Information on our new catalog, WSU WorldCat

What does the WSU WorldCat system include?

From the WSU WorldCat system, you can search holdings at all WSU campuses; 9.2 million unique titles held by regional institutions in Summit; electronic resources to which the WSU Libraries provides access; and, over 65 million article citations from several article indexes. These indexes include PubMed (medicine and health), ArticleFirst and British Library Serials (all subjects), and ERIC (education).

What materials aren’t included in the WSU WorldCat system?

Some materials can only be searched using the Griffin system, including course reserves, materials on order, and departmental libraries other than the Music Library.

Also, it’s important to note that the article records in the WSU WorldCat system do not represent all of the online journal content that the WSU Libraries make available. For information on the electronic resources that the Libraries offer, see this articles and indexes page. You may also want to consult this subject resources page.

How has Summit searching changed with the WSU WorldCat system?

The best way for WSU users to search Summit is through the WSU WorldCat system. Search results are, by default, ranked into three groups: first, holdings at any WSU campus; second; holdings at any Summit institution; and, finally, holdings at libraries worldwide. As shown below, each item on a results list will have a “Held by:” indicator.

There are 28.7 million items (9.2 million of these unique) held at Summit institutions in the region. You can request (at no charge) most of these items through the WSU WorldCat system; items will be available for pickup at the location that you designate in about five days.

How can I search the WSU WorldCat system?

• Using the search box available from the Libraries’ home page and from the WSU WorldCat system
• Using WSU WorldCat’s Advanced Search

From the WSU WorldCat system, you can choose to limit your search to Libraries Worldwide (the default), Summit libraries, or to the WSU Libraries. Choosing Libraries Worldwide will provide the richest results, in that you can request articles and books not held by the Libraries through ArticleReach and ILLiad.

From WSU WorldCat’s Advanced Search screen, you can enter one or more search terms and limit the search by year of publication, format, language, and other criteria.

For more information on searching, see this documentation.

What else can the WSU WorldCat system do?

The WSU WorldCat system offers several features that make it easier for you to find and obtain materials.

Once you’ve entered a search that retrieves results, search facets will appear on the left side of the results screen, as shown below. In the Refine Your Search area, you can limit results sets by criteria such as author, format, year of publication, the type of content, audience level, language of publication, and the topic. You can use these facets to more easily navigate large results sets.

Article records make up a large part of the WSU WorldCat system. When viewing an article record, look for the Findit!@WSU button. Clicking on this button shows the options available for obtaining the article, which include online full-text services and article request services such as ArticleReach and ILLiad. Of the two request services, ArticleReach typically provides the fastest delivery time. Taken together, these services enable you to obtain an electronic copy of the indexed articles.

For books and items such as DVDs, the WSU WorldCat system provides a detailed record display which provides a great deal of information about the item’s contents. This can include:

• A request button, enabling you to obtain a copy of the item
  
• Links to full-text content provided by services such as Google Books and Dial-a-Book
• A detailed summary, or abstract, of the book’s content
  
• Reviews written by other readers
• A “browse similar items” section, which recommends other titles (written by the same author or on the same subject) that may be of interest to you
  

This information will help you determine whether you need the item and, if so, how to best obtain it.

In WSU WorldCat, you can also mark, save, e-mail, and export citations. Records can be exported using one of several formats (including APA, Chicago, and MLA). You can also export citations directly to the RefWorks or EndNotes management software packages.

The WSU WorldCat system provides a range of social networking features, including the ability to create public or private lists of resources, to submit reviews, and tagging. To use these features, you will need to create a WorldCat account. To create this account, go to the WSU WorldCat system and click on the “Sign in” link next to the “WorldCat Label,” in the upper-right corner of the window. This page provides some additional information on creating and using a WorldCat account.

How do I check the status of my requests?

You currently need to check a couple of systems to determine the status of your requests. This will eventually be consolidated into a single management system.

• For a book or media request from WSU or a Summit library: Go to the WSU WorldCat system, and click on the My Record login in the upper-right corner of the screen
• For an ArticleReach request: Go to the WSU WorldCat system, and click on the My Record login in the upper-right corner of the screen; click on the Article Requests link
• For an article or book request through ILLiad: For users on the Pullman campus, log on to the ILLiad site; click on the View/Modify Outstanding Requests button

You can log on to these systems using your WSU Network ID and password.

For more information

The WSU WorldCat system employs OCLC’s WorldCat.org platform. See this site for more information on WorldCat.org.

Within the WSU WorldCat system, there is a help site that provides additional information on searching and requesting materials.

To submit feedback on the WSU WorldCat system, fill out this form.