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An online public access catalog (OPAC) allows library patrons to access information about the facility’s holdings from any computer with internet access. Patrons can also interact with their library account and request purchases. The design of catalogs is evolving, allowing for more advanced searches and navigation. The technology will continue to improve and change.
An online public access catalog, sometimes abbreviated to OPAC, is a way for public users of a library or other system to access information about the facility’s holdings. Usually, library patrons can access the public access catalog online within the library, but the same catalog can often be viewed on any computer with Internet access because the catalog is not physically limited to library computers. There are several strategies that can be used to provide the user with the ability to find documents in the online public access catalog, and many different designs are available for online catalogs. Generally, public users have access to a different set of information than employees or library employees, and the online public access catalog cooperates with the system used by employees.
From the point of view of a library user, an online public access catalog is a way to interact with a library. Clients often use the same catalog within the library that they use at home. In many cases, patrons can also interact with a library account through the system. While the catalog itself is usually thought of as just a listing of library holdings, it is best thought of as the primary way library patrons access library information.
In addition to finding books, the same site is typically used to find information about the user’s library account, make withdrawals, or even request purchases. Some systems allow users to add metadata to the system, such as reviews or keywords. Depending on the library, an online public access catalog may provide direct access to materials such as audiobooks that can be downloaded from the Internet. It’s unlikely that an online library will replace the physical place where books are kept, but as more resources become available online, more of a library’s user experience will be located in the online catalog.
As the possible ways in which users can interact with a database evolve, so does the design of catalogs for public access online. For example, where once users were confined to searches using metadata provided by librarians, it is now possible to search or navigate based on the relationships between books. Furthermore, a public access online catalog usually does not exist in isolation, and patrons can use resources outside the library website to locate books, returning to the catalog when they are ready to interact directly with the library. There is no way to predict what features future online catalogs will offer, but it is clear that the technology that exists now will continue to improve and change.
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