How to use the library catalogue OPAC

The Library catalogue (opac) is available to all students on any networked computer in college on the Library Intranet via Myloreto This is a great resource to start off your research as it will search for material available in all the different formats  

Each record found will give information on:  How many copies we have on stock  If it available today in the library  Bibliographic details for your list of references  Keyword listings to give indication of content  

There are different ways in which you can search the Library catalogue but until you master the basics the following four ways will often be the best Searching for a book by the name of the author Searching for a book by title Searching for a book by keyword Searching for a book by classification number  

Searching for a book by the name of the Author If you are using this option the catalogue will search for all books written by this author that are currently on stock... Authors usually write books on the same genre or subject, so this can also be used not only to look for a particular book, but what else he author has also written on the subject  

Searching for a book by title Using this search option, the catalogue will find books by it’s title only. Use this option when looking for one book in particular  

Searching for a book by keyword This is a great way to look for all books on a particular topic. For example if you have a project or essay to complete you may need to search for all the information we have on that topic. This will lead you to books that are not necessarily on your reading list. Using this kind of information will demonstrate your ability to research around your subject.  

Searching for a book by classification number Use this option when you want to know which books are held in a specific classification sequence. However it will give you a rather unmanageable list of hits.