Script for ODIN Podcast
Hello students! This is Mrs. Fisher with a podcast on “How to Use ODIN”. ODIN is the OPAC system used in the Dickinson Public Library (DPL), Dickinson High School Library(DHS), Trinity High School Library (THS), Dickinson State University’s (DSU’s) Stoxen Library and many other libraries around the state of North Dakota.
Before I continue, let’s review. What exactly is an OPAC? The letters O-P-A-C in OPAC stand for O – online (You access the catalog online through a computer.); P – public (It is for public use.); A – access (We access a library’s catalog and materials through this system.); and C – catalog (C stands for catalog because; it is a catalog or list of all the resources available from a particular library.)
In other words, an OPAC is an online database of all the materials or resources available for you to use from a specific library or library system.
What OPAC system do we use here at school? The name of our OPAC is Destiny. We use Destiny at Berg and Hagen Jr. High. We also use it in all the K-5 elementaries in our district.
Okay. Let’s get back to ODIN. Most of the time when you search ODIN you will search as a “Guest”. However, if you want to see the books you have checked out or you want to renew books online, you need to login using your account # from your library card and your password. (Your password is usually your last name.) When you are logged in, you can go to your “My Account” (located at the top of the screen) and look at the books that you have checked out, see when they are due and if you happen to have any fines. When you click on a particular book, it gives you the option to renew that book if 1) you haven’t already checked it out 3 times, or 2) someone else hasn’t requested it.
When you search in ODIN it is very important to determine first the Location/Library that you want to search. If you forget to do this, the system may throw out all the settings and search terms that you typed in when you reset the library. In order to avoid having this happen to you, you can press search and then immediately go back to the search screen and then change the library.
In ODIN you can choose one particular library to search or you can search All ODIN which means that you are searching all of the libraries in ODIN at one time.
You may want to change the libraries often depending on if you want to search locally or if you want to search statewide. This may depend on if the item you are looking for is easy to find or hard to find.
To get a book or other item from a library that is not local or one that you do not have a card for—ask the librarian to request it for you through interlibrary loan which is sometimes abbreviated to ILL.
The four basic types of searches that you can do in ODIN are keyword (anywhere), title, author, and subject.
Also, when doing a Basic Search, you can search all formats or limit your search to just Books, Magazines/Journals, DVD’s/VHS, Musical Recordings, or Audio Books.
There are more searching options under “Advanced Searching” but as a rule you will not need to do this type of a search. You just need to remember that there are 4 important things to consider when setting up a search in ODIN. First you need to set your location / library. Next think about what search terms you will need to use and type these into the search box. After that choose the search type and the format you are searching.
So there you have it! This has been Mrs. Fisher with a basic lesson on ODIN. Good luck searching for the all the books (audio books, magazines, videos, musical recordings, etc.) you want!