Frequently Asked Questions

Yes. It doesn't matter what carrier you personally use for mobile service. The contract is between WOU & T-Mobile. So you might have AT&T as your personal mobile carrier, and as long as T-Mobile's network  covers your location, you can use a library hotspot. 

Current students, faculty, and staff now have full access* to NYTimes.com and NYT mobile apps via the WOU Library subscription.

To activate your access, please follow these steps:

Visit the NYTimes set up page:

• If you are on campus: visit accessnyt.com and search for Western Oregon University
• If you are off campus visit NYT My Account page 

If you don't already have a NYT account that uses your @wou.edu or @mail.wou.edu email address: 

• Click on the blue button that says "Create Account"
• Follow the instructions on that page. You must sign up using your @wou.edu or @mail.wou.edu email. You may use Google sign in with your @mail.wou.edu email. 
• Once activated, your login will provide access to NYTimes.com from any location. NY Times will prompt you to renew your access to our subscription using the above links when it expires. The expiration date for Faculty/Staff is 4 years and student account lengths vary. depending on enrollment status. 

If you already have an account using your @wou.edu or @mail.wou.edu email address:

• If it is a paid subscription, you must contact NYT at 1-800-591-9233 or 1-800-698‑4637 and ask that your current subscription be canceled before you will be able to activate your account under WOU's subscription.

• If it is unpaid or you have already cancelled your subscription, use the sign in option to connect your account.

Once you have set up/connected your account, you can visit NYT.com from anywere (including the app) and have access once you are signed in. The NY Times will prompt you to renew your access to our subscription using the above links when it expires. The expiration date for Faculty/Staff is 4 years and student account lengths vary, depending on enrollment status. 

*Please note: Our access does not include Premium Crosswords, Times Insider or The New York Times Crosswords apps. Because of certain copyright restrictions, access to archived articles within the date range 1923-1980 is limited. Within this date range, you may only open 5 PDF articles per day.

"On reserve" is when a professor creates a collection of materials that are "reserved"--excluded or from general circulation--to support a specific class. Instructors often put their personally-owned items on reserve as well as library-owned materials. The instructor chooses what short-term loan is appropriate--as short as four hours or as long as a week. Reserves optimizes sharing among class members since no one borrows the course materials for a standard six-week loan. 

See also: 

• How do I find a book my professor put on reserve?

A Request ensures that you are the next patron to check out an item. It's also called a Hold. If the item is currently available, library staff removes it from the open collection to the Hold Shelf at the Checkout Desk. The item can only be checked out by the requesting patron unless the hold is canceled. 

If the item is currently loaned to another patron, a Request puts you in line for the item. When the previous patron returns it, Primo sends you a notice that the item is now available for you to pick up.

A hold expires if the patron doesn't check the item out within a few days. The item returns to open circulation--or moves to the next patron in line. You can cancel any holds you no longer want under My Account→ Requests.

Request a shipping label from the library. WOU will pay for the shipping expense.

In this request, you will indicate the shipping service you will use.:

• UPS: UPS Locations (we prefer UPS, if it's available to you)
• United States Postal Service: USPS Locations

A shipping label will be emailed to you within a few business days from bullisl@wou.edu. 

Please pack carefully to prevent damage during shipping. Some UPS locations offer packing services if you want help. To pack the shipment yourself, you need 

• A sturdy box, a minimum dimension of 5.5” x 8.5” and spacious enough to not crowd the contents.
• Cushioning, such as bubble wrap or packing paper, to protect contents and fill packing voids. 
• Packing tape 

 

Booking is making a reservation on a library item--scheduling for a future specified time. For example, an instructor may book a DVD for classroom use weeks in advance, or a student may reserve a camera for an upcoming project or event.

The item continues in open circulation, but due dates are shortened when necessary to ensure it's available for the booking.

Both Summit and Interlibrary Loan (ILL) are services to share resources among libraries, but they fill different needs. Here is a brief description and comparison of the services. 

Summit is the borrowing system for member libraries of the Orbis Cascade Alliance--academic libraries in Oregon, Washington, and Idaho. To maximize efficiency and predictability, libraries agree to basic policies and procedures. For example, 

• All books in a library's general collection circulate through Summit. Individual libraries may allow additional physical collections to circulate, such as audiovisual items.
• Summit supplies physical loans only--no copies of articles or chapters. 
• The standard book loan is 6 weeks. If a library allows an additional collection to circulate through Summit, the loan period is either 6 weeks or 6 days.
• There are no renewals.
• There is no cost associated with each individual request, since a contracted courier delivers materials on a fixed expense to the library.
• You find and request materials through Primo. 

Interlibrary Loan involves over 10,000 academic, public, and special libraries across the United States and the world. There are standards of practice but no shared policies or procedures for participating libraries. 

• All kinds of materials are shared through ILL. The broader network of libraries loans books, audiovisuals, microforms, and other physical items not available through Summit borrowing, and it supplies scanned copies of articles and book chapters. Some libraries also scan items they will not lend physically (special collections and archives, for example) to share electronically.
• The owning library sets the due date for a physical item loan. When you receive an electronic copy, it is yours to keep. 
• Renewals are at the discretion of the owning library.
• Expenses associated with individual requests vary due to lending fees and shipping costs. 
• One pathway to make a request is to log into My Library and select the New ILL request tab. 

Print Credits

1. Your network account gets 225 print credits added each term you are enrolled. Your Portal page displays your current balance.
2. Purchase additional credits at any time through the Portal link, and you can use them immediately. 
3. Unused credits roll over to the next term, Fall through Summer intersession. In mid-September, just before Fall number, everyone's accounts get zeroed out and start over at 225. 
4. One page sent to a black & white print queue costs one credit, and one page sent to a color queue costs five credits. Double-sided printing costs two and ten credits, respectively.

Choose the Printer & Queue

1. Make sure to choose a nearby printer--the computers do not have location-based defaults, and you don't want to have to wander the Admin building to find your paper! Look for the sign with the printer's name. 
2. The printers in Hamersly Library are: 

• Lab-HL-Ref or Lab-HL-Color: 1st floor east reference area [your printout will come from one of the three printers on this queue]
• Lab-HLRefWest or Lab-HLColorWest: 1st floor west reference area  [your printout will come from one of the two printers on this queue]
• Lab-HL108 or Lab-HL108Color: In room 108, the computer lab and classroom
• Lab-HLAlcove or Lab-HLAlcoveColor: 2nd floor southwest corner in the Computer Alcove 
• Lab-HL-DMC or Lab-HL-DMC-Color: 2nd floor northeast corner in the Digital Media Center [11x17" printing available]
• Lab-24HourRoom or Lab-24HourRoomColor: in room 106, by the Monmouth Ave. entrance.

See Also:

• I sent something to the printer and it didn't come out. What's wrong?
• Can I print onto my own specialty paper? 

You can check out as many general books, DVDs, etc., at one time as you want. You can have up to 200 items owned by our Summit partner libraries at any one time.

See also:

• What is Summit?

During the COVID-19 closure:

Our audio and video equipment/rooms are not available while the library is closed. It is still possible to make recording using your phone or the webcam on your computer. Check out our guide for resources to help you with creating and editing while away from campus.

During normal circumstances:

The library has several options for you to do video recording. The Digital Production Room for Video (HL 222) is set up with a camcorder and DSLR camera on tripods, lighting equipment, and black and green screen backdrops. The room is also equipped with video editing software and equipment, and technical assistance in nearby during Technology Tutoring Hours or often as needed during weekdays. You may reserve the room, or if it's not currently in use, you may pick up the key at the Checkout Desk. 

You can also checkout equipment to use elsewhere. We have full camcorders as well as simple Flip cameras, and floor and tabletop tripods.  See the Equipment Guide for the inventory as well as user manuals. Other equipment of potential interest includes a webcam, desk- and camera-mounted microphones, and black and white backdrops. 

See also:

• Can I reserve a room? 

Most academic libraries, including Hamersly Library, use Library of Congress (LC) call numbers. The system is not hard to use, it's just a different method of organization than the Dewey Decimal System that you might be used to. Primo displays the call number horizontally, like this:
GT2110 .H3 1998.
On the shelves, you'll see the call numbers stacked vertically, like this: 

 

First, make sure you are in the correct location (collection) of the library according to Primo. Then take the call number in "chunks" and proceed alpha-numerically in order. 

Once you find the large section of G, then find GT. 

Once you find GT, look for GT2110. 

Once you find GT2110, look for GT2110. H

Finally, look for GT2110. H3

The 1998 is the publishing year but is only relevant when there are multiple editions of a book on the shelf. 

Occasionally the last bit of the call number will indicate a volume number from a multi-volume work or a copy number if we have more than one. 

The LC Classification Outline defines the topical organization. 

See also:

• How do I find a book? 

 

 

Summit is the system in which Hamersly Library and nearly 40 partner libraries share physical resources. When you discover a book or DVD, for example, in Primo and it's not available at Hamersly Library, you place a Summit request and an owning library sends it to us for you. It takes an average of 2-3 business days for delivery, and you receive an email (or text, if you sign up) when it's ready for you to pick up from the Checkout Desk. There is no charge to you. 

All of the Summit partner libraries are members of the Orbis Cascade Alliance, a consortium of college, university, and community colleges in Oregon, Washington, and Idaho. 

See also: 

• Can I visit other Summit libraries? 
• What's the difference between Summit and Interlibrary Loan?
• How long can I check out a book?
• How many books can I check out?
• How can I get text messages about my borrowing activity?

 

Yes, after registering for a public library card, WOU students can access those resources as well as those available through Hamersly Library. Register by going to the city library for your current address and presenting a government-issued photo ID (driver license, passport, etc.) and a recent rental agreement or bill (cable, internet, cell phone, electricity, etc.) that includes your address. Students who live on campus can print out their RSC address from WolfWeb. You may also register online for a temporary account and complete the process in person. 

If you live in Monmouth, Independence, Dallas, Salem or elsewhere within Marion, Polk or Yamhill counties, register with the CCRLS library district. Like the Summit system, CCRLS allows you to borrow books from any of the partner libraries, either in person or through the catalog. A daily courier delivers your requested material to the library of your choice at no charge to you.

Or register with Corvallis-Benton County Public Library if that's appropriate.

Yes! First, at the computer, start the Print command, then:

1. select the printer queue you want (ex. HL-Ref, HL-Alcove-Color),
2. click Advanced or Preferences, select the Bypass Tray, and click OK to apply the preferences.
3. Complete the print command.

Now go to the printer with your paper. When the printer is ready to print your document, its screen displays  an alert screen with your username and the file name, indicating that it needs the paper in the bypass tray to continue. Fold down the bypass tray on the front of the printer and place your paper on it. The printer will detect the paper there and automatically pull it in to print.

This is easiest when you select a queue with only one printer, such as HL-108 or HL-Alcove. But when multiple printer devices serve the queue, wait to see which device picked up your print job.

 

See also:

• How do I print in the library? 

Yes, but indirectly, through WOU's virtual desktop (VDI).

To print from your laptop: 

1. email yourself the needed document
2. use a web browser to go to wouvdi.wou.edu. Select VMware Horizon HTML Access and login with your PawPrint. Click the 1. Lab Stations box.
3. within the VMware window, retrieve your email and download the document.
4. still within the VMware window, send the document to the printer of your choice. 

Alternatively, you can send the document to yourself (or save to a USB drive), then log onto a library computer and proceed to print as usual.

If you are using your laptop for online work (Moodle, article databases, etc.) and there's a chance you'll want to print to a campus printer, connect to VMWare first and use the web browser there. 

See Also:

• How do I print in the library?

You can return equipment to the library either in person or by shipping it at WOU’s expense. Besides the main device, be sure to include all parts listed on the inventory. Each part has a numbered label matching the device's barcode. 

If Primo says an item is Available but you cannot find it, please ask at the Information Desk or contact us. After we make sure you didn't overlook it, we'll do a full search for it and contact you if we find it. In the meantime, we can also help you request a Summit copy or find it in a nearby public library. 

 

See also:

• How do I find a book?
• How do I use the call number?
• What is Summit?
• Can I use the public library as a WOU student? 

 

If you are a current WOU student, staff, or faculty member, you may register at other Summit libraries as a Summit Visiting Patron. This status allows you to borrow directly from the "adopting" library's collections and/or the option of picking up your Summit requests at that library rather than at Hamersly. To register, take your WOU ID card to the library's checkout or circulation desk and ask to become a Summit Visiting Patron. The staff will have you login to My Library to verify your current status and your library expiration date in our system. You may need to occasionally renew your status at the adopting library. 

 

The current day's hours appear on the right side of the library's homepage.  Here are this week's hours for the library generally (at the top), and for The Press and Technology Tutoring in the grid.

Primo provides three details you need to find an physical item. They are the item's

1. location, or collection, within the library (ex: Course Reserves or Books Floor 3 or Juvenile Fiction or Video),

2. call number (ex: HV8025 .P74 2002 or E BEA or 13-7 pc or REC HOF

3. status (ex: Available or Check Holdings)

The location is very important because a call number could be placed in any of five collections. Having only a call number is like having a house number without a street name. 

See also:

• How do I use the call number?
• What if the item I need is checked out or missing?