First, search for books, DVDs or CDs in the catalog. Note the location, call number, and status of the book or other item you want. If the item's status says it's available, you can check it out. If the status has a date listed under it, the item is currently checked out.
To find an item that is available, think of the location as the "neighborhood" where the item is and the call number is its "address" in that neighborhood. For example, the book:
Children and Television: Fifty Years of Research
is located in the General Collection (neighborhood) and it's call number is HQ784.T4 C512 2007. The call number is like its address (shelf HQ784) in the General Collection neighborhood.
You can click on the link under the "location" of each item to see a map of that location in the library. In this case, the General Collection map shows that it is on the 2nd floor of the library.
Books might be in the General Collection, Reference Collection, Featured New Books, or Government Documents collections. Media materials are located in the DVD, VHS or CD collections. To locate these materials, see our library maps.