Lists

Q: What’s a list?

A: A list is a collection of titles related to a specific topic or idea of your choosing. Best Italian Cookbooks, 10 Books My Daughter Loves Best and Movies That Changed My Life are examples of lists you could create. A good list is a curated topic guide. A list shouldn’t be just a group of titles by an author, since you can do that just by searching, or a list of titles you want to borrow, since you have a For Later shelf for that.

Q: Who can create lists?

A: Anyone with a library card can create a list. You don’t have to be a library staff member.

Q: How do I create a list?

A: On your My Lists page, click the Add New List button. Once you’ve created the list, you can add titles to it.

Q: Can other people see my lists?

A: Yes. Part of the fun of creating lists is to share your expertise with others. When you create a list, you have the option of making the list public or private. By default, lists are public, and they appear on the Recent Activity page, so others can see them.

Q: Can I change the order of items on a list?

A: Yes. Each title you add to a list appears at the top. You can put the items in any order by dragging and dropping. To move an item, position your pointer over the two headed arrow to the right of the item, hold down your mouse button, and drag up or down. You’ll see a ghost image of the item as it moves. When the item is where you want it, release the mouse button.

Q: How many titles can I put on a list?

A: Up to 32. However, to be truly effective, a list of no more than a dozen is probably a good idea, unless the list is just for your own use.

Q: Why is there a limit?

A: Lists are designed to focus attention on the essential titles in a given subject area, for the benefit of other library members. A list that is too big isn’t helpful. For example, a list of all of Stephen King’s books isn’t much more helpful than a search. But if you’ve read every Stephen King book, a list of what you consider the 10 best would be of great value to someone new to King’s work.

Q: Can I mix books and movies on a list?

A: Yes. A list can contain any combination of titles and formats. You can also add Web sites to a list.

Q: Why would I add a Web page to a list?

A: Add links to Web sites to complement titles on your list. For example, suppose you create a list of books that provide advice to new immigrants. You could add links to Web sites that provide government services and forms, legal advice, or community-based organizations for new immigrants. If you created a reading list for your book club, you could provide links to online resources or reviews of the books you’re planning to read.

Q: What does it mean to annotate a list?

A: Annotations are brief notes attached to items on a list, and are only visible when viewing the list. Unlike comments, they do not appear on a title’s details page. Annotations are especially useful to describe a Web page you’ve added to your list.

Q: How can I see another member’s lists?

A: Any time you see a comment on a title, you’ll see the name of the user who wrote the comment. Click their name to see titles on their shelves. When you’re viewing their shelves, you can see also see their lists by clicking the link near the top of the page. New lists are also shown on the Recent Activity page.

Q: How do I save something from someone’s list to a list of my own?

A: Click the Save link next to the title, then select the list name from the pull-down list.

Q: What’s the difference between lists and shelves?

A: Shelves are a place to gather together all of the titles that you have read, watched or listened to (Completed), are currently borrowing (In Progress) or would like to borrow in the future (For Later). You can add as many items as you want, you can make all or some of them private, and you can filter a shelf using the categories in the left sidebar.

Lists are for more focused collection of items on a particular topic (for example, My Favourite Chicklit of 2011). Lists can also include links to Web pages. You can create as many lists as you want, but you are limited to adding 32 items per list. You can make the list public (viewable by others) or keep it private.

Q: What happens if the library discards an item I’ve put on a list?

A: Any item you add to a list remains there until you remove it, or delete the list, even if your library no longer owns the item.