Frequently Asked Questions
General Information:
Billing Information:
Troubleshooting:
General Information
Tips for effective use of Interlibrary Loan & Document
Delivery Services
- Provide us with a complete, correct citation. Include the author(s), title,
and year of publication for books; journal title, article author(s) and title,
volume, date, and pages for journal article requests. We have a much better
success rate when you provide us with enough information to identify the item.
- Journal article citations generally follow a standard format. For example:
"12(3) June 1999: 12-15" means volume 12, issue number 3, published in June
1999. The article appears on pages 12-15. Putting those numbers in the right
place in the request form is important!
- If an ISSN or ISBN number, OCLC accession number or PubMed PMID is provided
in the database entry, please include it in the space provided.
- Incomplete or incorrect citations delay the process. If you are not sure
of information, don't guess. When you provide us with a complete, correct
citation we have a much better success rate.
- Please be sure to tell us the date after which you can no longer use the
item. We will keep trying to obtain it until this date. Asking for something
by tomorrow won't make it happen faster!
Back to contents
How long does it take to receive materials?
- Turnaround time is determined by the format of the material and where we get
it from:
- Articles from the UW Libraries collections are available fairly quickly.
Turnaround is generally less than 24 hours.
- Books from the UW Libraries collections take a little longer because we
have to transport physical volumes rather than electronic files. Turnaround
time is usually about 3 days (plus shipping time if shipped to an off-campus
address).
- Articles from other libraries generally arrive in a couple of days if
the requests are filled by the first libraries we request from. If the articles
are not readily available, requests are passed on to other libraries. The
current average turnaround time for article requests is 5 days.
- Books, dissertations, or microforms from other institutions take one to
two weeks because of shipping times. Some books are more difficult to find
or are shipped from farther away, so they take even longer.
Back to contents
How long can I keep the materials?
- Scanned articles are yours to keep. Be sure to download or print them promptly.
We will delete them from the server after 30 days. Also keep in mind that
most articles are protected by copyright. You should
not post scanned articles to the web or print out multiple copies to share
with others without obtaining permission from the publisher.
- Loan periods are determined by the owning library. Materials loaned from
other libraries usually have an initial loan period of 3 weeks. Renewals can
often be arranged unless your loan is marked "non-renewable. All loans
are subject to recall by the lending library.
Back to contents
How do I return borrowed materials?
- Materials borrowed through Interlibrary Loan can be returned to any UW Library
or dropbox. The paper band identifying an Interlibrary Loan book must be left
on the cover at all times.
Back to contents
How many requests can I make?
- There is currently no limit placed on the number of requests which may
be submitted per week. We do ask that you keep in mind the fact that books
may be sent for a limited time without possibility of renewal; please do not
request more than you can reasonably use in the time in which they are here.
- If you are a current UW student, faculty or staff member logging in with
your UW NetID, we also ask that you request only the materials that you need
for your UW related research. It's important that we control expenses in order
to continue subsidizing the service for you.
Back to contents
Can I borrow videos and other media?
- We are seldom able to provide access to videos and other media for Non-UW customers.
We will try to get them for current UW students, faculty and staff. -
However, it is difficult and expensive to borrow media from other institutions.
Due to budget restrictions, Interlibrary Loan now requires verification that
media items are for course-related research. Each Media request now costs
the UW Libraries about $25 or more and most items are held by local rental
agencies and public libraries. We appreciate your cooperation.
- Alternate Sources for Media Items:
- ATTN UW FACULTY:
Back to contents
What types of material can't be obtained via this
service?
- There are some materials that you are unable to get using this service:
- Books for course reserve use that are not owned by the UW Libraries.
- Books from other libraries for individuals who are not currently
affiliated with the University of Washington. This includes alumni.
- There are also some items that are difficult to borrow from other libraries,
and may not be available:
- Textbooks
- Reference materials
- Books or other items published in the last year. Please consider a Purchase Suggestion.
- Entire volumes or issues of periodicals
- Non-print formats; cds, videos, kits, slides, etc.
- Genealogical and local history materials. Please cite any names or other entries you would like to have photocopied.
- Materials published prior to 1850, archival, rare manuscript, or fragile materials, or newspapers unless available in microform.
Back to contents
How do UW affiliates request materials for personal
(non UW-related) research?
- Books owned by the UW Libraries may be paged to the library branch of your
choice using the UW Libraries
Catalog.
- Books owned by our Summit library partners can be requested via Summit using
WorldCat Local. Summit libraries
are clearly marked in your search results.
- Books that are owned by other libraries may be requested through interlibrary
loan at your public library. You may also request articles through your public
library. Most public libraries provice interlibrary loan at no cost to you..
- Articles for personal or recreational use by UW affiliates may be obtained
for a fee. Costs for this service are not subsidized by the UW Libraries,
so you must place requests as though you are a non-UW customer.
- To do this, you must create a non-UW account and
log in as a non-UW customer.
Back to contents
What do the request statuses mean?
- The Interlibrary Loan database uses various statuses to track Interlibrary
Loan requests. These statuses may be used to pinpoint the exact location of
any given item at any given time. A list of what each status means is available
at http://www.lib.washington.edu/ILL/statusfaq.html.
Back to contents
Copyright
- Keep in mind that most articles are protected by copyright. You should not
post scanned articles to the web or print out multiple copies to share with others
without obtaining permission from the publisher.
- COPYRIGHT law pertains to copies of journal articles and other printed
material as follows:
The copyright law of the United States (Title 17. United States
Code) governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted
material. Under certain conditions specified in the law, libraries and
archives are authorized to furnish a photocopy or other reproduction. One
of these specified conditions is that the photocopy/reproduction is not
to be "USED FOR ANY PURPOSES OTHER THAN PRIVATE STUDY, SCHOLARSHIP, or
RESEARCH." If a user makes a request for, or later uses, a photocopy or
reproduction for purposes IN EXCESS of fair use, that user may be liable
for copyright infringement. This institution reserves the right to refuse
to accept a copying order if, in its judgment, fulfillment of the order
would involve violation of copyright law.
Back to contents
Billing Information
I'm a UW Law School affiliate; why am I being charged
for this service?
- If you order materials through the Gallagher
Law Library, your requests will be heavily subsidized and may very likely
be provided to you at no charge.
- Services provided by Interlibrary Loan & Document Delivery Services
are not subsidized for you. If you choose to use this service, you will be
charged the full rates, similar to
individuals who are not affiliated with the UW.
Back to contents
I'm a Cascadia Community College affiliate; why am
I being charged?
- Cascadia Community College contracts with the University of Washington for
library services. The fees you are
charged are in accordance with this agreement.
Back to contents
Why does Interlibrary Loan assign a billing account
to me when I register even though my requests are free?
- All registered Interlibrary Loan and Document Delivery Service users are automatically
assigned a billing account. If you are a current UW student, faculty or staff member, you will
be charged for any extra services that you request. The fees for extra services are clearly marked on the request forms.
Back to contents
Troubleshooting
I'm having problems using my computer to place a request,
what do I do?
- We use an electronic system, called ILLiad (designed by Atlas Systems, Inc.),
to process your requests. It uses a web browser to communicate with library
users. Some answers about browsers, cookies, and computer security are available
in a guide called Technical Information about your Interlibrary
Loan Account.
Back to contents
What does it mean if my account has been blocked?
- Your account may be blocked if you have unpaid fines from the Library Cashier
or your Library account has expired.
- If your account is blocked you will not be able to place new requests. However,
you will continue to be able to view your request history.
- Please contact the Interlibrary Loan & Document
Delivery Services office to find out what you need to do to clear the
block.
Back to contents
What should I do if my Summit request wasn't filled?
- If a request you placed in Summit was not filled, you may still be able to obtain
the item.
- Check the UW local catalog:
- If the UW owns the item and it is checked out, place a hold on it and
you should have it in about two weeks
- If the UW owns the item and it is for In-Library Use only, please plan
to visit the library to use our copy
- If the UW does not own the item, you may request it through Interlibrary
Loan (ILL).
- Click the Current UW... link on our home page to log in using your UW
NetID. If you have never used ILL before you will be prompted to register
when you log in.
- Select the "Borrow a Book" link and fill out the request form. Please
include a note saying “Summit Failed” so we know what’s already happened
to this request.
- Items take about 14 days or longer to arrive.
Back to contents
Ask Us a question
Last modified: Thursday October 08, 2009
