On Hold

From the On Hold page, you’re able to keep track of the titles you’ve requested, and where and when they will be available for pickup. By default, items on the page are sorted by status, with items ready for pickup first. If you prefer, you can sort the page by hold position, expiry date, title, author or format.

For holds that are ready for pickup, you can also sort by pickup location or pickup expiry date.

If necessary, filter your holds by clicking Ready, Not ready or Pause under the My Borrowing summary on the left of the page. On a tablet or smartphone, tap the My Borrowing button first to display the filters.

You can also cancel and pause your hold requests. To change the status of a request, click the Pause or Cancel button for the item you want to change. Active and paused holds are each shown in separate blocks.

You can activate a paused hold by clicking the Resume hold button.

Use this page to manage holds. To place a hold, do a search, or view a title’s details page. See below.

The content of the On Hold page is visible only to you. Please consult our Privacy Policy to learn more about how your private information is protected. There’s a link to the Privacy Policy at the bottom of every page.

Placing Holds

You place holds on items you want to borrow from search results, or from a title’s details page. If you want to pick up the item at a specific location, you can see which branches currently have the item, as well as the circulation status of all available copies.

To place a hold from search results

1. Log in to your account.
2. Enter some keywords into the search bar at the top of the screen and press enter, or click the magnifying glass icon, to run your search.
3. Find the title you want.
4. Titles with at least one copy in the library show Available. To see the current status of all copies of the item, click the Availability by location link.
5. Click the Place hold button.
6. In the Place hold popup, click the drop-down menu to select the branch where you’d like to pick up the title. The default location is your home branch, or the one you specified on your Preferences page as your preferred location. (If your library has only one location, or you’ve enabled single-click holds, you won’t see this option.)
7. Click the Place hold button.
8. A message will pop up to confirm the item is successfully placed on hold.

Your requested title will now appear on your On Hold page.

You can skip the step of choosing a pickup location every time if you enable single-click holds.  There is a selection box  to do this on the Place hold pop up.

To place a hold from a title’s details page

1. Log in to your account.
2. Find the title you’d like to place a hold on by searching or browsing the catalog. Go to its details page by clicking its title.
3. The details page shows all the formats of the title held by the library. To see the location and current status of each available copy of your selected format, click the Availability by location link.
4. Click the Place hold button.
5. Select the branch where you’d like to pick up the title. The default location is your home branch, or the one you specified on your Preferences page as your preferred location. (If your library has only one location, you won’t see this option.)
6. Click the Place hold button.
7. A message will pop up to confirm the item is successfully placed on hold.

Your requested title will now appear on your On Hold page.

• If you need an item in a hurry, use the View details link to view locations that have copies available.
• Placing a hold on an electronic item such as an eBook is slightly different. If the item is available now, the button is labelled Check out. If it isn’t, the button is labelled Place hold.
• Some items, such as reference book or documents on microfiche, cannot be placed on hold. Inquire about these at the Reference Desk at your branch.