A reading room is located in front of the main entrance. During opening hours, you can peruse freely books in the reading room; books for students, reference books, etc.

<Books for students>
They are the books related to classes and the liberal education books.

<Reference books>
They are the books in order to refer for research, investigation, studing and so on, including encyclopedias, handbooks, national language dictionaries of each country and dictionaries of each special field etc. Usually, you can't borrow them.

A stack room is under the reading room. The stack room is divided into two floors. Back numbers of scientific journals are in the upper floor (the 1st floor), and various Japanese and European books are in the lower floor (the underground 1st floor). When utilizing the stack room, please write date, user number, name, admission time, leaving time in the "stack room utilization records". During opening hours, you can utilize the stack room freely.

A magazine corner is in the vicinity of the information desk. You can peruse freely up-to-date magazines here. Back numbers of these magazines are in the stack room.

When you go down the stairway in front of the reading room, you can find the 2nd reading room on your right. When the reading room is full of users, it is convenient. You can't bring here the books in the reading room without procedure of borrowing. If you want to read a reference book, please utilize the reading room during 09:00 - 17:00. Please note that during spring, summer and winter season vacations for students, you can't utilize the 2nd reading room.

A newspaper corner is in front of the 2nd reading room. Sitting down on the sofa, please read a newspaper in a relaxed mood. After you read one through, please bring back to the original place. Here only the newspapers of this week are put in place. If you want to read previous newspapers, please ask the information desk. Please note that old newspapers more than 6 months before are to be done away with. In addition, pocket editions of the Asahi newspapers and the daily industrial newspapers are put in the stack room lower floor. Because the daily industrial newspapers have become CD-ROMs since 2003, please utilize the multimedia corner. During opening hours, you can utilize this corner.

# You can't borrow magazines, books which "For Reference Only" labels are put on and research books for teachers.
# Borrowing period during spring, summer and winter season vacations for students is extended to the end of each vacation. However, this extension is permitted only to department students and graduate students.
# General users can borrow in the LAIC Himeji shosha, Harima kagaku kouen toshi and Himeji shinzaike only. In other 3 LAICs, they can read only.

(2) Borrowing and returning books

When you borrow books, you need your card, so please be sure to carry it along. On the other hand, when you return books, you don't need it.

Please borrow and return books at the information desk. In case of borrowing, please show books and your card. In case of returning, please show books and inform the staff of returning.

The Pals (Personal Access Lending System) is near the information desk. If you use it, you can borrow and return books by yourself. Because you can borrow and return books without being known to the LAIC staff what kind of books are borrowed, we recommend you to use it. Furthermore, because general users and other paper card holders cannot use it, please borrow books at the information desk. You can use it when you return books.

The utilization method of the Pals is described below.


<How to borrow books using the Pals>

1.Please touch "Lend" button, insert your student's card or other plastic card in the card hole and put a book on a specified position.
2.When you borrow some other books, putting the following book on the same place enables you to go on the same procedure as described in "1". You cannot put some books there at the same time.
3.When you finish the borrowing procedure, please touch "Quit" button. After receiving the books and your plastic card, a utilization receipt is printed out. So please keep it (Your due date is printed).

# Because general users and other paper card holders cannot use the Pals, please borrow books at the information desk.


<How to extend borrowing using the Pals>

# When you cannot read the books which you lent by the due date, if no one reserves the books you lent, you can extend borrowing period only one time.
# When you extend borrowing, please touch "Extend" button and go on the same procedure as described in "How to borrow books".


<How to return books using the Pals>
1.Please touch "Return" button and put a book on a specified position. You cannot put some books there at the same time.
2.After you finish the procedure, please touch "Close" button and a utilization receipt is printed out. So please keep it for a while.
3.Please put the books which you finish returning on a specified return place.

# You don't need your user card when you return books.

You cannot borrow the books which others borrow now until they are returned. But, if you reserve borrowing, you can be informed in time when the book you reserved is returned. If you want to reserve borrowing, please ask the staff.

Furthermore, please note that, because this is the service only for the students of University of Hyogo, other users can't reserve borrowing.

If you cannot come to the LAIC Himeji Shosha during opening hours, you can return books during closing hours or closing days. At that time, please insert books in the book post in front of the main entrance. After the LAIC opens, the staff returns books.

# After introduction of BDS (Book Detection System), without borrowing at the information desk or with the Pals, or if you probably try to bring books outside from the reading room, the buzzer sounds. When the buzzer sounds, please follow the indication of the staff.

# If you return books late, you cannot borrow books for a certain period.