Getting Started in MTC Library

MTC Library has access to hundreds of thousands of ebooks! Check out this guide to learn how to find and access them.

To find books in the library:

1. Enter your search terms in OneSearch on the MTC Library's Homepage.

2. Tweak your results to limit your search to only books.
   • Select "Held by Library"
   • Choose your Campus
   • Select "Books" as Resource Type
   • Apply Filters (green button)

3. Select a title to view the item's information and locate the call number.
   • You will use the Call Number to locate the book on the library shelf. 

MTC Library shelves books according to the Library of Congress (LCC) classification system. The LCC Call Number from OneSearch designates a location in the library's bookshelves (stacks) where you can find the referenced item.

How Call Numbers Work

• Line 1: Alphabetical arrangement by the first letter(s) representing the subject.
• Line 2: Numerical arrangement within the subject area.
• Line 3: Alphabetical and numerical arrangement, often representing the author's last name and publication date.

What does the call number mean?

The LCC arranges materials by subjects. The first sections of the call number represent the subject of the book. The letter-and-decimal section of the call number often represents the author's last name. The last section of a call number is often the date of publication.

Book's title: Becoming a climate scientist.  
Author: Dickman, Kyle
Call number: QC981.2 .D533 2021

• A: The first two lines describe the subject of the book,  QC 981.2 = Climatology and weather
• B: This line often represents author's last name, .D533 =  Dickman, Kyle
• C: The last section of a call number is often the date of publication, 1990

Because books are classified by subject, you can often find several helpful books on the same shelf, or nearby. The example shows books within the LC Classification QC851-999 all about meteorology and climatology.

• X: Why Are We Waiting?: The Logic, Urgency, and Promise of Tackling Climate Change, by Nicholas Stern.
• Y: Drought : an interdisciplinary perspective, by Benjamin Cook.
• Z: Encyclopedia of hurricanes, typhoons, and cyclones, by David Longshore.

Further details about the LCC classification system is available from the Library of Congress.

To find books in the library using the Library of Congress Classification (LCC) system, follow these steps:

1. Identify the Subject Area:

   • Look for the first section of the call number, which represents the subject of the book.
2. Locate the Shelf:
   • Once you know the subject area, go to the section of the library that corresponds to that subject.
3. Arrange Books on the Shelf:
   • Within the subject area, books are arranged numerically by the number following the letters.
4. Find Author and Publication Date:
   • Within the same numerical sequence, books are arranged alphabetically by the next letter(s) and decimally by the following number.
5. Example:
   • If you're searching for "Becoming a Climate Scientist" by Kyle Dickman with the call number QC981.2 .D533 2021:
   • Start in the section for Climatology and Weather (QC851-999).
   • Look for the specific numerical range (QC981.2).
   • Within this range, find the section with call numbers starting with ".D" (representing Dickman, Kyle).
   • Finally, locate the book with the publication date 2021.