FAQ - Answers to Frequently Asked Questions about
ILLiad |
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- What is Interlibrary Loan?
- What is ILLiad?
- What is the Virtual Catalog?
- Who can use ILLiad and the Virtual Catalog?
- How do I submit a request for interlibrary loan?
- Why do I need a username and password to use ILLiad?
- What if I forget my password?
- How much does interlibrary loan cost?
- The book I need does not circulate in this library. Can I borrow this through interlibrary loan?
- Can I get dissertations through interlibrary loan?
- How many requests can I place through interlibrary loan? Is there a limit?
- How are materials delivered and notifications sent?
- What are the loan periods and restrictions for interlibrary loan materials?
- What is the overdue policy on interlibrary loan materials?
- How can I check the status of my request?
- How can I check to see what I've requested in the past?
- Can I renew items?
- I submitted a request with the wrong information. Can I change it?
- How much time do I have to cancel or modify a request?
- How do I get my articles when they arrive?
- What is electronic delivery?
What is Interlibrary Loan?
Interlibrary Loan is a service through which patrons may request materials not owned by or currently available at the University of Massachusetts - Boston.
What is ILLiad?
ILLiad is the electronic system you use to request an item through Interlibrary Loan. The name ILLiad can be thought of as an acronym for:
InterLibrary Loan internet accessible database.
What is the Virtual Catalog?
It is a service where patrons can order books not owned by the University of Massachusetts - Boston. The BLC Virtual Catalog includes most of the academic libraries in the Boston Library Consortium. For a complete listing click here. The Massachusetts Virtual Catalog will include public and academic libraries in Massachusetts. Books will arrive much faster when ordered through the Virtual Catalog because there is no staff mediation required - when the patron requests a book, the request is automatically sent to a lending library.
Who can use ILLiad and the Virtual Catalog?
Current students, faculty, and staff of UMass Boston may request materials through Interlibrary Loan and the Virtual Catalog. Alumni of UMass Boston, and students attending other institutions are NOT eligible to use Interlibrary Loan and Virtual Catalog services at the Healey Library. Contact your current institution, or your local public library for assistance.
How do I submit a request for interlibrary loan?
All ILL requests must be submitted via our online form. A separate request must be submitted for each article or book needed. The first time you request an item you will be required to fill out a "First Time User Registration" with your contact information and preferences and you will need to choose a username and password. This registration sets up your ILL account and needs to be filled out only once.
Why do I need a username and password to use ILLiad?
Your username and password allows us to give you secure access to information about your interlibrary loan requests. We can also enable you to edit your personal information such as your address or phone number.
What if I forget my password?
In the event that you forget your password, please email the Interlibrary Loan department at library.ill@umb.edu. We can then reset your password allowing you access to ILLiad. Please change your password once you logon to ILLiad.
How much does interlibrary loan cost?
There is no charge to you for materials obtained through interlibrary loan. The library absorbs any charges which must be paid to obtain the material you need. In cases where the documents needed can only be obtained by purchase, you would be notified and, referred to an appropriate source for the material.
Please be aware that although we have many agreements with other libraries which allow for the free exchange of materials, sending a request is labor intensive, and we often must pay from $10.00 - $25.00 to another library per transaction.
The book I need does not circulate in this library. Can I borrow this through interlibrary loan?
No. We will not request items that are owned and available in some manner here.
Can I get dissertations through interlibrary loan?
We are successful in being able to borrow dissertations from other institutions about half of the time. If the dissertation you need is not available for loan (we would notify you of this fact), or you already know that you want to purchase it, you can order it directly from Dissertation Express on the web at http://wwwlib.umi.com/dxweb/gateway (Choose "Connect to Dissertation express as an individual"), or by phone at 1-800-521-0600.
How many requests can I place through interlibrary loan? Is there a limit?
We have an active request limit of 30 requests per person at any one time. This ensures fair and equitable service to ALL of our users by assuring that no one person or research project monopolizes our services at any given time.
How are materials delivered and notifications sent?
Articles can be delivered electronically or sent directly to you at the address you specify. Books must be picked up at the library. Notifications for books will be sent to you by email. You may also check the status of your ILL requests within your ILLIAD account by choosing the "review Requests" section. Books and other items borrowed should be picked up and returned to the Healey Library Circulation Desk.
What are the loan periods and restrictions for interlibrary loan materials?
Loan periods are established by the lending library and vary between two and four weeks. These loan periods must be respected. Lending libraries sometimes require that their materials be used only in the library, or that they not be photocopied. ILL will not waive such restrictions for individuals.
What is the overdue policy on interlibrary loan materials?
Interlibrary Loan books are lent as a courtesy by another library. In order to maintain our reputation as a borrowing library, and our privilege to borrow, we must adhere to the due dates and restrictions imposed by that library. Please help us to keep good relationships with the libraries we borrow from by returning your materials in a timely manner.
Overdue notices are sent on the following schedule:
- 1st Overdue is sent when an item is more than 5 days overdue.
- 2nd Overdue notice is sent when an item is more than 10 days overdue.
- 3rd Overdue notices are sent when an Interlibrary Loan item is more than 30 days overdue.
When the 3rd overdue notice is sent you will be automatically BLOCKED from using Interlibrary Loan services.
A BLOCK on your record will also be placed for failure to return materials that have been RECALLED within 5 days of the recall notice or a notice that a renewal request has not been granted. All blocks on your record will be removed when the overdue material is returned.
How can I check the status of my request?
ILLIad provides tracking of current requests. Log into your ILLiad account and choose the View/Modify Outstanding Requests option under the Review Requests heading.
How can I check to see what I've requested in the past?
Log into your ILLiad account and choose the View Request History option under the View Requests heading. We will keep requests online for several years to comply with record keeping requirements.
Can I renew items?
Renewal requests must be made at least 5 days prior to the due date of your item. The renewal request option will automatically be blocked if you did not request a renewal 5 days prior to the due date. You will be able to request a renewal two weeks prior to the original due date. Renewal requests are granted by the lending library.
To request a renewal:
- Go to ILLiad login screen
- Choose View/Renew checked out items under the main heading Review Requests.
- Select the transaction number of the items you want to renew. Follow instructions.
- Choose Submit Request so it can be processed by staff.
*Renewals are not allowed for Virtual Catalog books.
I submitted a request with the wrong information. Can I change it?
Yes, as long as the request is still outstanding (staff have not processed the request)
- Login to ILLiad using your user name and password.
- Choose View/Modify Outstanding Requests under the main heading, Review Requests.
- Choose the appropriate transaction number and then choose Edit Request.
- Choose Submit Request so it can be processed by staff.
I submitted a request but now I want to cancel it. Can I?
- Login to ILLiad using your user name and password
- Choose View/Modify Outstanding Requests under the main heading, Review Requests.
- Choose the appropriate transaction number and then choose Cancel Request.
- Choose Submit Request so it can be processed by staff.
How do I get my articles when they arrive?
Logon to ILLiad and choose "View/Download Electronically Received Articles" from the ILLiad Main Menu. This will give you a list of articles waiting to view and download.
How much time do I have to cancel or modify a request?
Not much. Between regular business hours M - F , 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., staff generally act on submitted requests within four hours of receiving them. You will have more time to cancel or modify when you are submitting your requests after business hours.
What is electronic delivery?
Many libraries ship photocopies of articles to us in electronic format. In the past we printed these articles before delivering them to you. Now, through ILLiad, we provide electronic delivery of these articles in PDF format (Adobe's Portable Document Format). You will receive an e-mail when an article has been placed in your ILLiad account for electronic retrieval.
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Healey Library - University of Massachusetts at Boston