Searching Your Local Public Library -- Bleeding Disorders Association of Northeastern New York (BDANENY), Inc.

When you want to search for information at your local public library, you now have choices to make—go to the library to start your search or from the comfort of your home start your search via the libraries on-line catalog or on-line librarian. If you choose to ask a librarian online, a live person will chat with you and will probably direct you to some of the databases to which the library subscribes or to some of the databases available to New York State residents.

Simply finding the website for your library and searching the catalog can be easy, but we all know there is a twist to everything. In this case it’s the search terms as well as the type of book or journal article that you would look for as you seek answers for your questions.

If you choose to start searching a library catalog online, you need to realize that the catalog is designed to be accessible to everyone and it’s a machine (not a live person like a librarian). This means that while you know you are looking for information on bleeding disorders, the catalog might not understand you. The best way to explore a library catalog starts with broad terms like bleeding disorders and then narrows it down to more definite terms like hemophilia or leukemia. When you type in hemophilia or leukemia, you may get very few records, but when you type in bleeding disorders, you end up with a lot more resources to consider. Once you’ve called up a list of titles to look at, you then have to narrow down your choices. The list may contain titles that are fiction and titles that are nonfiction. While a fiction book may provide a good story, it provides little reliable or verifiable information. A non-fiction book may provide good information, but is it the kind of information you want? To determine this, check the table of contents and the index to see what subjects are listed. A lot of the rules that I talked about in evaluating a website also apply to books. Ask who wrote it and why and what audience it is intended for. During your visit to the library, keep in mind that there is a section of the library called the reference section.

Reference books are usuallusually non-fiction books that cannot be checked out of the library while circulating non-fiction books can be checked out and taken home to read. You will usually find the most up-to-date and reliable information available in the library in the reference section. Also, you will find a librarian there to help you and you may find resources that did not come up during your online search. The librarian will direct your search to resources that will complement the books you may have already found. These resources can be books or quite possibly magazine or journal articles. Some of these articles will be available online via databases the library subscribes to or via free databases that are available to New York State residents.

If you decided to ask a librarian online about bleeding disorders, they may have already directed you to some of these databases. Not every library subscribes to databases, but every library in New York State should be able to provide you access to the New York Novel databases or you can access it from home at http://www.novelny.org with your driver’s license or local public library card. Next time around, we’ll discuss e-books, ejournals and share more information on databases. Until then, here is some information on libraries online that most New York State residents can access.

The New York Public Library, the Albany Public Library and the New York State Library are all online (as are many small rural libraries) and provide access to databases for their cardholders. Anyone who lives, works, pays property taxes, or attends school in New York State is eligible for a library card at the New York Public Library (http://www.nypl.org ) and if you are resident of Albany or Rensselaer County, you can get a card at the Albany Public Library (http://www.albanypubliclibrary.org). All New York State residents, 18 years and older, are eligible to receive a NYS Resident's Borrower's card for use at the New York State library (http://www.nysl.nysed.gov) located in Albany, New York. If you choose to go to the library to check out books so be sure to ask what the borrowing rules are for your particular library.