Frequently Asked Questions

After you search for something in the catalog and you are looking at the search results, you should see a green Place Hold button next to each format.

1. Click Place Hold across from the format you would like.
2. After you click Place Hold, you will be prompted to log into your account, if you were not already logged in.
3. Next, you will be asked to select a hold pickup location (if you do not have Single-Click Holds enabled).
4. Click Place Hold a second time to confirm.
5. If the title is available, we will find it and send it over to your library within several days. If the title has a hold list, you will now be in line.
6. You will receive an email or phone call when your hold is ready to pick up. The item will be held for you for 7 days at library buildings and 3 days at holds lockers, including the day of the notification.

• You can enable Single-Click Holds in your Account Settings to skip the location selection step.
• You can also place holds on some e-content.
• To see your list of Holds anytime, click on Log In / My Account, then select On Hold.
• It is currently not possible to indicate exactly when you would like a hold to be ready, but you can Pause holds.

The easiest way to search the library catalog is to type one or more words in the search box at the top of the page, and then click the Search button (the magnifying glass).

You can enter titles, authors, keywords, subjects, or a combination of all, in this search box.

After you search, you can use the filters on the left side of the page to narrow down the results. There are filters for format, availability, audience, language, and publication date, among others.

The catalog recognizes certain keywords and automatically applies filters accordingly. For example, if you search for “new kids dvds” the search results contain DVDs for children that were recently added to the collection. The search will recognize format, audience, language and "new to the library." This also works with “Spanish books” or “new music cds.”

Note: On a smaller screen, the search box will collapse to a magnifying glass icon to save space. Just click or tap on the magnifying glass to open the search box.

My Account features include:

• Shelves: Shelves give you a way to keep track of everything you have read, watched or listened to, track what you are currently reading, watching or listening to, or what you want to borrow in the future. Your Shelves can be public or private. You can add items to your Shelves from just about anywhere when you are logged in. Look for the “For Later" button near the "Place Hold" button.
  • Your Completed Shelf is where you can store everything you’ve read, watched or listened to.
  • Your In Progress Shelf is the place for what you are reading, watching or listening to right now.
  • Your For Later shelf is like a wish list, a place to keep track of the books, movies and music you’d like to borrow in the future.
• Single-click holds: Pick your favorite or most convenient library location. With just one click, your holds will be sent to that library.
• Lists: A list is a collection of titles related to a topic or idea of your choosing. You can create lists for yourself (e.g. Vegetarian Cookbooks I Want to Remember, Books We Loved When My Children were Toddlers) or for other people (e.g. Emily Should Read These Books This Year, These Titles Can Get You Started with your Research), and they can be set to private or public. Lists are another way to explore the catalog and find new recommendations. Search the Catalog by List (change the second dropdown from Keyword to List) to find lists made by library staff and patrons around the world. To create your own List, select Lists from the menu under your username in your account. Click Create a New List, select the type of list you want to create, and give it a title and description. Click "+ Add to List" to add catalog titles or website URLs. When you have added all your titles, click Finished Editing. Choose who can see your list, then click Publish.
• Ratings and Reviews: Share what you think about anything in the collection.
• Profile: Set up a personalized profile to share your recommendations. You can also choose to follow other users if you like their lists and reviews.

You can choose whether you would like to receive hold notifications and overdue courtesy notices via email or phone. Please contact us if you would like to change your current preference.

We are in the process of changing the way records for TV shows display. For the duration of the transition, you might encounter the records in both ways:

1. If the title of a TV show does not indicate a specific season, use the View Details or Availability by Location links to see what seasons of a TV show are available. To place a hold on a specific season, click Place Hold, log in (if necessary), then select the season you'd like (the last step in the process). Your hold is placed for all available copies of that season. Example of a TV show title that does not contain a specific season:

2. If the title of a TV show does contain a specific season, click Place Hold next to it, log in (if necessary), select your pick-up location (if necessary) and confirm. Example of a TV show title that does contain a specific season:

If you don’t want an item you have requested to become available when you’re unable to pick it up, you can pause the hold. Pausing, or suspending, retains your place in line until you’re ready to resume. It’s useful if you have items on hold and go on vacation, or already have things checked out that you haven’t finished yet.

To pause your hold, log into your library account and go to your On Hold list. Click Pause Hold next to the hold you would like to suspend. When you are ready to continue in the hold line, click Resume Hold next to the title to undo the Pause.

After 255 days, your paused hold will be automatically cancelled. If you just want to save a title as a reminder to check it out later, use your For Later Shelf.

To change the pickup location of a single hold, log into your library account and select On Hold. For the hold you want to change, click on the location listed under "Pick up at" and select another location from the dropdown. The change will be automatically saved. Please note that hold pickup location cannot be changed for holds that are in transit, ready for pickup, from Prospector, or through interlibrary loan.

To change the location for all of your future holds, select My Settings in your Account menu. Under Account Preferences > Holds and Pickup Location, click Change to make changes to your preferred pickup location. You can also enable or disable Single Click Holds here. With Single Click Holds enabled, your holds will be automatically be sent to your preferred location.

Loans and holds from Prospector will display special status codes in your account.

REQUESTED – The item has been requested from a Prospector library.
INNREACH CANCELLED – Your Prospector hold was cancelled.
IN TRANSIT – Your Prospector hold is being delivered to our library.
INNREACH REC’D – Your Prospector hold has been received at our library and is being processed.
INNREACH RTN’D – You have returned a Prospector item.

After you do a search in our main catalog, look for a link that says "Search other resources." Click on that, and then click on "Try your search in Prospector."

Click "Request It" next to the item you would like to request from Prospector.

In the pop-up box, select Alliance - Jeffco Public Library from the dropdown under "With which institution are you affiliated?"

Enter your name, library card number, and pickup location, then click Submit.

Please note that it is not currently possible to pick up Prospector holds at Holds Lockers, and Prospector is not accessible via the MyJCPL mobile app.