At a glance

Cecil H. Green Library

FAQs

About our collections

About our services

Miscellaneous

About our collections

Where can I find Stanford Honors theses?

Not all Stanford Honors theses have been systematically collected. Some are kept in branch libraries. You can check the Online Archive of California to locate finding aids for the honors theses collections in our University Archives and follow instructions on their How To Request Materials page.

Do Stanford Libraries have audio books?

Not really. To search for a particular book, try SearchWorks and limit the format to "sound recordings." We have some poets and famous authors reading selections, but generally these are not in a format that circulates. Public libraries generally have large audiobook holdings, and you can download audiobooks (though not for free) on sites such as Simply Audio Books and Audible.

What does it mean when the catalog says a book is "In Transit"?

"In Transit" means that the book has been sent from one library to another library, and hasn't arrived yet. It could also mean that it is on its way to another location for repair.

What does it mean, in the catalog, when the location is "In Process"?

"In Process" means that the item has been received and is being processed for use. Usually, it is not more than a week or two for the item to arrive on the shelf. In Process materials can be requested by using the link that says Request This Item (with SUNet ID). The Circulation Desk will email you when it is available and will keep it for you at their desk. If there is no "Request" link, go to the Circulation Desk and ask them to put a hold on it.

What does it mean when a book says it has to be paged for delivery?

Stanford has several Auxiliary Libraries that provide storage for less-frequently-used materials. You may request (“page”) these items be delivered to Green Library. Materials are only paged on weekdays.

However, delivery times vary by the day and auxiliary library:

  • SAL1&2 is on campus – items are delivered to Green each weekday afternoon, at approximately 4:30 pm. Items requested after 1 pm will be delivered the next business day. You can also visit this library. Hours are listed on the library homepage.
  • SAL3 is off campus and is a storage only facility – items requested before 12 pm are delivered to Green the following business day, at approximately 10 am. Items requested after 12 pm are delivered two business days later. For quickest delivery, choose Green Library as your pickup location.
  • SAL Newark is off campus – items are delivered twice weekly, at approximately 5 pm. Please plan ahead when requesting SAL Newark materials.

All paged items are held for you at the Circulation Desk for seven days. 

See Paging from Stanford Auxiliary Libraries for more details.

There is an incorrect book cover for a SearchWorks record. What can I do?

The images for our records are provided by Google Books, and may not match the title. You are welcome to report any problem to us through the Feedback form from the link on the upper right toolbar. We will report this to Google, but we have no control on the ultimate outcome.

Do you have new books displayed somewhere?

Yes. Selected recent fiction is in the Lane Reading Room with HAS-Fiction on your left after you enter and HAS-Newbooks (humanities and area studies) on your right. For selected new books in the social sciences, see the bookshelves near the reception desk in the Social Sciences Resource Center (SSRC). All of these new books can be checked out.

What if a book is not on the shelf where it's supposed to be?

If the book is listed as available at Green Library, noted by a green check mark and with the location Green on the catalog record (near the call number), double check that you are in the right section of the stacks. You will notice that the books around the one you want are about very similar topics. To decipher the Library of Congress Call number system, click the following link for more details about the Library of Congress Call Number system.

If the location is SAL, there is a link in the catalog record to request the item. You will receive an email when the book is available for you. 

If there is a red x by the call number, it is checked out. You can recall the item from the borrower by clicking on the Request link in the catalog record. If you do not have a SUNet ID, the Request links lets you put a hold on the item and you will be notified when it is returned and available. 

If the book isn't on the shelf, ask a reference librarian if they can help you. Especially at the end of each quarter, there is a backlog of books waiting to be re-shelved.

If you still can't find the book, go to the Circulation Desk and fill out a search request form and library staff will notify you if they find it.

Where do I ship a library book I forgot to return?

Please ship to:

Cecil H. Green Library
Access Services Dept.
557 Escondido Mall
Stanford, CA 94305-6063 

Can I return a book to Green Library if I checked it out at another library? 

It is best to return the book to the original library so that it doesn't mistakenly get shelved in the wrong one. However, we will do our best to return books to the proper library if we find them among Green Library books.

What does it mean, in the catalog when the location is "B&F"?

"B&F" designates Binding and Finishing. Ask at the Circulation Desk when will access to the resource be available. Journals, for example, are sent out of state to be bound together like a book. Other material may be sent to our in-house unit for repair.

About our services

How can I make photocopies?

Copiers are available throughout Green Library, including the following locations:

  • Circulation Desk – 3 machines
  • Communications rooms located in the East Wing (on lower level, 2nd and 3rd  floors) – 1 machine per room
  • Jonsson Social Sciences Reading Room copier room – 1 machine
  • Current Periodicals – 1 machine
  • Lane Reading Room copier room – 1 machine

Green’s copiers do not take cash. You must use a Stanford ID card (with a StanfordCardPlan account) or purchase a copy card to make copies, available at the cash-to-card machine near the Circulation Desk.

Scanners are free, located near the computers.

For detailed directions, see Print, copy, scan

Does Stanford Libraries appraise the value of books?

No. Book appraisal services are not offered by the Stanford University Libraries, but consider using the following resources for getting the valuation of old books on your own. In the San Francisco Bay area, try The Brick Row Book Shop.

The Brick Row Book Shop offers appraisal services of books, manuscripts and archives for numerous purposes: donation to educational institutions, replacement value for insurance coverage, division of property, establishment of a fair market value for sale, etc. There is a link on their site for Appraisals.

There is also a public site: AbeBooks.com, which is an online marketplace for old books. Or you can show your book to a book dealer. Any major yellow pages will list Books, Used & Rare.

A couple of good, general sites for analyzing the value of books are: Bookride is an amusing site with lots of advice and links and lastly there is ViaLibri with a search engine for checking about 20,000 book dealers worldwide.

Can I have a book or a DVD put on hold for me to pick up later?

If you've paged an item that's normally housed at SAL or SAL3, it will be held for you at the Circulation Desk. Otherwise we do not hold DVDs or books that are currently in the stacks here at Green Library.

Can I send a fax from the library?

We don't have a fax machine for patrons. To send a fax, you'll need to go to the campus FedEx office: FedEx Office
Location: Suite A200-A, 2nd Floor of Tressider Memorial Union between these
Hours: Monday–Friday, 8:00 am to 7:00 pm.
 Their telephone number is (650) 723-3132
. 

Does the library offer exam-proctoring services?

Green Library does not provide exam-proctoring services. The City of Palo Alto has a list of places in the area that offer proctoring services for members of the public.

Miscellaneous

Where can I find library job postings?

Student jobs are listed on the left side of the library’s Job’s website. The link is in the footer of the website. 

Where is the Raubitschek Room and Room 301?

The Raubitschek Collection/Medieval Reading Room is located on the 3rd floor of Green East, room 351, two right turns off the main stairs, past the rest rooms. It is named in honor of the late professor emeritus Antony E. Raubitschek. It brings together the primary texts of Greek and Latin epigraphy and papyrology, together with the necessary secondary and reference literature.
The Medieval Studies Room, also in Room 351, contains a non-circulating collection of medieval studies texts.


Green Library's Seminar Room (Room 301) is located on the third floor of the Bing Wing (Green West). Take the elevator that's on the right just after you enter the Bing Wing (the same elevator that goes to the Bender Room on the fifth floor); Room 301 is the first room on the left once you reach the third floor. Alternatively, you can  take the stairs by turning left after entering the Bing Wing and then take stairwell 14 up to the third floor. When you arrive, turn right and you'll see Room 301.

What is the green statue in Green Library, near the Information Center?

The green statue in the Information Center is a sculpture titled Ogham Speaks, by Irish artist John Coll, acquired from The Kenny Gallery in Galway, Ireland. The Nobel laureates W.B. Yeats, George Bernard Shaw, Samuel Beckett, and Seamus Heaney, are depicted on each of the stone's edges. Ogham - or Ogam - is a script that preserves the earliest known form of the Irish language. Druidic in origin, it appeared in Ireland around the second century AD, carved as a series of lines on the edge of "standing stones" and read from the base upward. Standing stones usually marked an important feature or person in the Celtic landscape. The name Ogham is derived from Ogmios or Ogma, the classical god of eloquence.

Is information about Kircher's Magnetic Clock in Green Library available online?

Yes, it is. For that information, and more, check out the Athanasius Kircher Project.

What are the large machines enclosed in plexiglass displayed on the first floor of Green East? 

They are early videotape reorders of the Ampex Corporation and the artifacts are an example of what you might find in our Special Collections. The Historical Collection of Ampex Corporation, 1944-1999 was a Gift of Ampex Corporation. Ampex Corporation was one of Silicon Valley's pioneering technology companies and, for over five decades, an industrial leader in magnetic recording and data storage. The collection, 577 linear feet in size, includes the artifacts of the former Ampex Museum of Magnetic Recording, an extensive photographic archive of more than two hundred thousand images, documentation and product files, and Ampex publications. These materials will provide scholars with a major resource in the history of audio and video recording technology and the early development of Silicon Valley.