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Library Catalogs
There is a whole world of information
outside of the Internet, but it can be found using the Internet!
Online catalogs help you access books (and videos and audio
books) located in libraries. For those of you who are
unfamiliar with books, they are sometimes superior to using random
websites for research for the following reasons (courtesy of ALA):
1. Not Everything Is on the Internet
2. The Needle (Your Search) in the Haystack (the Web)
3. Quality Control Doesn’t Exist Online
4. What You Don’t Know Really Does Hurt You (online is not complete)
5. The Internet: A Mile Wide, an Inch (or Less) Deep
6. The Internet Is Ubiquitous but Books
Are Portable
Access the Quabbin Library Catalog
Access the Central Mass Library
Catalog (CMARS)
Access the entire MassCat Database (we belong to Masscat and can get
ILL books)
Use
our Interlibrary Loan Form
What is
CWMARS?
CMARS
(Central Western Massachusetts Automated Resource Sharing) is a network of
public, academic, school, regional, and special libraries in Central
and Western Massachusetts. Members share an online computer system and have
combined collections of more than 6 million items. The Quabbin
Regional High School belongs to CMARS (the Central region) and can obtain items using
the Central Massachusetts Regional Library System (CMRLS) via courier.
Barre is a member of CMARS, but they do not circulate items through CMARS. So their items always
state "Check Shelves" because their system does not know if an item is
checked out or not. Hubbardston is a circulating member of CMARS
and states whether a book is available or not. Oakham is a new
member and doesn't have any items as of yet. New Braintree and
Hardwick (and the Quabbin Library) are not members of CMARS.
What is MassCat?
MassCat is a library catalog of holdings from school, medical, law,
special and a few public libraries. Members share an online
catalog. Quabbin is a member of MassCat and can obtain items using
CMRLS as the courier. As of school year 2007, Quabbin will be on a
delivery route twice a week. If you would like any item from
MassCat, it should come very quickly. After searching in the
database, please fill out our ILL form.
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