Search the Library catalogue
Search the library catalogue
The RNIB Library Catalogue gives you access to over 170,000 items available for loan and/or sale in audio, large and giant print, braille and Moon.
In addition to RNIB books, the catalogue also contains records from other organisations but most of these are currently being removed, eventually leaving only items from Calibre and the Torch Trust.
The main sections of the catalogue are:
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Search - The first page you come to when entering the catalogue, this is where you put in your search words. You can also choose to do an advanced search.
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Search results - This is the list of titles that match your search. You can refine your search from this page to narrow the list down. You can add books to your request list from this page.
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Record display - This is the detailed view of an individual book when you select it from your search results. You can also add books to your request list from this page.
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Request list - You can create and send request lists to the library or the email address of your choice. You can organise and email your requested books from this page.
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Help - If you are having problems there is a useful help page.
Searching top tips
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From the search page, enter your search words into the box (please be sure not to confuse this with the public website search box at the top of the page).
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In the first drop-down list select title, author, subject or ISBN to narrow your search. To do a keyword search you can select the 'any word' option.
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In the second drop-down list you can select a format from: audio, braille formats, braille grade one, Moon formats, braille music, print (regular, large and giant sizes), Talking Books and video with audio description (please note that digital text titles are not currently available although the option to search for them remains). We recommend that you select the format that you need in order to produce more specific results. However, for the broadest possible results you can search by 'any word' and 'all' formats.
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Select the 'submit' button to go to your search results.
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Advanced search allows you to combine two searches. For example, you could search for 'Charles Dickens' under authors in the first box and 'orphans' under subjects in the second box. You can also sort your results by title, author or date.
Browsing your search results
When you have entered and submitted your search you will be presented with the search results page, from here you can do several things:
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If there are a large number of results they may be displayed over several pages. If there are more than 100 results you can jump directly to a specific page. If there are less than 100 results you can sort them by title, author or date.
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You can narrow your search by entering additional search words.
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You can add books to your request list (this can also be done from the record display page).
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You can get details of a book by selecting the title. This will take you to the record display page. You can always return to your list of search results afterwards.
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The catalogue allows you to browse the results of your search in many ways. For example, you can find books by the same author, similar subjects or in the same series by selecting the relevant links on either the search results page or record display.
Creating and sending your request list
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To add a book to your request list, from either the search results page or the record display page select 'add to request list'. You can then continue to browse the catalogue and add more books to your list.
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When you have finished browsing the catalogue select 'show request list'. On the request list page you can remove books from your list or view the full details of the books.
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To send your list to the library select 'email request to library'. Enter your name, email address, phone number, delivery address and any other information. It is important to select the format that you require from the drop-down list because books are available in several formats. Select the 'send' button to send your list to the library.
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You can send the list to your own email address by selecting 'email records to self'. Enter your email address and choose a name for the resulting document. Select the 'send' button'.
Other book catalogues
You could also try:
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RNIB Shop - for other RNIB publications and resources
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Book lists - helpful reading lists for braille, audio and giant print
Further help
If you have any questions or need assistance please contact:
RNIB Helpline: 0303 123 9999
Email: library@rnib.org.uk