Follow these step-by-step instructions to get items efficiently into patrons' hands and correctly track items as they move through the library system.
There are three distinct places to search.
When searching for items for patrons, always start at level 1 first and work your way through the successive levels if you cannot locate the item.
The ILL network is made possible by the delivery system facilitated by NCLS and the Empire Library Delivery. For the most current delivery codes and schedules, please visit the NCLS Helpful Resources page.
Pro tip: If you ever change the access to your building, like your security codes or keys, please contact Dylan as soon as possible.
NCLS libraries can access materials through DueNorth if they cannot be found within Polaris Leap. It also provides a network of other participating New York schools, colleges, and prisons outside of the NCLS service area a way to share resources. The DueNorth regional catalog may be accessed by patrons online, but hold requests are only placed through the patron's local library. The patron is notified of their hold status by the library's contact person via email or phone. Unfortunately this notification is not automatic.
The best part about the DueNorth catalog is that it is kept up-to-date on the fly, second by second. You don't have to wonder about an item being on the shelf unless it has truly gone missing.
To start the search process:
You will be brought to a home page. From here, you can see your account information as well as all of your pertinent statistics, borrowing, and lending tasks.
If an item cannot be found in Polaris Leap or DueNorth, library staff can search OCLC WorldCat. OCLC has access to collections and services of more than 10,000 libraries worldwide. Lenders in this database include schools, universities and libraries. Please note that all libraries do not lend all items.
Go to www.worldcat.org. A username and password are not needed to search for an item.
Click here for complete instructions on how to search for items and see if they are available. The request should be emailed to oclclib@ncls.org and Watertown Library staff will process your request and update you as needed.
You can find more ILL training videos here.
