Use of catalogue

Our online catalogue contains the description of the documents available in the Metropolitan Ervin Szabó Library and the data of the copies as well as the bibliographic data of all the books published in Hungarian in Hungary between 1964 and 2002. From 2002 onward, our database includes only those books’ bibliographic data that can be found in our library. 

You can choose one of the following options:

• Simple search
• Advanced search
• CCL search
• Browse
• Favourites
• Log in / Patron data

Simple and advanced search
You can search the catalogue for a certain work on the basis of either any word of the item that describes the data of the document, or the part of the word (by truncation % or *).
You can search by the following indexes: Author, Title, Keyword / Subject word, Subject field, Publisher, Notation, Location mark, ISBN, ISSN, UDC
In case of ’Simple search’ you can give one criterion; in ’Advanced search’ more than one criteria can be given.
If more entry fields are filled with search terms, you can connect them by Boolean operators (AND, OR, BUT NOT), or you can narrow the list of hits by given filtering criteria (location, language, type ).
Searching the catalogue by the criterion "Only for loan", you can find the list of documents that can be borrowed from any of the locations in the time of searching; this search type is independent of locations.
If a document has more copies in a location, it is displayed with contracted sequential number. In this case, the status column on the right is empty. status info can be opened by the arrow pointing to right. 

Collections

You can choose the own databases of the Metropolitan Ervin Szabó Library in "Collection" search field. If you want to search in all, it is worth using the expression „anything”; it is the basic setting. Three collections that can be searched using the own databases of the library are the followings:

• Budapest-Bibliography / Budapest bibliográfia
• Budapest Picture Archive / Budapest Képarchívum
• Bibliography of Literary Works / Irodalmi bibliográfia
• Bibliography of Sociology / Szociológiai bibliográfia

Budapest-Bibliography
The selected list of books, studies and articles concerning the Hungarian capital.

Budapest Picture Archive
The database contains the data of interesting visual representations (photos, prints and drawings) – curiosities – concerning town history; they are stored in the Budapest Collection of the Metropolitan Ervin Szabó Library.

The pictures were taken from two sources:

• The photographic archive of Budapest Collection where more than 200,000 photos are stored;
• old illustrated publications, books and periodicals preserved in the collection.

Now only the textual information are available in the integrated catalogue of the library. So, it is worth visiting the independent surface of the database where pictures can also be seen. bpkep.fszek.hu

Bibliography of Literary Works
It has been developed since 1961. It covers nearly 80.000 items of monographies, essays, criticism concerning the authors of fiction and other types of belles lettre.

Bibliography of Sociology
The Central Library of the Metropolitan Ervin Szabó Library is the national resource library in sociology. The Sociology Collection of the library develops the bibliographic database of the literature of Hungarian sociology. The database has been registering (collecting) the bibliography of Hungarian sociology as well as the social sciences of Hungarian relation since 1970. The database called SzocioWeb contains more than 180.000 items in 2016.

Selection of the literature opened up in the bibliography is based on the definition of sociology in the widest sense and on the most expansive sphere of its borderlands. The database registers articles of periodicals, certain works published in volumes of studies, monographies, works in some volumes, copies of thematic periodicals; it is gradually enlarged with full-text contents as well as electronic documents accessible online. The content is opened up by the collection of subject headings of Köztaurusz.

CCL search - search by the common command language

In this type of search, you can use FIND command and the operators of Boole algebra. If you use this type, you need to know index names (AUTH, TITL, PUBL, etc.).

Pl. FIND AUTH "Kodály" AND TITL "folk music"

Browse
It means the exact list of classification data, showing their standardized form and the reference words.
Our database contains browsing indexes by author, title, keyword and UDC (universal decimal classification).
It is expedient to use the database if you know the exact title and want to know the standardized name form, or you want to search by keywords.
As a result, you can find the standardized name form and the number of the belonging items. The requested element(s) should be assigned to see the exact hit(s); then you can click to "Show select" and you can see the short description of the hit. If you click to "Details", you can see the longer version of description.

The process of searching
You can choose a search type (author, title, etc.) fom the rolling menu (list) of the search field and type the requested title, subject, etc.
You can choose the number of hits by page on the top left of the search window. After starting „search”, you can get the set of hits by page with short descriptions. In case of too many hits, a message can be seen under menu bar and above search, it is expedient to narrow the query.
You can select the hit or hits you are interested in by ticking off the empty square that is on the left of each item. If you are interested in all the hits, you can appoint them by click to „Basket” label. The „Simple search” and „Advanced Search” buttons of the menu line take you back to the starting point of the search process.
Security time limit is set in the catalog. If inactive time spent on the surface (platform) is up to ten minutes, antecedent searches are cancelled, titles stored in Favourites and the user will be logged out; however, a minute before, it signals that it becomes due in a minute and if the user wants to keep being logged in, they have to click on "Extend the session" button. 

Favourites
By clicking to the empty square next to the shown data you can set to „Favourites”. Doing so, you can collect the relevant (required) document records in a separate set of hits. If all hits shown on the screen are required to be put into the favourites, you have to click to „Fav.” in the header cell.
You can view and edit the content of your favourites by clicking on „Show favourites” button.
You can remove the document from the favourites by removing the tick from the square beside or under the short description of the document. You can remove all documents of „Favourites” by clicking on the „Clear favourites” button at the bottom of the page.
Data can be collected in „Favourites” until the end of searching. Finally, at the end of searching, they can be saved by clicking on the „Download records” button.
By „Link to favourites”, you get an URL (in the address bar of the browser) that you can use further on – copy, save or send.

Download
If you want to store the hits in file, you can choose Download; by choosing „Show download”, you can give the file a name and extension. By choosing „Show in the browser”, you can check the format.

Search History
Here you can find the list of searches executed since you entered the site; it can be seen in CCL form.

Log in / Patron data

By using default browsers of certain mobile devices and tablets and in case of the use of earlier / older browser versions it may occur that certain functions of the website (renewal of due dates, for example) do not operate at all or do not operate appropriately. An occurent error symptom of this sort is, for example, that never-ending loading is indicated by the website. In this case, repeat of the action is suggested after updating the browser in use or you can repeat the operational action through an other browser of late version (Chrome, for instance).

If you click on „Log in”, you should know the barcode of your membership card and the password. By default, the password is the four-character version of your birthdate including the month and day of birth typed in figures. The password can be changed on the label „Data”. Changed passwords are also valid for self-service circulation (checkout) workstations located in the Central Library.

If you forget your password, you can ask for a new password by using the reference label „Forgot password?” on the „Log in” page, typing the barcode of your membership card; the new password will be sent to your email address. If you do not have given email address (in the system), it can be set back only by librarian’s assistance in the library.

After logging in, you can see a few pieces of library information on the label „My Libraries”, including the names and addresses of the libraries that you use as well as some information about the loans belonging to the place of loan and notices of reservations and debts. The list of borrowed documents can be seen in short format.

You can renew the books and other printed documents maximum twice by ticking off the empty squares at the end of the line and by choosing the reference label „Renew selected”. If you choose the reference label „Renew all”, you can renew all the borrowed books of a given library simultaneously.

Please, check the messages about renewal carefully, by the number, because renewal can be carried out not for every document.

In accordance with the Terms of Use, requested and reserved documents, the instructional packages and other AV documents as well as copies of periodicals cannot be renewed. The documents which can be borrowed for a time shorter than four weeks cannot be renewed either.

If the documents are returned after the expiration date, overdue charges should be paid per day, per item.

It is not possible to pay fines online for documents neither checked in nor renewed as long as the due dates of loans are renewed or the documents are checked in the library. These fines can be seen as "Unclosed bills" after Bills.

If checking in the document is overdue and it is in the period of warrant for payment, additional information can be read next to the debt (of the type of warrant for payment as compensation fee); it informs you that this type of compensation fee have to be paid only if the copy of the book cannot be given back in the library.

On "Data" page you can read personal particulars, e-mail address, memberships belonging to libraries and their due dates, permanent and mailing addresses given at registration.

On the same page the e-mail address can be modified, preferred language used on the surface and e-mail notifications can be set, log-in password can be changed, and request on deletion of personal data can be given.

Among your data, the field of e-mail address and its modification (in case of change) can be filled in simply by overwriting and clicking to check mark button.

Notifications can be sent by the system to your e-mail address concerning the process of amenities (reservation, remote payment, request on deletion of personal data) launched in our library system remotely. Notifications about due dates of loans can also be sent.

The library is liable for sending some of them, other notifications can be sent optionally, it can be changed by agreeing with your librarian or online, by opening "Notification Settings".

• Expiring loans: notice sent about expiring loans on the day before due date
• Deletion request is recorded: after expiry date of membership, if there are no debts of document and money, deletion request can be sent
• Withdrawal of deletion request: notice of withdrawal of request on deletion of personal data
• Online credit card payment: notice of the success or resultlessness of online payment
• Online renewal: notice of the success or resultlessness of online renewal done on the surface of the catalog
• Rejection of an online hold request: notice of rejection of an online hold request if the library cannot fulfill the request for any reason

Notices of fulfilled reservations and delays are given to the readers who have library membership cards. Documents, that can be found in our catalogue system, can be reserved if your membership card is valid for the library where they are available. Service fee of reservation is HUF 300.

When the reserved documents are returned, the system notifies the readers by email and – at the same time – its fee is burdened to your readers’s card. Before receiving the documents, this cost and other ones including debts can be paid in cash in the library or you can use „Pay by card” on your own surface, online, after logging in.

See more information about online reservation.

If you have unpaid debts on your reader’s card in one of our libraries, starting from your data sheet you can settle debts through the online payment surface of OTP Bank if you pay by creditcard. Online payment can be launched only if you have email address on your data sheet. The sheet „Finances” shows your debts listed by libraries and transactions paid in cash and online. Not only the accounts paid personally in the library but the accounts of online payment can be seen and printed on the label „Finances” by „Accounts”. If you choose the new window opened by the reference label „Details”, you can print the account and you can see its details as well.

See more information about remote payment.

Request on permanent deletion of personal data can be launched by clicking to "Delete reader profile" button if membership and there are no debts of document and money in the libraries, not a single one.

If you request for deletion of personal data, you cannot log in the system after deletion, you cannot use your reader's card again, your previous loans cannot be seen and librarians cannot inform you about them either.

Request can be withdrawn if you change your mind, however, after librarian's affirmation and deletion data cannot be restored.

Clicking to "Query" button, earlier loans can be listed on "Loan history" page for a period of 3 years retrospectively.

Current loans are not included. If reader's card was replaced within the 3-year period, documents borrowed on the earlier barcode are not in the list.

The page of the list can be turned, you can search loan locations and any parts of texts by search field; you can filter the elements of the set.

The list can be saved in CSV and PDF formats, it can be printed directly by clicking to print icon.

When you finish the work processes on the surface of „Patron data”, please exit by „Log out" menu item.

Meaning of the different formats

List: it shows the most important bibliographic data (author, title, etc.).

Long form: it shows the descriptive data of the documents.

Long form with copies: besides the descriptive data, it shows copy data and copy location:

• library name with address or in abbreviated form
• designation of the proper reading room
• subject and marking label
• year – bound periodicals
• volume marking – multi volume work
• status – availability of the document and its due date (if borrowed)

MARC: document data by field and subfield codes according to US MARC standard.

HUNMARC: document data by field and subfield codes according to HUNMARC standard.

General Rules

The system does not make a distinction between small and capital letters; the accentuated vowels (short or long) are distinguished.
To truncate more characters * (star) and % (percent) marks can be used; they are equivalent. ? (question mark) can replace a character at any part of the word.
The letters that are not used in Hungarian ABC can be written by using the list of "special characters". 

Special characters