English 151

The CUNY OneSearch is as simple as Google search, and it allows you to quickly find high-quality scholarly articles, books, and multimedia by searching across all library resources in one place. Try it by typing your search term or topic in the search box above.  Below are some tips:

• Use OneSearch to quickly find out if the library has a specific book you are looking for, such as textbooks. OneSearch is also great when you want to quickly find books and articles on a topic without having to search individual databases.
   
• When your search results are displayed (usually a huge number), use the Filter my results tool on the left side of the display page to help you refine your search so that you can find exactly what you are looking for. For example, under Resource Type, you can limit your search results to books, book chapters, articles, and audio visual materials. You can also limit your search to articles published in Peer-Reviewed Journals
   
• Try finding a book or some articles using OneSearch above.  Type a book title or a topic in the OneSearch box, and then click Search. Try topics such as "Medical Marijuana", or textbook title Everyone is an author, or Language Awareness: Readings for College Writers

This is a basic search for an E-Book using OneSearch (where books live).

These two videos show you how to find an E-Book on a particular topic in the Library.

Books at most academic libraries, including CSI Library, are shelved by call numbers based on the Library of Congress Classification System. This system organizes books according to subject, so those on the same topic have similar call numbers and are usually located near each other. This makes it easy for you  to browse the shelves for books about a specific topic/subject.  Letters of the English alphabet are used to represent 21 broad subjects (see table on the right).

Every book in the library has a unique call number. A call number is like an address in that it tells you where the book is located in the library. Call numbers appear on the spine of the book, and in the library online catalog when you look for books using FirstSearch or Find Books on the library homepage.

Reading Call Numbers: Let's look at the call number:

LB2395. C65. 1991.  The title of the book is: What You Need to Know About Developing Study Skills, Taking Notes and Tests, Using Dictionaries and Libraries written by Coman, Marcia J.

The first 2 lines describe the subject of the book. LB2395 = methods of study in higher education. The 3rd line often represents the author's last name: .C65 = Coman, and the last line is the year the book was published: 1991 = year of publication.