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Create and manage lists

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Discover how to create and manage lists in WorldCat.org.

Overview

WorldCat lists are a way for you to group:

  • Library-owned items you have found while using WorldCat.
  • Items your library owns that you want to share with patrons.

Lists let you keep track of items of interest and refer back to them whenever you want to. You can also share your lists with friends and colleagues. List invitations can be sent to anyone with an email address regardless of whether they maintain a WorldCat account.

Both WorldCat users and institutional users can create and share lists.

 Note: If you are signed in to WorldCat.org as a WorldShare library, any lists you create will be associated with your institution and displayed on your library's profile page. You must sign out and sign back in as a WorldCat user to associate lists with your personal account.

WorldCat users

WorldCat users with personal accounts can:

  • Create up to 50 lists.
  • Add up to 500 library items per list. After adding 500 items to a list, any additional items you try to add will not appear on the list. You can delete items to make room, move some items to another list you've created, or start a new list.

Institutional users

Institutional users can:

  • Create unlimited lists.
  • Add up to 500 library items per list. After you have added 500 items to a list, any additional items you try to add will not appear on the list. You can delete items to make room, move some items to another list you've created, or start a new list.

Create a list

  1. From the Item Details screen, click Add item to list button (Add item to list button).
    • If you are signed in to WorldCat.org, the Add item to a list dialog opens.
    • If you are not signed in to WorldCat.org, you will be prompted to sign in before the Add item to a list dialog opens.
  2. From the Add item to a list dialog, click Create New to open the Create new list dialog.
  3. From the Create new list dialog, complete the following:
    1. List name - Enter a name for the list. The list name can contain up to 70 characters, including spaces.
    2. List description - Enter a description for the list. The list description can contain up to 500 characters, including spaces.
    3. List privacy - Select a privacy setting for the list.
      • Private (default) - Only you can view this list. If you are part of an institution, you will be able to see all public and private lists created by the institution.
      • Public - Anyone on WorldCat.org will be able to view, cite, share this list.
    4. Click Create. A confirmation message displays when the list has been created with a hyperlink to view the list.
      • If you created a list using a personal account, your display name will appear under the list name (e.g., Curated by Erika).
      • If you created a list using an institution's account, the institution's name will appear under the list name (e.g., Curated by OCLC WorldShare Management Services - Library).

Add an item to a list

  1. From the Item Details screen, click Add item to list button (Add item to list button).
    • If you are signed in to WorldCat.org, the Add item to a list dialog opens.
    • If you are not signed in to WorldCat.org, you will be prompted to sign in before the Add item to a list dialog opens.
  2. Select the list you want to add the item to and then click Add Item. A confirmation message displays when the item has been added to the list with a hyperlink to view the list. You can search for a list in the search text field, which will begin to filter the available lists based on the text you enter.

Export a list

  1. From the My Lists screen, click the title of the list you want to export.
  2. Click the Ellipses drop-down menu (Ellipses drop-down menu) and then select Export List. The Export List dialog opens.
  3. From the Export list dialog, click Export. The list downloads to your workstation as a .CSV file that contains the following columns:
    • OCLC #
    • Title
    • Author
    • Language
    • Item Type
    • Publisher
    • Notes

Delete a list

 Caution: Deleting a list is a permanent action.

  1. From the My Lists screen, click the title of the list you want to delete.
  2. Click the Ellipses drop-down menu (Ellipses drop-down menu) and then select Delete List. The Delete List dialog opens.
  3. From the Delete List dialog, click Delete. The list is permanently deleted from WorldCat.

You can also delete a list from the Update List Details dialog by clicking Delete List and then following step 3 above.

Delete an item from a list

  1. From the My Lists screen, click the title of the list you want to remove an item from.
  2. Hover over the item you want to delete and click the Delete button (Delete item from list button). The item is automatically deleted from the list.

Update a list

You can update list details for an existing list.

  1. From the My Lists screen, click the title of the list you want to update.
  2. Click the Ellipses drop-down menu (Ellipses drop-down menu) and then select Update List. The Update List Details dialog opens.
  3. From the Update List Details dialog, update any of the following:
    • List name - Enter a name for the list. The list name can contain up to 70 characters, including spaces.
    • List description - Enter a description for the list. The list description can contain up to 500 characters, including spaces.
    • List privacy - Select a privacy setting for the list.
      • Private (default) - Only you can view this list. If you are part of an institution, you will be able to see all public and private lists created by the institution.
      • Public - Anyone on WorldCat.org will be able to view, cite, share this list.
  4. Click Update.