Quick Search
The Quick Search feature provides you with 3 search options using the drop down list:
- Title or Series: enter the exact word or phrase (not case sensitive).
- Author or Editor: Enter the full or last name of the author/editor (not case sensitive).
- ISBN or Publisher Code: enter the ISBN number or publisher's code for the title (no spaces, no dashes or other punctuation).
Advanced Search
The Advanced Search feature provides you with the features listed above plus the following:
- Select organization or subject from drop down list: allows you to narrow your search to a specific publisher or subject.
- Description contains (words or phrases): this search option allows you to search through the full title descriptions in our database. With 50,000 descriptions, it may take a few moments to complete the search but the results will provide you with a list of titles in your area of interest.
- Added Since: enter the month/day/year and you will be able to create a list of all the titles added to the web site since that date. Adding the Select Organization/Subject feature to your search will narrow down your results. If you are a regular visitor and note the last time you visited, you can use this feature to view the new titles added since then.
Shopping Cart
If you click "Shopping cart/Checkout" in the upper right context menu when your shopping cart is empty, you are informed of this fact and have two options: (1) You can log in to be presented with the option of selecting any saved shopping carts associated with your customer profile or (2) You can continue shopping by selecting any other context menu option and add items to your shopping cart.
If you have items in your shopping cart and you wish to retrieve at a future date, simply exit the store and the shopping cart will automatically be saved as long as it is associated with a customer profile. To associate your cart with your customer profile simply log in with an existing profile or create a new on and indicate that you wwant it to be retained. You will be probably want to write down the cart ID number of any cart you may want to retrieve later. The cart ID is the number displayed in green to the right of the "Current Shopping Cart Contents" label at the top of the shopping cart view. The bookstore allows you to save multiple shopping carts and you will be provided with a list of ID numbers to choose from when you log in.
Check Out
This button is available on the shopping cart page if you have at least 1 item in your shopping cart. Clicking the "Check Out" button will move you from our menu-based shopping system and transfer you to our secure server connection where you can proceed through the 3-step checkout process. Every effort has been made to keep the procedures as straightforward as possible. Please read and follow the instructions carefully but if you run into any problems, please do not hesitate to contact us.
In the first step of the process, you will be required to log in with an existing customer profile or create a new one. A customer profile is required to proceed with the checkout process.
After you have verified your customer profile, including billing/shipping information and notification preference, click the "Continue to checkout step 2" button. This is the last chance you will have to modify the number of items in your cart. If you wish to use the same purchase order number for all the items in your cart, you will be provided with this option in Step 3.
After you have verified the contents of your shopping cart, click the "Continue to step 3" button and use the drop down box to select your checkout option.
When you select the "Renouf Account" option you are prompted for your Renouf account number (required). The last step is to click the "Finish" button and a printable copy of your order is transmitted to you.
When you select the "Credit Card" option you are prompted to provide the following required information:
- Type of credit card
- Credit card expiry date
- Name on the credit card
- Your credit card number
For added security, your credit card number, type of card, expiry date and order ID number are sent via a secure server. Unlike most online checkout systems, that information is not sent or stored with name appearing on the credit card. That information is stored separately on our fully secured server, which is only accessible to our customer-service staff when they retrieve your order using the ID number generated during the checkout process. The last step is to click the "Finish" button and a printable copy of your order is sent to you.
When you select the "Print Order for Mail or Fax" option, you are presented with a printable copy of your order which you can send us or simply use it as a reference tool when you place your order by phone.
When you use the "Contact me for payment information" option, you are presented with a printable copy of your order and an e-mail is sent to our order department alerting them that you want them to contact you.
Your other checkout option is to click the "Empty cart and exit without ordering" button and your shopping cart is deleted from our system immediately. Your customer profile is also deleted, if you indicated that you did not it retained. You are NOT presented with a printable copy of your order when you select this option.
Prices and Taxes
The prices listed on Renouf's website do not include taxes or shipping and handling charges that vary depending on the weight of the shipment and the destination of the package. A customer-service representative would be please to provide you with a quote prior to your initializing your order.
Canadian customers will be charged 5% HST on printed books and provincial tax on certain electronic products. The tax rates vary by province and we would be please to provide you with a quote prior to your submitting your order. Canadian customers with tax exempt status should enter their tax exempt numbers when creating their customer profile.
Error Messages
Most error messages you receive will probably be the result of a time out or other error messages to do with connection problems, net congestion or server loading. Errors of this type are usually beyond our control and are best resolved with patience or trying again later.
If you encounter a database error (probably reported as an "ODBC" error), please report it and including any file and line number reference to our webmaster in order to help us improve our system to serve you better. When reporting an error, please include what browser (including version) you are using.