[Web4lib] google & library catalogs

[Jim Cody]

I already replied off-list to Chris but maybe other
people are not aware of this.

If you search Google using the bound phrase "find in a
library" (in quotes) and a title or author, it will
bring the Open WorldCat results close to the top. 
Then   if you click on one of those results you go
into Open WorldCat, where you can enter your zip code
and get a list of the closest libraries holding that
item.

It's easy to use, except for the part about the "find
in a library" bound phrase, which only a librarian
would know.  I use this all the time at my public
library job to refer people to other libraries when we
don't have something.

Here's OCLC's explanation page:
http://www.oclc.org/worldcat/open/how/default.htm

But it's easier just to try it yourself.

Jim Cody, Burbank PL

--- Chris Stearns <stearcs at auburn.edu> wrote:

> Yeah, that would suck if everyone did it because the
> world's Googlers 
> are looking for the info itself. For the most part,
> they want the text 
> of Hamlet, not a record for my library's Hamlet
> holdings (much less 
> 20,000!).
> 
> If there were a way to specify via Google that
> you're searching for 
> Hamlet holdings at any library within 30 miles of
> you, then let Google, 
> Google Maps, etc. find it all for you then spit out
> directions and the 
> reference librarian's name, that might be kinda
> cool, but it would have 
> to be one of those "tucked-away" Google features
> that you have to 
> specifically call and which isn't enabled by
> default, else the 20,000 
> Hamlets (and having studied Hamlet for an entire
> semester in grad 
> school, 1 hamlet is definitely enough :-)
> 
> 
> -- 
> Chris Stearns
> Software/Programming
> Auburn University Libraries
> http://www.lib.auburn.edu
> _______________________________________________
> Web4lib mailing list
> Web4lib at webjunction.org
> http://lists.webjunction.org/web4lib/
> 


__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Tired of spam?  Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around 
http://mail.yahoo.com