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Library Catalog Preferred Searches

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Faculty, staff and students now have two ways to keep informed about new materials added to the Library collection:

Visiting the New Materials in the Library page on the Library Gateway to view lists of recently added library materials.
Using the search mode available from your circulation record, develop and save personally customized searches of the catalog to re-execute whenever you choose and/or request a weekly email alert on new materials added to the Library collection that fall within the criteria of your saved search.

Follow the instructions below to setup these services, or visit our Frequently Asked Questions page.

Library Catalog Search

Connect to your circulation record at http://phebe.bowdoin.edu/patroninfo
Log in using your full name and Bowdoin 5-digit ID number
From within your circulation record, select Search the Catalog
Enter your search criteria on the main search page. Once you begin searching, the message, "You are logged in to Bowdoin College Library as: YOUR NAME", displays at the top of every screen. This message will appear until you logout or return to your circulation record.
To stop searching the catalog choose either:
Return to Your Record, which returns you to your circulation record. OR
Logout! which returns you to a normal, 'generic' view of the library catalog search page.

CAUTION: If you are using a Library or campus computer lab PC, or otherwise sharing a PC, to protect the confidentiality of your circulation record you must either click on the Logout! button OR close your browser window when you have finished searching the catalog.

Saving Searches

While you are logged in searching the catalog, you may save up to 20 searches to a special file associated with your circulation record, then re-run the searches at a later date. You can also request email alerts when the Library acquires items that match your search criteria.

While viewing your circulation record, select Search the Catalog
Enter a search, then select
Your search is now saved as a "preferred search" in your circulation record .
Select Return to Your Record to view your list of preferred searches.

Below are some sample searches that might make useful email alerts:

Subject search for "Musicals": Generates a list of new materials with the subject heading "musicals", which could include videos, sound recordings or books about musicals.
Alternate Call Number search for "CD": Generates a list of all newly cataloged audio CDs.
Title search for "honors thesis history": Generates a list of newly cataloged honors thesis. This search would normally only generate new results at the end of the spring semester each year.
word search for "biology" limited to collection: Journals: Generates a list of new journals that have the word 'biology' in their title, subject headings, author or notes.

Viewing and Updating Your Preferred Searches

From within your circulation record, click on Preferred Searches to view the list of your saved searches.
Click on any search in your list to re-invoke the search.
To remove a search from your list, put a check in the "Mark for Remove" column next to the search to be removed, then click on the button.
Click on "Remove All Searches" to delete all preferred searches.

Requesting an Email Alert

Associated with the Saved Searches feature, is the ability to receive email messages whenever the library catalogs items that match the search criteria in your saved searches.

Display the list of your preferred searches, then put a check in the "Mark for Email" column next to the searches you want to generate an alert, then select .
Every Monday morning the system will search the database to find items that have been cataloged during the past week that match your saved search criteria.
Providing you have an email address listed in your circulation record, as all current students, faculty and staff do, an email message will be sent to you listing any new items that matched your search criteria; e.g. subject = musicals.