Useful Information

FAQ

General Information

• It is my first time in the library – what do I do?
• Watch our short video to learn all the basic stuff about our library (czech audio only).
• What is the opening time of the library and study rooms?
• The library runs in a restricted mode.
  
• Can I become a patron, even if I am not a student at the Faculty of Science?
• Our library offers free registration for students, teachers and employees of Masaryk University. External users are charged a registration fee of 200 CZK (first year) and 100 CZK (each additional year).
• Where and how can I register?
• You may register at the circulation desk on the ground floor. You need to have a valid ISIC card/MU card/Alumni card. Then you need to agree to MU Library Services on https://inet.muni.cz/s/knihovny/prihlaska. An external user needs to present their ID card.

Library Orientation

• What subjects are covered in the collection?

• Ground floor	- relaxation zone, kitchenette, team study
  First floor	- Maths, Anthropology, Physics, Astrophysics and General collection
  Second floor	- Earth Sciences (Geology, Geography)

   

  Chemistry, Biochemistry and Biology are covered in the collection of Library of the University Campus in Bohunice.

• What is the classification system?

• On every book spine there is a call number. Call numbers consist of a code number (standing for a particular subject) and the first four letters of the author’s surname, corporation or title itself, e.g. 558.11-BRÁZ. Call numbers of closed stacks items are different, e.g. I-5400, K-286. You can find the call number by seeing details of a particular title in the library catalogue. For more information see the “Loan services“ section.

• What do the spot spine labels represent?
• • Red spot books are in-house loans. These cannot be used but inside the library. It is however possible to borrow them overnight at the closing time, or for the weekend if borrowed on Friday.
  • Green spot books are Semester (3 months) loans. Further prolongation is possible.
  • Non-labeled books are monthly loans. Further prolongation is possible.

Loans

• What is the due date of my loan?
• • Red spot books are in-house loans. These cannot be used but inside the library. It is however possible to borrow them overnight at the closing time, or for the weekend if borrowed on Friday.
  • Green spot books are Semester (3 months) loans. Further prolongation is possible.
  • Non-labeled books are monthly loans. Further prolongation is possible.
• How can I recall a book and other documents?
• All users can recall a book that is currently borrowed by another user by signing in to their account on the library catalogue website. Remember you cannot make a reservation of a book that is available in open stacks. Learn more…
• How can I request a document from closed stacks?
• Books and journals can be requested via Library Catalogue. If signed in, you can see “Place a Hold“ at items from the “ÚK Sklad“ collection. Click on “Place a Hold“, fill in a simple form and submit your request. Document will be ready for you within 90 minutes after submit request at circulation desk at ground floor. You will receive an email, when the document is ready.
• What happens if my books are overdue?
• If your books are overdue, you need to pay a fine. For monthly loans and semester loans, it is 5 CZK per day and item. For in-house loans it is 10 CZK per hour and item.

MU Library Catalogue

• How do I sign in to my library account? How do I search the library catalogue?
• MU library catalogue comprises records of all MU faculties’ collections, including ours. Search the catalogue here: https://katalog.muni.cz/. For more information on login, account, searching or requesting documents, see the instructions.
• What does “long term loan“ mean?
• Long term loans are intended for teachers. If you desire a long term loan, ask a librarian at the circulation desk for details.

ILL (MVS in Czech)

• What is ILL/IILL?
• • ILL = Interlibrary Loan Service
  • IILL = International Interlibrary Loan Service
  • It is a basic library service. If you cannot find your desired document in the Library Catalogue or in any of the catalogues of libraries in Brno, we can supply it from elsewhere. The only condition is that you need to be a registered user of our library.
• How do I order a document via ILL? Are there any fees? How long does it take to obtain a document?
• For more information see the page Interlibrary loan service (MVS in Czech).

Printing in Central Library

• How do I print in the library?
• See the page Print, copy, scan.
• It doesn’t work. What went wrong?
• • Common causes:
  • If the printer reports "Neznámý uživatel, neplatná karta" (“User unknown, non-valid card“), your SUPO account has not been activated or your ISIC balance is too low (a minimum of 50 CZK is required). You may top up your balance with the top-up machine on the ground floor.
  • You might have sent your print job to other than PRINT MU printer.
  • It may take some time to write large files to the printer queue. Wait a few moments or check your print jobs.
• I am an external user. Can I print?
• External users may ask a librarian at the circulation desk downstairs to print for them. Users are then charged according to the standard price list. Payment is possible only in cash.
• I can see no printers on my profile, only printing to PDF option is available. What can I do?
• • Check whether your K Drive (K:) is not full.
  • Reboot the PC.
  • Try any other PC.
  • Seek help from a librarian.
• How do I cancel my print job?
• You may cancel your print job right at the printer. Click on the print job and then press the “Bin“ icon. You may as well cancel your print job at https://print.ucn.muni.cz/. Use your UCO and secondary password to log in.
• I don’t have my ISIC on me, can I print?
• If you do not have your ISIC on you, you can print using your PIN code. Generate your PIN at https://print.ucn.muni.cz/. The PIN is valid for 24 hours.

EIR (EIZ in Czech)

• What are MU Electronic Information Resources (EIR)?
• EIR are information resources for science, research and education at MU. They are generally licensed resources for which MU pays the access fees. EIR are accessible only to the MU students and employees and are intended exclusively for academic purposes. Access EIR from computers connected to the MU computer network or via remote access.
• Which EIR are accessible to me?
• Find complete overview of MU EIR on Portal of electronic information resources. Browse EIR based on alphabetical order, faculties or subjects. Free-trials are a special offer (restricted access time – usually for 2–3 months).
• How do I set up remote access, so that I can use EIR outside the faculty?
• EIR are basically accessible only from the MU computer network. For connection from outside the university network (from home etc.), there are three types of remote access: VPN, EZ proxy, Shibboleth.
  
  Details and instructions.
• How do I know if a particular journal is accessible on-line?
• To look up a certain journal, use Electronic journals portal (A-to-Z), accessible through EBSCO Discovery Service. Find more information on searching options on Electronic resources portal.
• What is Discovery?
• EBSCO Discovery Service (EDS) allows a quick search of MU electronic information resources. The service works on basis of browsing Central Index which focuses on technical content – both metadata (including keywords) and full texts are indexed. A great variety of publishers’ productions is also comprised. The service offers tools that finds full texts to the search results. It also browses the library catalogue MU.
• What is Full Text Finder?
• The Full Text Finder service finds full texts within the MU electronic resources (especially bibliographic databases). The service currently runs in various databases, including EBSCO Discovery Service.
• Where do I seek help with EIR?
• For any queries concerning EIR, please reach us at eiz@tohlesmaz.sci.muni.cz or contact a responsible person listed in a resource’s Additional information section on EIR Portal.