Circulation Collection (Ground, First, Third and Fourth Floors)
The Circulation Collection includes books in English, Chinese, or other non-western languages, conference proceedings, technical papers, and circulating dissertations. The Circulation Collection occupies four floors. Books are classified by the Library of Congress (LC) Classification scheme and they are arranged on the shelves in the following classified order:
Class Nos.* / Location  
A - G 4th Floor
H - K 3rd Floor
L - S  1st Floor
T - Z  Ground Floor
Compact Store 2 Ground Floor
*Large books which cannot be accommodated on the normal shelves are kept at the end of the collection on each floor. The word [QRT] beside the call number indicates large book on the catalogue. E.g. [QRT] NK1264.Z33 1996 is shelved after books with class nos. L to S on 1st Floor.
 
Special Collections (Fourth Floor)
The Special Collections consisted of the following collections housed in either closed or semi-closed stacks. Please enquire at the Special Collections Counter (ext. 6874) for use of closed stack materials.

Reserve Books (Semi-closed stacks): During their course of study, students are required to read a number of supplementary materials in addition to their basic textbooks. These supplementary materials, usually recommended by teaching staff, together with books listed in the Textbook and Reference Book Lists form the basis of the Reserve Books Collection which can be borrowed as follows:
Categories of Users in 

Library Regulations 5.4
Loan quota 
Loan Period 
(i),(ii),(iii),(iv) &(v)
2 
60 hours 
(vi),(vii)&(viii)
1 
6 hours or overnight* 
*Reserve books can be borrowed for overnight reading during the last 6 hours (5 hours for weekdays) before the Library closes, and must be returned to the Special Collections Counter (4/F) during opening hours, or via the 24-hour Book Drop during Library closing hours.

Standards (Closed stacks): Major industrial standards are kept in closed stacks of the Special Collections. Standards are indicated by the abbreviation [STD] before the call number on the OPAC. Indexes and full-text/image version of national and international standards, including the British Standards, ISO Standards, American National Standards, Japanese Industrial Standards etc., are available on the Internet or on CD-ROM at stations on 4/F from the following sources: the Specs and Standards Service, and the Australian Standards.

The PolyU Collection (Closed stacks): This collection contains materials published or issued by the University or of special interest to the University. The PolyU Collection has the abbreviation [POL] before the call number on the OPAC.

Theses & Dissertations (Closed stacks): PolyU theses and theses from other sources with restricted access requirement are kept in closed stacks. PolyU theses have the abbreviation [THS] before the call number and may only be consulted in the Library. Users may be required to sign a declaration form before consulting the theses.

Photocopying of theses must be done by Library staff who will make copies for users in strict accordance with the author's instructions and the Hong Kong copyright law.  Full-text images of PolyU's doctoral dissertations and master's theses are available from the PolyU Electronic Theses, as well as from "ProQuest Digital Dissertations (1999+)" database.
 
 
Serials Collection (Ground and Fifth Floors)
The Serials Collection includes journals, annuals, irregular serial publications and newspapers. Over 5,200 active print serials titles are held in the Library. Via the Internet, the Library also provides round the clock access to over 30,500 unique full-text electronic titles. All print journals in the Serials Collection are arranged according to the Library of Congress Classification number:
Journals Class Nos. Floor
Current A - Z 5 (Display units)
Bound A - RB 5 (Bound volumes in L505)
Bound RC - Z 5 (Bound volumes in L501)
Ceased/Inactive English Journals A - Z G (Compact Store 1)
Current local and overseas newspapers are on display in L501 Display area and older issues are kept at the Serials Counter on Fifth Floor. Some popular items such as design and fashion magazines are available on request at the Serials Counter (Ext. 6906).

All academic and administrative staff are encouraged to review the list of serial titles on paid subscription and to propose suitable titles for cancellation through their departmental library liaison officer.
 
 
Audio-visual Collection (Third Floor)
About 64,000 sets of audiovisual materials (as of June 2006) on various subjects selected by academic staff and librarians are available for users. They include audio and video tapes, video laser discs, video-CDs, DVD-videos, audio CDs, slides, multimedia packages, microforms, instructional computer software, maps, charts and other non-print materials. All of them can be searched on OPAC. A feature list of audiovisual collections is also available for browsing on Library Homepage.

Slide Collection: The Collection contains over 260,000 slides on art, architecture, fashion design, graphic design and other technical subjects related to PolyU courses. Users are welcome to ask for assistance from the Slide Collection (Ext. 6868) for locating the slides they need.

Local Television Programmes:The Library has been recording the current affairs and instructional programmes produced by Radio Television Hong Kong, Television Broadcasting Ltd. and Asia Television Ltd. since early 1980's. Selected programmes produced by Cable Television are also included. By the end of June 2006, the Section has collected nearly 21,500 programmes. All current programmes are now available in DVD format. The local TV collection can be searched on OPAC by keywords, title and subject headings. Local television production deemed useful for a particular course can be recorded off-air for viewing. Advance notice to the Media Services Librarian (Ext. 6869) is necessary.

E-learning:Over 160 multimedia self-learning programmes on management and computer skills are available online on Library homepage, allowing students and staff to learn at their own pace anytime and anywhere.

Slide Image Database:For better preservation of slides and to enhance their accessibility, the Library has transferred 80,000 slide images in electronic format to the Slide Image Database. Images can be accessed from two designated workstations on the Podium and Third floors respectively, by artist's/designer's names, titles of works, Library call numbers and index terms which describe the images. Colour laser printing is available on the Podium Floor of the Library for printing images from the Slide Image Database at $3 per page. The database is also available on World Wide Web for PolyU users.

Digital Image Gallery:The Library has started to provide slide images on CD-ROMs since year 2000. These images, where copyright permits, are also made accessible online in the Digital Image Gallery of the Library homepage.

Video-on-Demand: Video programmes, where copyright permits, are also provided in the Library Homepage for remote viewing within the PolyU network. They can also be viewed in designated group rooms and carrels in the Media Services Section. These videos include current affairs and documentary programmes produced by ATV, RTHK, and Cable TV, fashion videos and other educational videos.

Online Audio Libraries: Provides over 110,000 tracks of music in the Online Music Library, encompassing classical music, contemporary and traditional jazz and blues, nostalgia, world and folk music as well as Chinese music, along with detailed composer and recording information. The Jazz Library offers nearly 20,000 tracks of jazz from 1,850 albums, with over 500 jazz artists. In the Online Spoken Words Library, more than 1,200 hours of spoken word are provided, covering the classical novels, plays, poetry and non-fiction literature from medieval times to the 20th century of fiction, non-fiction, poetry, drama and musical education works.
 
 
Reference Collection (Poduim Floor)
The Reference Collection contains tools to help users in their research, study and current information needs. The tools tend to be sources that are for the looking up of specific factual data and information rather than being read cover-to-cover. These handy tools include encyclopaedias, statistical sources, country data, biographical sources, various types of dictionaries, guidebooks, handbooks, directories, etc. For easy access, these tools are kept on the Podium Floor of the Library. The Duty Librarian at the Information Desk on the same floor will be happy to offer assistance in using the resources. There are also electronic reference sources that users can access 24 hours a day. Please go to the E-reference list which will direct you to electronic versions of encyclopaedias, dictionaries, statistical sources, country data, as well as a full array of local and overseas databases. Entries under the Reference category of the Internet Resources by Subject will direct you to useful websites. For users who are looking for journal articles, research reports or articles in proceedings, newspaper articles etc., there is a subject listing of E-databases where abstract or full-text electronic databases are available for searching online. Results and can be printed, downloaded or emailed. Please feel free to contact our Information Desk at 2766-6863 if you require assistance.
Electronic Resources
The Library provides access to a wide range of electronic resources covering all subject areas. Users can directly access these electronic resources including electronic books, abstract and full-text databases, proprietary PolyU databases, a vast collection of audio-visual resources, and over 30,500 unique electronic journals online. To facilitate Internet searching, the Library has also compiled listings of selected Internet websites by subjects.