Interlibrary Loan Explained

ILLiad Interlibrary Loan is a free service for UIW students, faculty and staff.  It allows you to borrow materials from other libraries that we do not own. These days a good library is measured by the kind of access it provides (not how many materials it owns), and UIW Libraries can obtain materials for you from around the world.

• Books are delivered to the library for pickup.
• Scanned images of articles may be delivered to your ILLiad account OR photocopies of articles may be delivered to the library for pickup. 

PDFs of articles usually take 3-5 working days; materials delivered to the library will take longer.

Set up an account following the Borrow From Other Libraries link in the Quick Links list on the library's main page. Near the top of the next page is the link labeled Interlibrary Loan (ILLiad) Account. ILLiad is the software we use for interlibrary loan requests.

For complete information regarding ILL policies, click here.

Before requesting an ILL,

• check our databases; we often receive requests for articles that are readily available to students and faculty;
• consider asking a librarian for help identifying similar materials available in the library's physical and/or electronic collections;
• be sure the material you request is in a language that you read; and
• carefully review citations and abstracts, requesting only those materials which seem most useful for your research. Be selective.

When requesting materials via ILLIAD, 

• ensure that the information you provide on the form is as accurate and complete as possible. Incomplete or incorrect citations will delay the processing of your request; and
• be sure to specify if there is a date by which the material is no longer needed.

WARNING CONCERNING COPYRIGHT RESTRICTIONS

The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted materials.

Under certain conditions specified in the law, libraries and archives are authorized to furnish a photocopy or other reproduction. One of these specified conditions is that the photocopy or reproduction is not to be "used for any purpose other than private study, scholarship, or research". If a user makes a request for, or later uses, a photocopy or reproduction for purposes in excess of "fair use", that user may be liable for copyright infringement.

This institution reserves the right to refuse to accept a copying order if, in its judgment, fulfillment of the order would involve violation of copyright law.

For more information on copyright, click here.

TexShare is a free service that allows you to borrow a limited number of items from other Texas libraries. Bring your UIW ID to the Reference Desk to obtain a TexShare card, which will be good for one semester (each semester, you will need to get a new one). When you visit a participating library to borrow materials, you will need to show your UIW ID and your TexShare card. It is up to you to return the materials you borrow by the due date set by the lending library.

All public libraries and most academic libraries in the State of Texas accept the TexShare card. For more information on the program, please visit their site at TexShare.

TexShare allows you to borrow materials, but keep in mind that you usually do not need any sort of special permission or card to study or use materials in other libraries. If, for example, you live closer to UTSA, you may wish to visit their library to study and use their materials in-house. A TexShare card is necessary only if you wish to borrow materials. If you plan to visit other libraries, whether for in-house studying or to borrow materials using your TexShare card, it is always a good idea to ask about their visitor policies.

It is easier than you might think to discover if another library owns the title you need. If the library is out-of-town, you can make an ILL request.  If the library is in town and you want to get the material immediately, use your TexShare Card to borrow the book in person.  We can, of course, obtain interlibrary loan materials from local libaries for you as well.

Search WorldCat, a catalog to which libraries all over the world contribute.  Once you click on the title for which you are searching, you'll be taken to a page with more descriptive citation information and an option that looks like this:

Choosing "Libraries worldwide that own item" will show you all the other libraries in the world that own that title. Because we are in Texas, it will show Texas libraries, in alphabetical order, first.