My Library Card
Visit your local branch Library, or sign up online. Library cards are free to residents of Clallam County.
Bring proof of identification and an item with your current local address on it (such as your driver’s license, a utility bill, or a lease agreement). If you do not yet have a Clallam County address, you may qualify for a Limited Service Card.
A Limited Service Card allows you to check out up to two items at a time. Once you can establish proof of residency in Clallam County, your card will be upgraded to a Full Service Card.
A Full Service Card allows you to borrow Library materials with no limit on the number of items you can check out, except for a thirty DVD limit. Any resident of, or property owner in, Clallam County qualifies for a Full Service Card if you can provide proof of identification and a current local address.
(See Policy 3.1 Library Cards.)
- Come to the desk at your branch library and let the staff person know that your card is lost. In order to prevent unauthorized use of a card or account, theft or loss of library cards should be reported to the library immediately.
- Bring identification with you so that the staff person can access your library account. If you left your card in the library and it was returned to the service desk, the staff member can return your card to you at this time. If you need a new card, show the staff member your identification, and he or she will issue you a new card. If you find your old card later, cut it up and throw it away because its number is no longer valid.
- Yes, if the family member gave you their card to present at the library while checking out items for them, or
- If you are listed on one of your family member’s accounts as an alternate borrower which would allow you to pick up hold requests for them. You can also allow a family member to be listed on your library account as an alternate borrower. This designation would allow them to pick up hold requests for you.
- For further information, see the Library’s Policy 3.2 Borrowing Privileges.
My Account
- Click on the Reset my Password/PIN link from the catalog sign-in page.
- Enter your account username or barcode and click the “Reset my PIN” button.
- A link will be emailed to the address associated with your account so you can reset your password. If you are unable to properly change your password, please contact staff at ehelp@nols.org or call 360-417-8500 for assistance.
Here are the steps to follow to change your password from inside your account.
- Click on the Sign In button and log into your account.
- Go to the “Reset PIN/Password” link under “Account Settings”.
- Your new password must be between 4 and 14 characters.
- A code will be sent to the email address on file to confirm the change. If you are unable to properly change your password, please contact staff at ehelp@nols.org or call 360-417-8500 for assistance.
- Perform the search you would like to save.
- Locate the “Search Tools” dropdown menu at the top right of the search results page.
- Inside the menu, select the option to “Save Search.”
- Name the search and click save.
- The search will now be saved to the “Your Searches” page in the catalog.
- Your saved searches will also appear as a browsing category on your catalog home page.
- Sign into your NOLS account.
- Navigate to the “My Lists” page.
- Click on the “Import from Old Catalog” button and the catalog will immediately import all saved lists from the old catalog.
- Once the lists have been imported, you may add items, delete the list, email the list, and interact with the list in the catalog.
All issues are still available, so if you click “Place Hold” and sign in to your account, you can scroll through all issues and request the specific issue you want.
You can also sort search results by publication date using the “Sort By” option in the dropdown menu located near the first search result.
Using this filter, you can narrow your search results by only showing items added to the catalog within a specific period time, or to items published within a certain period of time.
On-Order and In-Process items are included in search results. You can also browse On-Order lists on the catalog home page.
- Click on the Sign In button and log into your account.
- Go to the “Reset Username” link under “Account Settings.”
- Type a new username into the field.
- Usernames must be unique to the system and be between 4 and 50 characters. All usernames must begin with a letter and spaces are not allowed.
- If you are unable to change your username in the catalog, please email ehelp@nols.org or call 360-417-8500 for assistance.
Library Materials
- A Full Service Card allows you to borrow items with no limit, with the exception of a 30 DVD limit.
- A Limited Service Card allows you to borrow up to two items at a time.
Most library materials, including books, music CDs, audio book CDs, have a three week (21 day) loan period. DVDs have a one week (seven day) loan period.
- Call or come by the library.
- Renew items online.
- Renewable Library materials will be automatically renewed when they’re due. Once an item has been twice renewed or requested by another patron, however, the due date will be fixed and the item must be returned by that date. Patrons will receive an email three days before an item is due, notifying them if the item should be returned or if it will be automatically renewed. (If the item is renewed, the loan period will be extended from the original due date, not the date of the notice.)
- If the item might still be in your house or car, if possible, renew the item’s loan period to give yourself more time to locate the item.
- If the item is slightly damaged, bring it to the service desk so staff can determine whether the item can be repaired.
- If the item cannot be repaired or is lost, come to the service desk to pay the replacement cost and processing fee. The item will then be removed from your account. Note: If you find a lost item after having paid for it, please return the item to the library to receive a partial refund.
- See Policy 3.5 Penalties for Overdue, Lost, and Damaged Materials for more information and exceptions to the refund policy.
- You might have paid for an item that was later found and turned in. If the item was in acceptable condition, you would be owed a refund of the item’s replacement cost. You can request a refund by talking with a Library staff member, by calling your Library branch, or by emailing nolsadmin@nols.org.
- You might have paid more on your fines or fees than you actually owed. If the amount is small, you can elect to leave the credit on your account and apply it later to a fine or fee you might incur, or you can request a refund by talking with a Library staff member, by calling your Library branch, or by emailing nolsadmin@nols.org.
- Call or come by the library.
- Request items online. See Policy 3.4 Hold Requests and Held Materials.
- A regular hold request is filled with an item within the North Olympic Library System. In other words, your item resides at one of the four branches in the Clallam County system (Port Angeles, Sequim, Forks, or Clallam Bay). The item will be pulled from that branch and shipped to your location. You can place as many regular hold requests as needed if the item you want is owned by NOLS.
- An interlibrary loan or ILL request is filled by an item from a library outside of the North Olympic Library System. An ILL request may take longer to fill because the item is coming from a library somewhere else in Washington State, the U.S., or the world. You can place up to 25 ILL requests per calendar year with no fee. For each ILL request beyond 25 you will be assessed a $5.00 fee.
- Call or come by the library.
- Look it up online in the catalog.
- Choose a notification method so that you are called, emailed, and/or sent a text when your item is ready to be picked up.
- Enter your account Username or barcode, PIN/Password and log into your account.
- Once logged into your account, navigate to the “Contact Information” page.
- Scroll to the bottom of the “Contact Information” page and locate the “Preferences” section.
- Enter or edit your preferences for receiving library notices. You have the option to get them via email address, mailing address, phone or text message.
- Enter your preferred email address and phone numbers via the “Contact Information” page.
Yes, you will receive a notice if you have overdue items. Your notice will be sent to you by your preferred method of notification (email, phone, or text). Your first overdue notice is sent three days after the due date. If the items have not been returned, second and third notices will be sent 21 days and 42 days after the due date. After 63 days, a bill for the items will be mailed to you.
Your phone number might be listed incorrectly in your Library account. Please call or come in to correct it.
- To correct your phone number in the catalog, enter your account Username or barcode, PIN/Password and log into your account.
- Once logged into your account, navigate to the “Contact Information” page.
- Scroll down the page and find the “Contact Information” section.
- Enter or edit your phone number for receiving library notices.