1. The system works best with Internet Explorer, though it works with newer version of Netscape.
   
   
2. The system offers Quick and Guided Keyword searches. Abbreviation (truncation) of a word can be searched with the use of ? as in histol?. This will search both histology and histologic. Be careful not to truncate too early as in hist?. This will include history, historical, histamin, etc. along with histology and histologic.
   
   
3. Journal abbreviation can be searched using the above function, but it is best to do so in the Guided Keyword Search. For Prev. Vet. Med., enter Prev? Vet? Med? in each of the search box, change the search option to title words.
   
   
4. Various limits such as searching only the Vet. Med. Library can be added to your search in both Quick and Guided search functions.
   
   
5. You can request books from another UIUC library, but Requesting must be done with the record showing the location and availability under the heading "FULL VIEW / BRIEF VIEW / STAFF(MARC) VIEW" for the publication. The message "You may not place any requests in this database" means that you are not showing the record in FULL VIEW, etc.
   
   
6. The collections of the UI-Chicago and its branches are now included in the consortium. Medical books at UIC may be available in Urbana under the following designation:

   Institution: Univ. of Illinois-Chgo
   Location: LHS URBANA

7. Books requested from LHS (Library of the Health Sciences) URBANA will reach you in about 3 days, while those from other Illinois locations will take about 10 days. Requesting from LHS URBANA must be done through the steps described below.
   
   
8. To search other Illinois Libraries with a purpose of requesting, you must access ILCSO LIBRARIES not OTHER LIBRAIRES. After a search, and when you see the information with the heading FULL VIEW / BRIEF VIEW / STAFF (MARC) VIEW, click REQUEST without selecting the specific library or copy. Follow the steps below:
   
   
   1. Change HOME ILCSO LIBRARY from AURORA University (default) to Univ. of Illinois-UC.
   
   
   
   2. Enter your 14-digit library ID number and your last name and proceed. (The number begins with 20111)
   
   
   
   3. At the next screen, you must enter your library ID number again.
   
   
   
   4. Choose either campus mail (if you have an office on campus) or Vet. Med. Library as your Pick Up Location even though the PICK UP LIBRARY is already Univ. of Illinois at U-C. If the CHOOSE PICK UP DESK shows UIUC LABOR CIRC DESK, the Vet. Med. Library should be available as Location in that group so you can have the book sent to us.
   
   
   
   5. If you don't see UIUC LABOR CIRC DESK in the box, go BACK using the browser BACK function once, and click OK to re-enter the request form. You may have to BACK twice before you see UIUC LABOR group which has Vet. Med in it. This is because the state-wide system can only show 20 pick up locations at a time. Since there are over 50 places to choose from on our campus, the display is done in rotation.
   
   
   
   6. For those with office addresses, campus mail can be a delivery option instead of pick up. If you are not sure, we can look it up or change it.
   
   
   
   
   
9. In your office or home, if nothing happens after you completed the request form, you may have to turn on JavaScript. (Contact the CITES Help Desk at consult@uiuc.edu or call 217-244-7000 for help).
   
   
10. Through MY ACCOUNT, you can now renew items even if they are overdue. You can also view the status of the items REQUESTed.
    
    
11. The item you looked up can be "remembered" in MY ACCOUNT, but to borrow the item, you have to access ILCSO Libraries. This is because the libraries and its databases were disjointed under the new system (sort of like de-regulation of the telephone system). To make one-stop REQUESTing possible as in the past, we had to re-create a union catalog under the name ILCSO Libraries.
    
    
12. If you need to look up to see if we have a particular book or journal, and the system is dead or very slow, you can also look it up using the World Cat (at the Vet. Med. Library Home page, in the group named Study REsources). The search process is similar to that of the GUIDED Search of our online catalog, and if we have it, a little logo of a cap is displayed. If it is a new biomedical book, check also our New Book List.

Note: The slowness of the online catalog does not affect other resources, unless the problem is network-related. In that case, your campus e-mail speed might be affected as well.