Your Library Card

HOW DO I GET A LIBRARY CARD?

Library cards are free to all residents of Platteville and Wisconsin. Please bring in a picture ID with your current address. We will give you an application card to fill out while we process your library card. If you already have a library card from another member library of the Southwest Wisconsin Library System, you can use that card at the Platteville Public Library. The Southwest Wisconsin Library System includes all public libraries in these five counties: Crawford, Grant, Iowa, Lafayette, and Richland.

Youth under 16 years of age will need to have a parent or legal guardian sign their application for a library card and agree to be responsible for all materials the child checks out.

YOUR ACCOUNT AT THE PLATTEVILLE PUBLIC LIBRARY

What can I do in my account?

See the items you checked out and their due dates.
Renew items that you checked out.
See what items you have requested.
See if you have any fines.
Check if the library has your correct address, phone number, and email.

How can I access my account from home?

You can access your account from our online catalog.
Go to www.plattevillepubliclibrary.org
Click on the “Catalog” link on the right hand side.
In the “Log in” area on the left hand side, type in the 14-digit number from the back of your library card.
Type in your 4-digit PIN.

How do I get a PIN to log in?

Visit the Platteville Public Library and ask at one of the desks to get your PIN.

How can I renew items?

From the “My account” tab, click on “Items out.”
Click on the “renew” link next to the items you want to renew.
Your new due dates will be listed for all items that you were able to renew.
The “renew all eligible items” button will renew all of your checked out items that are renewable.

Why can’t I renew some of my items?

You may only renew an item once. If you have already renewed an item, you will not be able to renew it again.
If someone else has requested the item you have checked out, you will not be able to renew it.
If your fines are over $5.00, you will not be able to renew items from home.
Art prints cannot be renewed.

How can I request an item?

You can request items from our library or from any of the libraries the Southwest Wisconsin Library System.
Search the catalog (link at plattevillepubliclibrary.org) and find an item that you would like to request.
From the grid view:
- Click once on the blue “available” button to see where an item is owned.
- Click the “reserve this item” button in the yellow box that pops up.
From the list view:

Click the “reserve this item” button.

From the screen with information about the item:

Click on the “reserve this item” button on the left.

If you are not logged in to your account, you will have to enter the 14-digit barcode and your PIN.
If you would like to pick up your items at a different library, choose a library from the drop-down menu.
If there are multiple parts of the item (for example, disc 3 of a DVD set), pick the one you want from the “Volume” drop-down menu.

How will I know when my item is here?

If you want to be notified by email when your item is ready for pickup, stop by the library to make sure that your email address is in your record.
If we do not have your email address, you will be notified by phone when your item is ready.
When your item is coming, you will see [Reserve for Checkout] under “Reserved items” in your account.
When your item has arrived at the Platteville Public Library and is ready for checkout, the pickup location for that item will say “Reserve Shelf.”
Your request may take at least one week or longer, depending on the item availability.

Why can’t I request an item?

If an item is new to another library, they may not make it available for requests until their patrons have had a chance to use it first.
You may only have ten items requested at one time.
Some items are part of special collections so you may not be able to request them from another library.

Remember to click on “logout” at the top of the screen when you are finished.

Questions?

Call the library at (608) 348-7441 ext. 2 or visit us at 65 S Elm St, Platteville WI