FAQs and Help Guides

If the program is about to start and you still haven’t received the link, please follow these steps in order:

1. Verify the program date and time; links are sent at least 1 hour before the start time.
2. Check that you are registered for the program.
3. Look in your junk mail folder for an email with the link.
4. Make sure you are looking at the email account that was used for the program registration.
5. Contact us at programs@biblioottawalibrary.ca, including in the email your library barcode number, your name (or your child’s name, if their card was used to register for the program), and the name of the program.

Once an item is considered lost, a replacement fee equal to the cost of the item will be charged. If the lost item is returned and the replacement fee has not been paid, then the replacement fee will be cancelled. Once you have paid for a lost or damaged item, OPL does not refund the replacement fee if you find the item later. You own the items upon payment.

No, customers must pay the replacement fee for lost or damaged items. The replacement fee is based on the actual price the Library paid for the item. Once you have paid for a lost or damaged item, OPL does not refund the replacement fee if you find the item later. You own the items upon payment.

An account is suspended if it reaches $25 in fees. Customers with suspended accounts cannot borrow physical items from the Library until the fees are paid or the lost items are returned.

• An account is suspended after it reaches $25 in fees. Customers with suspended accounts cannot borrrow physical items from the Library until the fees are paid or the lost items are returned.
• If you have outstanding fees totalling more than $50 for more than 90 days, your account will be referred to a recovery agency and a $15 referral fee will be added to your account.
• OPL uses a recovery agency to assist in the timely retrieval of fees and materials to ensure fair access to all customers. Replacement fees are automatically removed from collection accounts if the items are returned to the library.
• If your account has been referred to a recovery agency, your library privileges will be suspended until the account is fully paid. Please be aware that if the necessary payment or payment arrangement is not made 120 days after being sent to the recovery agency, the personal credit rating of adult cardholders will be affected.
• Please visit any Ottawa Public Library branch or call 613-580-2940 for additional information.

Yes, once an account has been referred to a recovery agency, the $15 referral fee must still be paid to recover costs to OPL, even if the lost items are returned.

Items that previously had no renewal limits will now have a limit of five renewals. Other renewal limits remain unchanged. Please note that an item can only be renewed if there are no holds on the item. For customers’ convenience, eligible library items will be renewed automatically, when there are no holds on the items. You can also renew your items manually online prior to the due date. The automatic renewal feature cannot be turned off.

For customers’ convenience, eligible library items will be renewed automatically, when there are no holds on the items. You can also renew your items manually online prior to the due date. The automatic renewal feature cannot be turned off.

Yes, the fee structure is reviewed each year as part of the budget process.

To print documents from a chromebook, clients can upload any document(s) to OPL’s mobile printing service and print their document(s) at any branch. The cost of printing at OPL is $0.10/page.

To access the internet at a branch, you can connect to the public wireless network named oplbpo-1. After connecting to this network, you will be prompted to enter your library card number and PIN. In addition to the public wireless network, you can connect (where available) to OPL-BPO Hotspot; password: opl-bpo!.

Clients can checkout and use a chromebook (in-library use only) for 3 hours per day with a valid library card.

If you would like to close your account with Ottawa Public Library, please visit a branch or contact us via InfoServices.

You can create your own New Titles searches for your favourite items and save them to your account. You can then save your search and run it again later. That saves you time, especially if the search you’re doing is complex or if you search for new items often.

► To save a search

1. Log in to your account. You must be logged in to save a search.
2. Run your search. See Using Advanced Search and Writing Your Own Queries for information on creating complex searches.
3. If required, narrow your results by applying facets on the left side of the page. See Filtering Search Results for details.
4. When you have refined your search, run the search and click the Save Search link above the search results.
5. Give the saved search a name that will allow you to easily identify it later. If you already have a search by that name, you’ll have the option to choose a new name or overwrite your existing saved search.
6. Click Save it.  Saved searches can be found by clicking on “My Library Dashboard”.

To modify a search

1. Open a saved search by clicking on your Username at the top left corner - ‘My Library Dashboard – View My Saved Searches or clicking on a pre-existing search on the New Titles page.
2. In the right-hand corner, click “Modify my search”.
3. In the advanced search, you can add fields to refine the search or remove fields to broaden the search.
   1. To separate On Order and Just Arrived material, in the edit box add brackets around the existing search terms and add AND oo:(true) for On Order material or AND oo:(false) for Just Arrived material.
   2. Ex. To view on order adult mysteries, modify the existing search so that it becomes (collection:"Adult eng mystery" OR collection:"Adult eng pb mystery") AND oo:(true).
4. When you have refined your search, run the search and click the Save Search link above the search results.
5. Give the saved search a name that will allow you to easily identify it later. If you already have a search by that name, you’ll have the option to choose a new name or overwrite your existing saved search.
6. Click Save it.  Saved searches can be found by clicking on “My Library Dashboard”.

You can manage your saved searches after you’ve saved them. See Using and Managing Saved Searches for details.