Web 2.0 Comes to Town!

The Virtual Gardner-Harvey Library is Open, 24/7 @ http://www.mid.muohio.edu/library

The times & technologies are changing. And so is the Gardner-Harvey Library Web Page. Web 2.0 social software tools have crept onto the page. When? Recently. How? Thanks to Director John Burke, Undercover Techie. What? Therein lays the tale:

IM Reference Made Easier
Ever wish you could just ask a simple question without the bother of setting up an IM account? Meebo chat, your dream widget has arrived. Click on the “IMaLibrarian” box, front and center, start typing in the text box, and hit enter. Yes, you are now an IM pro.

Interactive Maps
Ever needed travel directions from one Miami campus to another? Go to “Contact Us” on the left. Click “this map” and up pops an interactive street and satellite map with turn by turn directions for the directionally-challenged. Click “View Larger Map” for Mapquest directions for all 9 MU Libraries. Not quite TomTom, but affordable!

Custom Search Engines
Ever wonder what the other 23 Ohio Regional Campuses are up to? Click on “Custom Search Engines”, built using Google Co-op, on the left, then “Ohio Regional Campus Search” and toss in a few words, e.g. “recruitment non-traditional students” to find 9 hits. Or explore 113 academic library sites for information and ideas using “Ohio Academic Libraries Search”.

Embedded Tutorials
Ever wish you could afford a personal trainer in academic research? For the motivated and curious, click on “Library Instruction” on the left to find tutorials on Information Fluency for ENG 111/113, Miami eScholar on Academic Integrity, Academic Search Complete, a comprehensive database, CINAHL, Nursing & Allied Health database, Searching OhioLINK, the statewide Ohio Library and Information Network. Bonus finds: interactive research tutorials, research guides, and search tools chart.

Group Computer Use Area

We are thrilled to announce the arrival of a new area in the library: the group computer use area. Located along the stairwell in the heart of the library, the area is designed for work on collaborative projects that may involve or require the use of a computer.

There are four computers arranged on spacious tables in the area and ten chairs. The plan is that each computer can have 2-4 people working around them. There is enough space on the tables to easily spread out other materials.

We hope you and your group will try this area out and find it useful. Let us know how we can make it work better for your learning needs. Beyond the furniture, the area boasts indirect natural light, a view of our stairway descent, and easy access to research and technology assistance.

Go Global; Be Multicultural

Multicultural comparisons just got easier with the new Britannica Country Comparison feature. Select any two countries and click Go to find articles, maps, flags, statistics, events, and multimedia.

And if you want more, go to Britannica's World Data. There you may compare and contrast statistical portraits for 217 nations. Find current country comparisons for up to ten countries at a time, chronological comparisons of historical data for up to ninety years, or ranked statistics of the highest or lowest rates, totals, or percentages for categories you select. Display results in tables or charts.