Before you start:
Make sure that you have a barcoded Clark State ID which is valid for the current quarter, and that you are registered in the library computer system for this quarter, too. If you don’t have an ID, you can get one in the Records and Registration Office, located in Rhodes Hall. If you’re not sure about whether or not you’re registered with the library, check at the circulation desk.

If you know the title or author of a particular self-help book, look it up in LOIS (the Clark State catalog.) If you want to read the book When I Say No, I Feel Guilty, click on Title, and when you get the prompt for title, type in: 'when I say no I feel guilty'. No need to worry about capital letters or punctuation and no quotes, please.

The pagewith all the information about the book will appear. If the book has already been checked out by someone else, the status box will tell you when the book is due back. You can search for something else, or you can click on OhioLINK button to search the Central Catalog for the same book at another library (look for the OhioLINK button near the top of the screen.) When the record appears, click on Request Item and follow the instructions on the screen. It usually takes 2-3 days for the book to arrive. You need a current ID and barcode to do this process.

Example:
To finda book on the topic 'listening': Choose 'Subject' on the LOIS screen, and then type 'listening'. Here’s what you’ll see:

1 Listening see related subjects 2 entries
2 Listening 11 entries
3 Listening Ability Testing 1 entry
4 Listening Devices Unauthorized Use of see eavesdropping 1 entry
5 Listening Study and Teaching (Preschool) Activity programs 1 entr

The first line tells you what subjects are related to listening, for example: hearing. For our example, lets click on 'listening' on line two. You’ll get a browse list of the books about listening. They may not all be self-help books, so click on the title to look at the whole record of the first book. A quick glance will tell you that the first book isn’t a self-help book, so click on Next Record, and that will take you forward through the list to the next book, which is a self-help book: Effective Listening, Key to Your Success. If you’re not crazy about that one, press Next Record again, to go on to the next entry.

The screen will tell you if the book you want is avaialble. If you don’t know how the call number system works, we’ll be glad to help you. (Or take the call number tutorial "How to Find a Book in the CSCC Library). If the book you want is out, you can borrow a copy from another library by accessing the OhioLINK Central Catalog and requesting the item. (The system won’t let you borrow a book from another library if there’s a copy available in our library.) Follow the onscreen dir ections. When the system asks you for your barcode, enter it without any spaces. The book should arrive in our library and be available for you to pick up in a couple of days. You may want to look at the pathfinder Patron Online Borrowing from the OhioLINK Central Catalog. Be aware that the penalties for keeping an OhioLINK book overdue, or for losing it, are steep! And we’re not kidding.

Here are some topics that might help you find just the right self-hlep book: