Your Turn: When an Item You Want Is Checked Out

Is the book or video you want currently charged out?  Why not put a hold on it?  It’s easy to do – easier than remembering to keep checking the shelves each time you’re in.

Did you know that a hold prevents the current user from renewing the item when it comes due?  Students can check out most books for two weeks at a time, and can renew the loan twice, if there is no waiting list.  That means that, for example:  If the book you want is due back in one week, it might be five weeks before that book is returned or becomes overdue, unless you put a hold on it, and after that, someone else may take it out before you have a chance; however, if you request it (put a hold on it) today, it will be due back in one more week, and you will be notified quickly if your name is the first on the request list for that item.  It’s similar with videos: A three-day DVD loan can be renewed twice if the item has not been requested; if there are holds, each student gets only three days, before it is the next person’s chance to borrow it. 

To request an item that is checked out, you can ask at the Circulation Desk (first floor of Holman Library) or the Reference Desk (second floor), or you can place the item on hold yourself, by using the library catalog.  Here is an example:

Notice, toward the bottom of the image, inside the squiggly green line, that the book is charged out and is due on December 2^nd.  Notice, toward the upper right, inside the other squiggly green line, that you can click on “Place a Hold.” If you do that, a simple form will open and allow you to place the hold yourself.