials later this year.

Enjoy!

1. Login to My Account
2. Go to your Requests page
3. Select requests to suspend by clicking in the selection box to the left of the title.
4. Suspended requests always have a date associated with them. When the "suspend until" date passes the request is automatically activated. There are drop down boxes at the top center of the Requests page. Select a date with these or use the default date (one month).
5. Click the Suspend/Activate button.

1. Select suspended requests by clicking the selection box to the left of the title.
2. Click the Suspend/Activate button.
or:
3. Wait until the "suspend until" date passes.

1. The loan period will not be extended just because you are out of town. Make note of your due date before you leave.
2. Bring your card and/or login info with you. While you're gone, to renew items all you need is a computer with internet access or a phone.
3. A title's renewal status can change at any time. Just because a title is able to be renewed when you leave does not mean it will stay renewable. If a request is placed a title becomes non-renewable. Due dates on items that can't be renewed due to requests will not be extended nor fines excused.

Along the way, some new features and enhancements have been added. A summary of the changes are listed below.

Response Time
You should see an improved response time, especially on screens with long lists of titles (items out, requests, my list, etc.)

Checked-In indicator on the "Browse Title" screen
The blue dot that gives you a quick sense of availability has been added to the alphabetical list of titles that comes up when a "Title starts with..." search is performed.

Diacritics
Text with diacritics (accents, umlauts, tildes, etc.) is now displaying correctly throughout the catalog.

Detailed "Messages and Fines"
The information in "My Account" under the "Messages and Fines" tab now includes much more detail. The blocks are now broken down into 5 categories:
- Overdue and Still Out
- Overdue Fines
- Long Overdue (formerly "Lost")
- Other Fees
- Cancelled Requests

More sorting options in My Account
All columns throughout My Account can now be used for sorting.

Current users can grab the updated script here.

New users, get more information here.

Do you use Amazon.com^® to locate books? Wish you could easily find out if the Library owns a book you have located?

Now you can! Our Amazon/HCL Lookup tool displays brief information about the Library status of books you find in Amazon, right on the Amazon results page. While displaying the full page description of a particular title, up-to-date infomation about the status of the the title in the Hennepin County Library collection appears just below the title. The Lookup tool requires the Firefox web browser.

Only want to receive alerts on books? Or only receive alerts for audio CDs? Now you can – from the alerts page, click on Edit Settings to change your filtering options.

What are author alerts? We'll alert you when the Library has ordered a new title by an author or performer.

Tell us which author/performers you are interested in and we will send you an e-mail (or text message) when the library has ordered a new title by that author or performer. You can sign up for alerts from multiple authors/performers, including your favorite musical groups!

Start Now!

For the past four weeks, Library staff have been working to resolve slow response time in the Catalog. After identifying the problem as originating with our enhanced content vendor, staff has crafted a solution that will speed up Catalog searching while still being able to provide valuable added information about titles in the Library's collection.

We are currently working to fix slow response times when searching the Catalog.

Book covers and other information about titles, including tables of contents, reviews and exerpts, are not available at this time.

The Library contracts with a vendor to supply this "enhanced" content about titles in the Catalog. This vendor is experiencing technical problems that, in turn, causes the catalog to respond very slowly as you move from page to page.

We are exploring alternative ways to provide this valuable content in a timely way. While we work to solve this problem, "enhanced" features have been disabled to return search pages response to acceptable levels.

Thank you for your patience as we work to fix this problem.

The Library has created a presence on Facebook to share information and tools with the Facebook commmunity.

Become a fan of Hennepin County Library now!

Benefits include access to our nifty catalog search widget that allows you to search for books and other materials right from your Facebook profile. Here's what it looks like:

and here's a shortcut to get it. Over 300 Facebook users have already added it to their profile; don't miss out!

Did you know? You can also add a catalog search widget to Google and MySpace.

Do you shop online at Barnes & Noble^®? Wish you could easily find out if the Library owns a book you have located?

Our Barnes & Noble/HCL Lookup tool displays brief information about the Library status of books you find in B&N, right on the B&N results page. While displaying the full page description of a particular title, up-to-date information about the status of the title in the Hennepin County Library collection appears just below the title. The Lookup tool requires the Firefox web browser.

Here’s what it looks like on the B&N results page:

The Barnes & Noble/HCL Lookup tool was created by Hennepin County Library and is not affiliated in any way with barnesandnoble.com^®. Questions should be directed to techhelp@hclib.org.

Attention Amazon shoppers! A similar tool is available for Amazon.com.

How to install the Barnes & Noble/HCL Lookup tool on your computer:

1. Get Firefox (free).

2. Install Greasemonkey (free - Installation instructions).

3. Install the Lookup tool (free).

Enjoy! The Barnes & Noble/HCL Lookup tool was adapted from the Amazon SPL Linky created by Carrick Mundell.

• Regular Print - limits search results to regular print books only
• eVideos - limits search results to downloadable videos

Connect Now

Now you can! Our Netflix Lookup tool displays brief information about the Library status of DVDs you find in Netflix, right on the results page. While you are viewing the full description of a particular title, up-to-date infomation about the status of the the title in the Hennepin County Library collection appears just above the title on the screen. The Lookup tool requires the Firefox web browser.

Here’s what it looks like on the Netflix results page:

The Netflix Lookup tool was created by Hennepin County Library and is not affiliated in any way with Netflix^®. Questions should be directed to techhelp@hclib.org.

How to install the Netflix Lookup tool on your computer:

1. Get Firefox (free).

2. Install Greasemonkey (free - Installation instructions).

3. Install the Lookup tool (free). If the Install button on this page does not work, here's a screenshot showing an alternate method for installing the tool:
   

Attention Amazon shoppers! A similar tool is available for Amazon.com.

Attention Barnes & Nobles shoppers! A similar tool is available for barnesandnobles.com.

"Hennepin County Library is always looking for ways to meet the needs of our customers," says Amy Ryan, library director. "This service will provide added convenience and privacy for them."

Customers can log on to the Library?s website, click on "My Account" and follow the step-by-step instructions. Library card, PIN and credit card information will be required to complete the transaction.

Customers can choose to pay the entire amount owed or make a partial payment (minimum of $2 per transaction). Customers will not be charged a transaction fee.

Current users can grab the updated script here.

New users, get more information here.

Do you use Amazon.com^® to locate books? Wish you could easily find out if the Library owns a book you have located?

Now you can! Our Amazon/HCL Lookup tool displays brief information about the Library status of books you find in Amazon, right on the Amazon results page. While displaying the full page description of a particular title, up-to-date infomation about the status of the the title in the Hennepin County Library collection appears just below the title. The Lookup tool requires the Firefox web browser.

• Fiction and non-fiction, adult & children's, bestsellers and classics, some Spanish language
  
  
• Learn French in the air on your way to Paris with "In-Flight French"
  
  
• Time will fly by on that road trip to Grandma's for the holidays when the whole family listens to favorites by Roald Dahl, C.S. Lewis, and Beverly Cleary
  
  
• Even selective teens can find something sure to entertain with titles by Carl Hiaasen, Philip Pullman and Christopher Paolini
  
  
• Be the first to listen to the latest titles from bestselling authors like James Patterson, Nora Roberts and John Grisham

Here's how:

1. When viewing a list of titles, or the full information about a specific title, click on the "More Request Options" link which appears below the Request Item button.
   
   
2. The Request Confirmation screen may include additional options, depending on the type and number of items available for the title you are requesting. View a sample screen.
   
   
3. If there are hardcover and paperback copies available, you will have the option of specifying one or the other.
   
   
4. If more than one copy of the title is available, you will have the option to request multiple copies.
   
   
5. Click the Request button to confirm your request.

If you have created a personalized search page in Google, you can add a Library Catalog search box right on your Google page. (Don't have a personalized page? Next time you visit Google, click on "Personalized Page". The link appears in the upper right-hand corner.)

Here's how:

1. From your personalized page, click the "Add Content" link in the upper left-hand corner of the page.
   
   
2. Enter "Hennepin County Library Catalog" in the search box and click the Search Homepage Content button.
   
   
3. Click to add the Catalog Search "gadget" to your personalized page.

Do you shop online at Barnes & Noble^®? Wish you could easily find out if the Library owns a book you have located?

Now you can! Our Barnes & Noble/HCL Lookup tool displays brief information about the Library status of books you find in B&N, right on the B&N results page. While displaying the full page description of a particular title, up-to-date infomation about the status of the the title in the Hennepin County Library collection appears just below the title. The Lookup tool requires the Firefox web browser.

Here’s what it looks like on the B&N results page:

The Barnes & Noble/HCL Lookup tool was created by Hennepin County Library and is not affiliated in any way with barnesandnoble.com^®. Questions should be directed to techhelp@hclib.org.

Attention Amazon shoppers! A similar tool is available for Amazon.com.

How to install the Barnes & Noble/HCL Lookup tool on your computer:

1. Get Firefox (free).

2. Install Greasemonkey (free - Installation instructions).

3. Install the Lookup tool (free).

Enjoy! The Barnes & Noble/HCL Lookup tool was adapted from the Amazon SPL Linky created by Carrick Mundell.

Choose from adult and children's titles, bestseller and classics. Titles may be checked out for 21 days.

Read the Audio eBooks FAQ for more information about Overdrive Digital Library and NetLibrary, our other audio eBook supplier.

Read more about the NetLibrary audio eBook service, including reader comments.

Screenshot of Overdrive Digital Catalog

Now you can! Our Amazon/HCL Lookup tool displays brief information about the Library status of books you find in Amazon, right on the Amazon results page. While displaying the full page description of a particular title, up-to-date infomation about the status of the the title in the Hennepin County Library collection appears just below the title. The Lookup tool requires the Firefox web browser.

Here’s what it looks like on the Amazon results page:

The Amazon/HCL Lookup tool was created by Hennepin County Library and is not affiliated in any way with Amazon.com^®. Questions should be directed to techhelp@hclib.org.

Attention Barnes & Nobles shoppers! A similar tool is available for barnesandnobles.com.

How to install the Amazon/HCL Lookup tool on your computer:

1. Get Firefox (free).

2. Install Greasemonkey (free - Installation instructions).

3. Install the Lookup tool (free).

Enjoy! The Amazon/HCL Lookup tool was adapted from the Amazon SPL Linky created by Carrick Mundell.

Version 1.1 (updated 6/26/2006) - now links to a title search of the Catalog if there is no exact match with the edition located in Amazon.

Share your comments about books, DVDs, music and more! Did you enjoy a title you checked out from the Library? Let everyone know. Wondering if a title is worth reading? Look for comments from other Hennepin County Library users.

Look for the button in the Library Catalog and on our Book Lists. Click on the button add a comment and view comments added by others. In addition, you will find these features on the page:

• book summaries;
• table of contents;
• book reviews;
• first chapters;
• author notes;
• character descriptions (for fiction);
• related book lists of interest;
• recently commented titles;
• recent reviews from Amazon readers;
• cover art (where available).

When you add your first comment, you will be prompted to create a "Display Name" that appears with your comments, along with a password. Use your Display Name and password when submitting subsequent comments. When other users read your comments, they can click on your name to view all your comments.

RSS feeds are available for individual titles and a cumulative feed is available as well.

In the past, request lists reflected not only active requests but also suspended requests and requests filled but not yet picked up by library users. This led to some odd displays when viewing one's Requests list in My Account. For example, "you are number 145 of 138".

Beginning today, only active requests will be used when calculating the total number of requests for a title. As a result, you may see your place in line "jump ahead" for popular titles!

Firefox users: Add the Library to your Search Bar!

Library Catalog Search

OR
Library Super Search
(includes catalog, website and more)

Q. What is the Search Bar?
A. The Firefox Search Bar gives you quick access to search your favorite websites. Look in the upper right-hand corner of the browser window. Do you see the Google logo? By entering text in the box to the right of the logo, you can search Google from any web page.

Q. Can I search other sites besides Google?
A. Yes. Click on the Google logo to view a list of other searches available from the Search Bar.

Q. Can I add the Library to the list?
A. Absolutely! Click on one of the links above to add the Library to your Search Bar. It's that easy!

Q. Can I remove the Library search from by Search Bar?
A. Yes, in the unlikely event that you should decide to remove the Library from your Search Bar, follow the instructions here.]]> Glenn P. Mon, 17 Apr 2006 10:21:32 CDT http://www.hclib.org/blogs/CatalogNews.cfm?ID=28 We'll alert you when the Library has ordered a new title by an author or performer.

Tell us which author/performers you are interested in and we will send you an e-mail alert when the library has ordered a new title by that author or performer. You can sign up for alerts from multiple authors/performers, including your favorite musical groups!

Update: Filter your alerts by format! Only want to receive alerts on books? Or only receive alerts for audio CDs? Now you can – from the alerts page, click on Edit Settings to change your filtering options.

Start Now!

The collection also includes book club favorites, the Pimsleur language learning series, and the Contemporary English Version Holy Bible. Approximately 30 new titles are added to the collection each month. Audio eBooks can be downloaded or played on any desktop, laptop or portable device supporting Windows Media Player version 9 or higher (sorry, iPods are not supported at this time). Audio eBooks may be downloaded only on computers outside the library. All titles in the audio eBook collection are listed in the Hennepin County Library catalog (search under the subject: DOWNLOADABLE AUDIOBOOKS, for a complete listing).

Once you have created a free netLibrary account, which you can do by accessing netLibrary via the Hennepin County Library web page and entering your valid Hennepin County Library card number, you can check out up to 10 audio eBooks at a time. When you have downloaded an audio eBook, you will have access to it for 21 days and it can be renewed one time for an additional 21 days. There is no limit to the number of listeners who can check out an audio eBook at the same time. For more information, read the Audio eBooks FAQ.

Note: In July 2006, the Library began offering audio ebooks from an additional supplier, Overdrive. See the announcement here including tips for playing audio ebooks on iPods.

Follow these simple steps:

On the black menu bar at the top of the screen, click on ?Search with Limits.?

Click on the tab ?Limit by Format.?

Choose the type of search you want from the keyword pulldown menu. Type your search in the box. Click the circle before the format you want. Click on ?Go.?

Note: In July 2006 the Library began offering an additional audio e-book collection from Overdrive. See the announcement here (see the comments for tips for iPod users).]]> Julie B. Mon, 16 Jan 2006 09:54:36 CDT http://www.hclib.org/blogs/CatalogNews.cfm?ID=15