Help : Research Strategy and Process : Finding Specific Types of Materials : Finding books
The first resource to use to find books in the Cornell University Library is the CU Library Catalog (online catalog). The CU Library Catalog is available through both Bear Access and the Library Gateway.
The CU Library Catalog includes the holdings of all 17 of the libraries on the Ithaca campus, in addition to those of the Geneva Experiment Station and the CISER Data Archive. The catalog contains records for books, computer files, manuscripts and archives, maps, music, serials, and visual materials. Go to Finding specific types of materials for more detailed information about searching for non-book materials. The catalog does not contain journal articles. For information on finding journal articles see Finding periodical articles.
Go to theQuick Guide to the CU Library Catalog for an overview on using the catalog. Follow these links to get to more detailed information on specific types of catalog searches:
Searching the CU Library Catalog:
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If the books or other materials that you need cannot be found in the Cornell University Library catalogs, you can search the catalogs of other libraries to try to find your material. Often these resources can be borrowed through Interlibrary loan for you.
There are two main approaches for searching other libraries' catalogs. You can either search in a consortial database, like RLIN or WorldCat, that lists the holdings of hundreds of libraries in a single searchable database. Or you can search the online catalogs of many libraries around the region, country, and world directly. Go to Library catalogs worldwide for more information about searching for materials in these catalogs. Remember that most of these databases will use search commands that are different from the ones used in the CU Library Catalog. Note the instructions given in each catalog about logging in and searching.
Use the CU Library Catalog to verify whether Cornell owns the titles you locate through RLIN, OCLC, or another library's catalog. You may wish to use Interlibrary loan to order titles that Cornell does not own, or you may prefer to find alternate titles that are readily available here. There is a two- or three-week turnaround time for most interlibrary loan requests. Check at a reference desk for further information and assistance.