LibAnswers

You can elect to receive e-mail notifications when your physical hold items (e.g. books, DVDs, books on CD) have arrived for borrowing at your local branch.

To check to see if NYPL has your current e-mail address (and add/update as needed), go to your library account via our Legacy Catalog (https://legacycatalog.nypl.org/ ), click on "Sign In", sign in with your library card number and PIN/Password, and then click on the link marked "Change account information" (it should be next to your name near the top of the screen). You can enter your e-mail address as well as select your preferred method of notification (e-mail or telephone).

It's also possible to update via our main circulating catalog, Vega:
https://borrow.nypl.org

Log into your account, go to your "Bookshelf", select your "Profile", select "Edit Profile", and then add or edit your e-mail address. Be sure to hit the "Save" button once you've made the updates.

Our notification messages are now sent from circulation@nypl.org - be sure to check your spam folder, and also, importantly, please add that new e-mail to your address book's contacts.
 
Because e-mails can sometimes get waylaid due to circumstances beyond NYPL's control, if you’re expecting items, we recommend also that you check your account at least once a week:
https:/legacycatalog.nypl.org
 
Follow the link on the left for "Sign In".
 
The main terms used to describe the status of your holds are as follows:

"Available" indicates that there are copies of the item in the library system that should be used to fill your hold - not that the item is available for you to pick up.
"# of # holds" indicates your position in the hold queue. "1 of # holds" indicates that you are next in line for a copy of the item.
"In Transit" in your account's hold's field indicates that this item is being sent to fulfill your hold request.
"Ready for pickup" indicates that the item should be at the library where you had requested to pick up - until and including the posted "Pickup date".

For more information, be sure to talk to staff at your local library. A list of NYPL locations and hours can be found online here:
https://www.nypl.org/locations/

It's also possible to get notifications for e-book/e-audiobook holds (given the window to borrow e-books and e-audiobooks that are ready to borrow is only three days, it's worthwhile getting notifications via the e-book's provider).

To do so, please see below for the instructions for each e-book provider:

OverDrive

You can update your email address for hold notifications by logging into OverDrive's Web site at https://nypl.overdrive.com/ .

Click on "My Account" and then "Holds." Then, click on "Edit email" to update the email address for each hold. OverDrive hold notifications are sent from donotreply@overdrive.com. The hold will expire after 72 hours/3 days if the hold is not checked out. 

OverDrive has a "Deliver Later" feature in which a fulfilled hold can be passed onto the next patron in line, and your hold will remain at the top of the queue. You would be able to choose when the hold is delivered to you again. In addition, for the first time that a hold expires, OverDrive will automatically put this item back on hold for you, and OverDrive will try to deliver the hold to you again after seven days. 

Details on the "Deliver Later" feature are available here from OverDrive: https://help.overdrive.com/en-us/2265.htm

Please note that the "Deliver Later" feature is not able to be used/managed in the SimplyE app. It is a feature that can be accessed in your account in OverDrive's website, https://nypl.overdrive.com/ .

Bibliotheca/cloudLibrary

Please log into your NYPL/cloudLibrary account at https://ebook.yourcloudlibrary.com/library/nypl/Featured with your library card number and PIN/Password. Please omit any spaces between the numbers. After logging in, click on "Settings" which is at the top of the webpage between the words "Filters" and "About." In the pop-up Settings screen that appears, under "Email notification", please select "Yes, notify me" and then enter your email address and click "Save."

Cloud Library’s hold notifications will be sent from noreply@notifications.yourcloudlibrary.com . It may be helpful to add this email address to your contact list so that it will not get filtered as spam.

When the hold is fulfilled, you will have three days (72 hours) to check out the hold before it expires. A date and time will be provided for the expiration date/time of the hold. The format of the time is in UTC (Coordinated Universal Time ) format because the Cloud Library app is used by patrons worldwide. To convert the time zone from UTC to Eastern Standard Time subtract 5 hours from the UTC. Additional information on time zone conversion is available at this link from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration: https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/aboututc.shtml .