Conducting a Search in the Albuquerque Public Library Catalog

Albuquerque's Public Library Catalog is simple to use. It is available online and at each of our 17 locations. We will begin with the list of tabs and an explanation of the items on the browsing page.browsing page

My AccountMy Account: This is the link you would take in order to access your own library card account. You will need your library card number in order to log on to your account. You can access this from your computer at home or from the library catalog. Suggest a PurchaseSuggest a Purchase: You can fill in your suggestion for a book purchase and submit it to the library. You will need your library card number to complete this form. Library infoLibrary info: Contains basic library information, hours of operation, phone numbers, and locations. Featured item listsFeatured item lists: These are various book lists that people often ask about. Start OverStart Over: This will bring you back to the main page when you are on any other page in the catalog. HelpHelp: The Help button will take you to a page that will assist you with searching, placing a hold, renewing items, saving records and viewing your reading history. My AccountMy Account: This is the link you would take in order to access your own library card account. You will need your library card number in order to log on to your account. You can access this from your computer at home or from the library catalog. Suggest a PurchaseSuggest a Purchase: You can fill in your suggestion for a book purchase and submit it to the library. You will need your library card number to complete this form. Library infoLibrary info: Contains basic library information, hours of operation, phone numbers, and locations. Featured item listsFeatured item lists: These are various book lists that people often ask about. Start OverStart Over: This will bring you back to the main page when you are on any other page in the catalog. HelpHelp: The Help button will take you to a page that will assist you with searching, placing a hold, renewing items, saving records and viewing your reading history.

Conducting your search Click on one of the tabs to choose the type of search This is where you will type in your information Click on the arrow down key to see how you can limit your search You can limit your search parameters here

When you want to find something in the catalog, you can search for it by several different methods. The catalog will also let you limit the search. The screenshots below show you the different types of searches you can do and the different limiters you can add to your search.

Useful things to remember when searching Using a keyword will find any appearance of that word in the catalog, whether it's part of a title, author, subject or item description. When doing an author search, always enter the last name followed by the first name. Doing a call number search can be useful if you want to see what books might be in the same call number range. When you are searching for an author, there are two ways. If you need information about that author you will want to do a subject search. On the other hand, if you want works by that author you will need to do an author search. Try playing with the catalog and do both an author search for "Alexander Dumas" and a subject search for "Alexander Dumas". Notice the different types of books you find with each search.catalog

Always remember, if you dont know the full title, the call number or even the author, the keyword search is the easiest and best way to find what youre looking for. You are now ready to start browsing the Albuquerque/Bernalillo County Library System