Technology has had a tremendous—mostly positive—impact on interlibrary loan. Online library catalogs with availability information and the electronic transmission of requests coupled with delivery services has reduced the waiting time for an ILL request. These same factors have had a dramatic impact on the quantity of ILLs libraries now see.
The MnLINK Gateway is a portal into nearly all of Minnesota's library resources. The MnLINK Gateway provides libraries and community members access to online catalogs from over 20 Minnesota library systems and the Electronic Library for Minnesota (ELM). This gateway allows the people of Minnesota to log in using their local library card and to request materials from around the state be delivered to their local library. This expanded interlibrary loan brings the request process directly to the library user as they select items and place their "Get It" request online 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
The MnLINK Gateway is supported by your tax dollars. It is one of many services provided to libraries and their users by the MINITEX Library Information Network. (MINITEX is the developer/host of the Research Project Calculator.) Users are not charged for delivery of their requests. Some libraries do place a limit on the total number of requests a user can have at one time, but all of the participating libraries are provide free access.
MnLINK offers both basic and advanced searching capabilities (using Boolean operators and fields to limit by language, reading level, and/or format or media). You can save your searches and run them again later, search all libraries in MnLINK or just one or a few, create and save Search Profiles (groups of libraries that you want to search more than once), search for peer-reviewed journals, and limit your search by date.You can track your requests: each request will have a note of its location in the process (under library review, in process, at your local library, returned, or not available through MnLINK, to name a few.) And, best of all—the Get It! Button. (Flash file)
Once you find an item you want, you click the Get It! Button. This sends a request to the system to find an available copy of that particular item in library. You choose your pick-up location (your local public library branch, most likely) and the item is delivered there. Note that the item may come from a library different from the one in record you selected—you will get a “bibliographically identical” item—same edition, ISBN, etc.
If you can’t find a record for the item you seek, you can Create a Request by entering as much information as you have about the item. MnLINK will track it down through other resources.
To use the Get It! Button and some of the advanced features you do need a library card. Promote MnLINK to your students with these resources.
Core
1. Watch the tutorials (scroll down) on how to use the service. They are broken down into short screencasts so you can view only what you need.
2. Search MnLINK. Choose an item you want to use in class, a book you want to read, or a movie you want to watch. Do the same search in both Basic and Advanced Search. Did you find the item?
3. Make MnLINK a Favorite or Bookmark so it is at your fingertips!
Blog Prompts
- How will using MnLINK help your students? Is timing an issue?
- How can you help students plan for ILL for completing their projects?
- Have you used MnLINK in the past? What was your experience?
Making the Information Literacy Connection
Finding the information you need is one of the components of information literacy and ILL is a staple of academic libraries as they assist students complete their studies. Students need to know that the world of information is open to them—and is wider and deeper than Google and their local libraries.
Curriculum Connection
Work with your media specialist to introduce MnLINK to students and to explain your district ILL capabilities, too.
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