Signing In
Checkouts
Holds
Why doesn't my name display at the top of the screen when I'm signed in?
You need to choose a screen name to display.
You can enter your preferred screen name in the Account Settings section of your account. This option allows you to protect your privacy when accessing your library account in public places.
Why am I asked to type my library card number and PIN each time I place a hold?
If you plan to place multiple holds or want to check your account as well as place some holds, you should sign in first. Click the Sign In link at the top right of the screen, then enter your card number and PIN. You can then check your account or search for items and place holds without having to enter your card number and PIN again.
Why can't I sign in between 6:00 and 6:30 a.m.?
The web catalogue and the online magazines, newspapers, and other research databases are unavailable daily from 6:00 am - 6:30 a.m. for scheduled maintenance.
When signing in, I received the following error message: "#UG must be all digits".
There is a technical problem with your account. Please contact us with your library card number, and we will resolve the problem.
Why do I get the message "privileges have expired" when I try to sign into my account or place holds?
You will not be able to use your card to borrow, place holds or renew items if you have:
- more than 10 items overdue, or
- more than $30 in fines or charges, which includes both unpaid fines on returned materials and fines accruing on items not yet returned, or
- more than 10 reported/claimed returns, or
- an expired library card (cards expire every year and must be renewed at a library branch)
Please see staff in your branch to clear up the problems on your account and reinstate your borrowing privileges.
The circulation policy is available on the website.
I input my email address so that I could receive notification by email about my overdue items and holds that are ready for pick up but I am not receiving this information. Is this working?
If you enter or update an email address in the Notification Preference section of your account settings, you will begin receiving email notification of any overdue material or holds that are available for pickup within 48 hours.
If your email account uses junk mail handling, please check your junk mail box. The subject line of the library email to you will be "Toronto Public Library Notice". Please refer to the help page for your email service to ensure that future email from the library will not go into your junk folder.
Why can't I renew my items?
Some items cannot be renewed:
- items already renewed twice
- items on hold for someone else
- Best Bets items
- items borrowed through Interlibrary Loan
- new English feature film DVDs (less than 1 year old)
- items that have holds on them
When you have reached the limit allowed for overdue items, lost items, or fines, you will be unable to renew any items.
Users have commented that occasionally they want to renew an item that has several holds on it, but they know that there are enough copies in other library locations to fill those holds and they feel that they should be able to renew their item. Until a report is run which identifies those copies in other locations as being earmarked to fill the outstanding holds, the copy that the user is trying to renew is the first one the system is identifying to fill the outstanding holds. This is the same functionality that we had with our previous system. We are aware of this limitation in system functionality.
When I try to print my list of checked-out items, the due dates get cut off.
This is a problem when printing from Internet Explorer. We are working to fix this issue.
Why is there a list of notices for missed holds on my account summary screen? When/why did I miss these holds? How can I delete them?
As of December 11, 2008, when we launched the feature to allow customers to see their missed holds, all holds not picked up since February 2008 are showing up in your account. We know this may be confusing, especially if you have placed a new hold on the same title. Our intention is to clear these notices automatically on a regular schedule, so this situation is only temporary.
Unfortunately, you can't remove the notices yourself. We are currently working with our software vendor to develop a process for clearing the lists of missed holds.
 
I can't see where I am in the lists for the items I have on hold.
You can see your position in the waiting list as well as how many total holds there are for an item (e.g. 12 of 200) on the Holds screen in your account. Unfortunately, there is a problem with displaying this information for items that are still on order. We are working on fixing this.
Why don't author names display for the titles in my holds list? I would like to be able to sort my list of holds by author name.
You can see the author's name by clicking the link to the item record.
We understand that people also liked seeing this information on the account screen and being able to sort on it.
The number of sortable columns presents a design challenge on the holds screen. We will investigate possible design changes that might allow us to add an author column.
What does the date in the "expires" column in my holds information mean?
When you place a hold, the system keeps this hold active for two years, by default. When a hold becomes available for pick up, the expiry date changes to the date by which you have to pick up the item.
| TIP – if you only want an item if you can get it by a certain date, change the expiry date to the date by which you need the item. That way you will not be contacted about items you no longer need. |
What is the difference between Active, Inactive, and Suspended holds?
If a hold is Active, you will receive a copy of the item when you are next on the waiting list. If a hold is Inactive or Suspended, you will continue to move up in the waiting list but the item will not be sent to you.
When you set a hold to Inactive, it will not become active again until you manually change it. If you prefer, you can use the Suspend function to set a specific date when the hold will automatically become active again.
How can I be notified via email of holds that are ready for me to pick up?
You can add your email address to your profile so that you will be notified by email about overdue material and holds available for pickup. Sign in to your account, click the Account Settings tab, and enter your email address under Notification Preference.
If you have branch staff do it for you, it takes effect immediately. Otherwise it will take effect within a couple of days.
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Updated on: April 17, 2009
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