ENG 105-08 (Ryan): The Hofheimer Library website: a magic key that you paid for

The H.C. Hofheimer II Library Home Page

The H.C. Hofheimer Library homepage (URL: https://www.vwu.edu/library/) is your portal to a universe of information.

Through this website you can:

• Find books in our library, or in thousands of libraries worldwide
• Use databases to get around paywalls and access scholarly journals and newspapers
• Schedule an appointment for research help with a librarian
• Browse our media collections, University Archives, and Digital Collections
• Access Course Reserves and research guides like this one

The Library Catalog

Quotation Marks

Put phrases in quotation marks to search for the entire phrase.

Searching for native american will find results with the word "native" or the word "american."

Searching for "native american" will find results about Native Americans.

Boolean Operators

Boolean (BOO-LEE-IN) operators are another useful way to refine your search.

Put the word AND (in ALL-CAPS) between two keywords and your search will pull up only results that have *both* keywords.

Put the word OR (in ALL-CAPS) between two keywords and your search will pull up results that have either one keyword, or the other, or both.

Searching by Location

If you only want to search the Reference section, you can do a search such as the following.

Your Topic Keyword AND b8:reference

For example: Desegregation AND b8:reference

Other searchable sections include: audio visual, periodicals, oversize, and general collection.

Filters / Limiters

Once you are on the results page, you can limit a search by checking the filter boxes on the left hand side.

Some ways to filter include:

• language 
• format (e.g. DVD)
• date published 
• author and subject

You can also check the box for Minitex and Worldcat to search larger networks of libraries. If you need a book from another library, click into the record, click the "Request from another library" box, and submit the form that auto-populates.