Browse Titles, Authors/Creators, Subjects, Call Numbers, Standard Numbers

Browse Search Tips

TITLES beginning with - Search Tips

Searches for words or phrases in all titles, entered in exact order beginning with the first word.

  • Enter either the complete title or the first few words of the title: american civilization
  • Drop initial articles in any language: a, das, the, le, los, al-
  • Ending punctuation is ignored. Retain punctuation found in the middle of words and numbers (e.g. hyphens, periods, slashes, etc.).
  • Truncation is automatic, but single and multiple character wildcards are not available.
  • Limits can be added.

TITLE (main) beginning with - Search Tips

Searches for words or phrases in the main (or primary) title only, entered in exact order beginning with the first word.

  • Enter either the complete title or the first few words of the title: american civilization
  • Drop initial articles in any language: a, das, the, le, los, al-
  • Ending punctuation is ignored. Retain punctuation found in the middle of words and numbers (e.g. hyphens, periods, slashes, etc.).
  • Truncation is automatic, but single and multiple character wildcards are not available.
  • Limits can be added.

AUTHORS/CREATORS beginning with - Search Tips

Browses personal and group author/creator names, entered in exact order beginning with the first word of the name.

  • For personal authors/creators, enter last name first: shakespeare william
  • For group authors/creators, enter the name in direct order: army war college
  • Ending punctuation is ignored. Retain punctuation found in the middle of words and numbers (e.g. hyphens, periods, slashes, etc.).
  • Truncation is automatic, but single and multiple character wildcards are not available.
  • Limits cannot be used.

AUTHORS/CREATORS containing - Search Tips

Browses personal and group author/creator names, matching words entered in any order. Use this search when you are not sure of the exact order of the words in an author/creator name heading.

  • Use quotation marks ( " " ) to denote exact phrases: "solar energy"
  • Use a percent sign ( % ) as a single-character wildcard, either inside or at the end of a search word: donald jo%nson
  • Use a question mark ( ? ) as a multiple-character wildcard, either inside or at the end of a search word: abbey theat?
  • Retain punctuation found in the middle of words and numbers (e.g. hyphens, periods, slashes, etc.): 4-H
  • Limits cannot be used.

SUBJECTS beginning with - Search Tips

Browses subject headings, entered in exact order beginning with the first word of the subject.

  • Subject headings include standardized topics, names, places, titles, and forms/genres of material: solar energy
  • Start with the left-most word: vietnam war 1961 1975
  • Ending punctuation is ignored. Retain punctuation found in the middle of words and numbers (e.g. hyphens, periods, slashes, etc.).
  • Truncation is automatic, but single and multiple character wildcards are not available.
  • Limits cannot be used.

SUBJECTS containing - Search Tips

Browses subject headings, matching words entered in any order. Use this search when you are not sure of the exact order of the words in a subject heading.

  • Use quotation marks ( " " ) to denote exact phrases: "solar energy"
  • Use a percent sign ( % ) as a single-character wildcard, either inside or at the end of a search word: wom%n
  • Use a question mark ( ? ) as a multiple-character wildcard, either inside or at the end of a search word: scien?
  • Retain punctuation found in the middle of words and numbers (e.g. hyphens, periods, slashes, etc.): 401(k) plans
  • Limits cannot be used.

CALL NUMBERS (LC Class No.) - Search Tips

Browses LC call numbers, entered in exact order beginning with the first element. Call numbers include both LC class numbers and other Library shelving numbers.

  • Enter either a complete call number or the first part of the number: f128.4 (include period)
  • Enter spacing and punctuation accurately: p85.m23 r6 (include period and space)
  • The LC classification assigned to a work is related to the subject of the work.
  • Truncation is automatic, but single and multiple character wildcards are not available.
  • Limits cannot be used.

CALL NUMBERS (Other Shelving No.) - Search Tips

Browses Library of Congress shelving numbers that do not use the LC classification scheme. Enter call numbers in exact order, beginning with the first element.

  • Enter either a complete shelving number or the first part of the number: microfilm (o) 83/400 (accurately include all words, parentheses, slashes, hyphens, etc.)
  • Enter spacing and punctuation accurately: wmlc 0024/91 (include space and slash)
  • Truncation is automatic, but single and multiple character wildcards are not available.
  • Limits cannot be used.

LCCN (LC Control No.) - Search Tips

Searches for Library of Congress Control Numbers (LCCN) must be entered in exact order beginning with the first character. LCCNs can help you retrieve specific records from the LC Catalog.

  • Spacing and punctuation matter:
    • Remove spaces between alphabetic prefixes and the numeric parts of an LCCN. For example, enter sn 2006058112 as sn2006058112. For older LCCNs, remove hyphens and add leading zeros: enter 89-456 as 89000456
  • Truncation is automatic, but single and multiple character wildcards are not available.
  • Limits can be added.

STANDARD NUMBERS (LCCN-ISBN-ISSN) - Search Tips

Searches for Library of Congress Control Numbers (LCCN), International Standard Book Numbers (ISBN), and International Standard Serial Numbers (ISSN). Numbers must be entered in exact order beginning with the first character. Standard numbers can help you retrieve specific records from the LC Catalog.

  • For LCCNs and ISSNs, spacing and punctuation matter:
    • LCCNs: remove spaces between alphabetic prefixes and the numeric parts of an LCCN. For example, enter sn 2006058112 as sn2006058112. For older LCCNs, remove hyphens and add leading zeros: enter 89-456 as 89000456
    • ISSNs: keep the hyphen. For example, enter 1094-1304 as 1094-1304
  • Truncation is automatic, but single and multiple character wildcards are not available.
  • Limits can be added.

NAMES/TITLES beginning with - Search Tips

Browses name/title headings, entered in exact order beginning with the first word of the name.

  • For personal names, enter the last name first: dickens charles
  • For group names, enter in direct order: army war college
  • If dates are part of the name heading, enter them in exact order: dickens charles 1812 1870
  • If you know the entire name and title heading in exact order, you can enter it: dickens charles 1812 1870 oliver twist
  • Ending punctuation is ignored. Retain punctuation found in the middle of words and numbers (e.g. hyphens, periods, slashes, etc.).
  • Truncation is automatic, but single and multiple character wildcards are not available.
  • Limits cannot be used.

NAMES/TITLES containing - Search Tips

Browses name/title headings, matching words from names and/or titles entered in any order. Use this search when you are not sure of the exact order of the words in a name/title heading. Because this search sorts results by author/creator then by title (with editions of the same work grouped together), it is particularly useful for finding musical works as well as for browsing authors whose works have been issued in many editions.

  • Enter words from the name and/or title: beethoven sonata minor violin
  • Use quotation marks ( " " ) to denote exact phrases: "harry potter"
  • Use a percent sign ( % ) as a single-character wildcard, either inside or at the end of a search word: beethoven sonat%
  • Use a question mark ( ? ) as a multiple-character wildcard, either inside or at the end of a search word: shakespeare o?ello
  • Retain punctuation found in the middle of words and numbers (e.g. hyphens, periods, slashes, etc.): AC/DC
  • Limits cannot be used.

SERIES/UNIFORM TITLES containing - Search Tips

Browses series and uniform title headings, matching words entered in any order. Use this search when you are not sure of the exact order of the words in a series or uniform title heading.

  • Enter words from the series or uniform title: bible english standard
  • Use quotation marks ( " " ) to denote exact phrases: "solar energy"
  • Use a percent sign ( % ) as a single-character wildcard, either inside or at the end of a search word: bible 199%
  • Use a question mark ( ? ) as a multiple-character wildcard, either inside or at the end of a search word: addison math? education
  • Retain punctuation found in the middle of words and numbers (e.g. hyphens, periods, slashes, etc.): 9/11
  • Limits cannot be used.