OCLC Connexion tips

Command Line searching:

This is a browse search, meaning it searches the terms in the order they appear.

sca ti:title
sca pn:personal name
sca cn:corporate name

If you have an OCLC number for a record you’re looking for, enter the number preceded by an asterisk: *12345678

If you have an ISBN, you can enter it in this line without any other information.

Keyword searching:

If you don’t get any hits from a search, try simplifying. Take out one of the keywords or limiters.

AND searches for the fields together, OR

If you search a music number and get no hits, change the spacing (or punctuation); this search is always a little weird.

F2 is keyboard shortcut for searching WorldCat, but you can also use the menu and the task bar:

Cataloging → Search → WorldCat

The little button with a magnifying glass and the OCLC pinwheel logo

ctrl F2 brings up the “Browse WorldCat” box; this lets you browse the database for phrases.

Example of the difference:

Keyword searching of “tree of life” will bring up at least:
tree of life
life of a tree
knowing tree: a life
etc.

Browsing will bring up all titles that BEGIN with tree of life