WorldCat Local Frequently Asked Questions
This is a list of questions from students, faculty, and staff about WorldCat Local. To ask a question, contact the .
Is the library catalogue Novanet or WorldCat Local?
Think of WorldCat Local as our catalogue on steriods. It searches both Novanet (our catalogue) and some extra databases. It has also has a growing list of extra features such as cover art, citation tools, tagging, and more. You can still search Novanet directly, but WorldCat Local is much easier to use.
What is a discovery layer? I heard WorldCat Local is one.
Yes, WorldCat Local is a discovery layer. It is a tool that searches several research resources at the same time. It is essentially a library database that searches other databases, including the library catalogue.
What does WorldCat Local search?
It searches our library catalogue (Novanet), other library catalogues worldwide, and several research databases. (But it is still best to use the databases on the library website). By default it shows NSCC materials first.
What other databases does it search?
It has these built-in databases as of June 29, 2011. More databases may be added later.
- ArticleFirst: general articles
- MEDLINE: medical articles
- Elsevier metadata: general
- ERIC: education
- British Library Inside Serials: general
- JSTOR archive: general
- OAIster: archives and open access journals
- PapersFirst: conference papers
- ProceedingsFirst: more conference papers
Are these databases full text?
They are citation only, except for OAIster which searches open access journals.
If we have online access to the articles your search, then they will float to the top of the result list. These will include any links we have to the full text (if any). So they might appear to be full text databases.
Are all of our databases in WorldCat Local?
No. Most of our database will not work well with WorldCat Local. There is a list of databases on our library main page and on our database page.
Will the Journal Source search in the Advance Search also search for abbreviated journal titles?
No. Abbreviated titles do not seem to be indexed. If you are trying to see if we have a journal, the A-Z Journal List is a better tool, but it too does not search by abbreviation.
Can we use the RSS feeds in the saved lists to show recent acquisitions at our libraries?
You cannot limit a search to just the recent acquisitions. But if you have a stack of new books you can search for each individual one by ISBN, and then make a list to share as an RSS.
Why are there links to other libraries under "Find a copy online"? How can we use these?
These links are not supposed to show up when NSCC does not own the copy. Unfortunately you cannot use those links unless you are a memember of those other libraries. OCLC, the company that created the software, started working on a solution in June 2011, and hope to finish it soon.
For more help
- See our Library Services website for more help on WorldCat Local.
- See OCLC's WorldCat Local Help pages in WorldCat Local.
- Contact the library
Updated August 2011