The MUM Book Discussion Group is back in action for fall! We have our books in place for August and September, and we're hoping to have you join in.
On Wednesday, August 25 we'll discuss Kathyrn Stockett's The Help. You can find an overview of the book at http://www.readinggroupguides.com/guides_h/the_help1.asp, and then order a copy of the book from a variety of OhioLINK libraries at http://tinyurl.com/29dbg9m
As announced earlier this summer, on Tuesday, September 21 we will read Alexander McCall Smith’s The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency as part of Middfest’s Books of Botswana Reading Challenge (see http://ghlibrarynews.blogspot.com/2010/04/books-of-botswana-reading-challenge.html). Join this Middletown effort to support Middfest!
Be sure to check our website for upcoming events and to suggest additional titles: http://www.mid.muohio.edu/library/bookdiscussion.htm
We look forward to having you with us!
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Thursday, July 08, 2010
How was the library used in 2009-2010?
As an update to our earlier post on library use through January 2010, here are the full annual stats for several library services. I hope you will find them useful to see how people use the library. How do you compare to the average user of the Gardner-Harvey Library (GHL)?
These stats reflect what's happened this year, running from July 1, 2009 to June 30, 2010. Some stats we keep locally, others we pull from university-wide or OhioLINK-wide systems, and some are provided by database vendors.
Both a Borrower and a Lender Be
- GHL patrons checked out 4,583 books, DVDs, and videos from us (2,262 from our local collection, 1,475 ordered from other MU libraries, and 846 items ordered from OhioLINK - that means that more than half of the items used by campus patrons came from libraries beyond GHL). We also received 64 articles and 10 books and audiovisual items from libraries worldwide.
- The GHL collection registered 5,925 checkouts (that's the 2,262 items checked out by Middletown patrons above, plus 2,076 items sent to OhioLINK users, 1,418 sent to other MU libraries, and 169 items sent to libraries around the world - that means that more than 60% of the uses of our materials came from libraries beyond GHL). We also sent 76 periodical articles to libraries worldwide.
- GHL patrons checked out 3,851 reserve items from us (this includes faculty-placed course reserves, textbooks on reserve, laptops, Wii games, and other equipment).
- In addition to the printed or physical materials above, Middletown patrons have downloaded 6,894 e-books from the OhioLINK E-Book Center.
- In terms of building up our collection, Middletown faculty and staff ordered 1,665 items to add to our collection this year.
The Quest for Information
- Middletown patrons have performed 52,931 searches in databases provided to us by Ebsco and those hosted by OhioLINK. Statewide, 52% of database searches are done in Academic Search Complete, and our results are right on that average.
- Middletown patrons downloaded 20,332 full-text articles from the Electronic Journal Center. This is in addition to full-text articles found right within Ebsco or other databases.
- As part of getting to these databases, 54 people visit our web site every day. That's a total of 19,965 visits for the year, by 5,717 unique individuals.
A Place for Work, Study, and Remove from the World
- GHL is open 65 hours per week.
- We average 260 visitors per day, for a total of 75,350 visits this year.
- We regularly schedule the library learning lab (GRD 111) for occasional class sessions. We also had 12 classes meet there weekly during fall semester and 9 met there during this spring. In March 2009 we began scheduling COMPASS placement testing sessions in the lab on Mondays, Thursdays, and Fridays for incoming Middletown students.
- Our two STAR Lounges have been checked out 338 times this year. STAR Lounge 2 was used weekly by a class for its class meetings in the spring semester.
Helping You Find What You Need
- Inside and outside of the library, we gave library instruction presentations in 80 classes this year, reaching 1435 students. The courses represented were from 19 different departments.
- Our Blackboard Embedded Librarian program reached students in 43 course sections during the academic year. We have reached over 750 students through the program and helped them with their information needs.
- During calendar year 2009, we did our best to keep track of the questions you asked us at our InfoDesk. Here's what we learned from that tallying:
- One key part missing from these figures is off-campus use of library resources: all off-campus use is tallied as MU-wide use, so we do not know how many patrons are using databases from home.
- We don't have stats for all database searches - we're missing uses of Lexis-Nexis and other databases.
- We haven't surveyed the campus population at large about their use of our resources and their perception of the quality of our service for some time. We are hoping to offer such a survey in the next academic year, but we hope in the meantime you'll let us know what you think about the library, what you need from us, and what materials we should order for the collection.
On Average
Taking these numbers and guesstimating a total Middletown community of 2500 students, faculty and staff members (and including community patrons), here's what can be said about the average person on campus. She:
- visits the library every nine days.
- checks three items out from the library in a year (reserves and local/MU/OhioLINK collection items)
- performs 21 database searches per year.
- accesses the library web site eight times per year.
- views 2.75 e-books each year.
- participates in a library instruction session at least every other year (if she is a student).
Thanks to everyone for making the library and its resources a vital part of your academic lives!
These stats reflect what's happened this year, running from July 1, 2009 to June 30, 2010. Some stats we keep locally, others we pull from university-wide or OhioLINK-wide systems, and some are provided by database vendors.
Both a Borrower and a Lender Be
- GHL patrons checked out 4,583 books, DVDs, and videos from us (2,262 from our local collection, 1,475 ordered from other MU libraries, and 846 items ordered from OhioLINK - that means that more than half of the items used by campus patrons came from libraries beyond GHL). We also received 64 articles and 10 books and audiovisual items from libraries worldwide.
- The GHL collection registered 5,925 checkouts (that's the 2,262 items checked out by Middletown patrons above, plus 2,076 items sent to OhioLINK users, 1,418 sent to other MU libraries, and 169 items sent to libraries around the world - that means that more than 60% of the uses of our materials came from libraries beyond GHL). We also sent 76 periodical articles to libraries worldwide.
- GHL patrons checked out 3,851 reserve items from us (this includes faculty-placed course reserves, textbooks on reserve, laptops, Wii games, and other equipment).
- In addition to the printed or physical materials above, Middletown patrons have downloaded 6,894 e-books from the OhioLINK E-Book Center.
- In terms of building up our collection, Middletown faculty and staff ordered 1,665 items to add to our collection this year.
The Quest for Information
- Middletown patrons have performed 52,931 searches in databases provided to us by Ebsco and those hosted by OhioLINK. Statewide, 52% of database searches are done in Academic Search Complete, and our results are right on that average.
- Middletown patrons downloaded 20,332 full-text articles from the Electronic Journal Center. This is in addition to full-text articles found right within Ebsco or other databases.
- As part of getting to these databases, 54 people visit our web site every day. That's a total of 19,965 visits for the year, by 5,717 unique individuals.
A Place for Work, Study, and Remove from the World
- GHL is open 65 hours per week.
- We average 260 visitors per day, for a total of 75,350 visits this year.
- We regularly schedule the library learning lab (GRD 111) for occasional class sessions. We also had 12 classes meet there weekly during fall semester and 9 met there during this spring. In March 2009 we began scheduling COMPASS placement testing sessions in the lab on Mondays, Thursdays, and Fridays for incoming Middletown students.
- Our two STAR Lounges have been checked out 338 times this year. STAR Lounge 2 was used weekly by a class for its class meetings in the spring semester.
Helping You Find What You Need
- Inside and outside of the library, we gave library instruction presentations in 80 classes this year, reaching 1435 students. The courses represented were from 19 different departments.
- Our Blackboard Embedded Librarian program reached students in 43 course sections during the academic year. We have reached over 750 students through the program and helped them with their information needs.
- During calendar year 2009, we did our best to keep track of the questions you asked us at our InfoDesk. Here's what we learned from that tallying:
- You asked us 5245 questions during the year.
- That averages out to 19.5 questions per day. This is in addition to more routine, but essential, activities that we didn't count, like checking books out and back in.
- 19% of those questions came by phone, and 2% through instant-messaging, with the rest in-person (we also get a lot of questions in email, but we did not track those).
- The topics of those questions were fairly evenly divided, with nearly 20% in each of the categories of research (where to look for articles on X, etc.), technology (how to double space in Word, etc.), circulation (when will the book I requested arrive, etc.), and the ever-popular "other" category.
- 90% of the questions came between 8:00am and 5:00pm.
- One key part missing from these figures is off-campus use of library resources: all off-campus use is tallied as MU-wide use, so we do not know how many patrons are using databases from home.
- We don't have stats for all database searches - we're missing uses of Lexis-Nexis and other databases.
- We haven't surveyed the campus population at large about their use of our resources and their perception of the quality of our service for some time. We are hoping to offer such a survey in the next academic year, but we hope in the meantime you'll let us know what you think about the library, what you need from us, and what materials we should order for the collection.
On Average
Taking these numbers and guesstimating a total Middletown community of 2500 students, faculty and staff members (and including community patrons), here's what can be said about the average person on campus. She:
- visits the library every nine days.
- checks three items out from the library in a year (reserves and local/MU/OhioLINK collection items)
- performs 21 database searches per year.
- accesses the library web site eight times per year.
- views 2.75 e-books each year.
- participates in a library instruction session at least every other year (if she is a student).
Thanks to everyone for making the library and its resources a vital part of your academic lives!
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
New materials added in May and June
The May and June new materials list is now available. We added 438 books, DVDs, and other items over those months, thanks to the impressive efforts of our faculty selectors and the library staff.
Have a suggestion of something to order? Use our online request form, email one of our staff members or drop by the library with your request. Thanks!
John
Have a suggestion of something to order? Use our online request form, email one of our staff members or drop by the library with your request. Thanks!
John
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Summer Reads from the MUM Book Discussion Group
A summer of reading is ahead from the MUM Book Discussion Group! We have picked our next two monthly reading choices for June and July.
Our June book discussion will be on Wednesday, June 23, from 12:00-1:00 in the library (aim for the blue chairs). Our book is Jhumpa Lahiri’s The Namesake. We join family of Indian immigrants as they transform themselves into Americans. A fuller description is available at http://www.readinggroupguides.com/guides3/namesake1.asp The book is widely available through OhioLINK and can be requested from this page: http://tinyurl.com/29q2ka3
Our July discussion will be held on Thursday, July 22, from 12:00-1:00 in the library. The book is the Scandinavian thriller The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, by Stieg Larsson. Financial intrigue and a mysterious disappearance challenge Swedish journalist Mikael Blomkvist and his putative ally, the enigmatic Lisbeth Salander. More information on the book is available at http://www.bookbrowse.com/reviews/index.cfm/book_number/2179/The-Girl-with-the-Dragon-Tattoo The book may be requested from OhioLINK at this page: http://tinyurl.com/2agrpny
August is currently open for suggestions, but in September we will read Alexander McCall Smith’s The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency as part of Middfest’s Books of Botswana Reading Challenge (see http://ghlibrarynews.blogspot.com/2010/04/books-of-botswana-reading-challenge.html).
Be sure to check our website for upcoming events and to suggest additional titles: http://www.mid.muohio.edu/library/bookdiscussion.htm
We look forward to having you join us!
Our June book discussion will be on Wednesday, June 23, from 12:00-1:00 in the library (aim for the blue chairs). Our book is Jhumpa Lahiri’s The Namesake. We join family of Indian immigrants as they transform themselves into Americans. A fuller description is available at http://www.readinggroupguides.com/guides3/namesake1.asp The book is widely available through OhioLINK and can be requested from this page: http://tinyurl.com/29q2ka3
Our July discussion will be held on Thursday, July 22, from 12:00-1:00 in the library. The book is the Scandinavian thriller The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, by Stieg Larsson. Financial intrigue and a mysterious disappearance challenge Swedish journalist Mikael Blomkvist and his putative ally, the enigmatic Lisbeth Salander. More information on the book is available at http://www.bookbrowse.com/reviews/index.cfm/book_number/2179/The-Girl-with-the-Dragon-Tattoo The book may be requested from OhioLINK at this page: http://tinyurl.com/2agrpny
August is currently open for suggestions, but in September we will read Alexander McCall Smith’s The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency as part of Middfest’s Books of Botswana Reading Challenge (see http://ghlibrarynews.blogspot.com/2010/04/books-of-botswana-reading-challenge.html).
Be sure to check our website for upcoming events and to suggest additional titles: http://www.mid.muohio.edu/library/bookdiscussion.htm
We look forward to having you join us!
Friday, May 14, 2010
Summer Reading 2010
Whether you are beach bound, heading to the mountains, or sitting in your backyard, pick up a book and read this summer. Here are a few titles to consider.
Double Comfort Safari Club. Alexander McCall Smith. 2010.
Prepare for 2010 MidFest which will highlight Botswana, Africa by reading the latest novel in the No.1 Ladies Detective Agency series. MidFest Book Discussion Groups will be discussing this internationally best-selling author’s series in coming months, which focuses on the mysteries of life, using humor, culture, generational differences, ethics, and the call of community.
Beatrice and Virgil: A Novel. Yann Martel. 2010.
A celebrated now struggling author Henry meets with an older taxidermist to discuss his play featuring a howler monkey and donkey. Through the framework of fable, a holocaust tale unfolds. Thought-provoking themes on the human condition are raised, such as creativity and cruelty.
Wolf Hall. Hilary Mantel. 2010.
Follow the fascinating power play and intrigue in Henry VIII's court as he quest for a male heir with the help of Oliver Cromwell, and the hindrance of Sir Thomas More.
Life Among the Lutherans. Garrison Keillor. 2009.
Explore Keillor's spiritual roots spiced with humor and insight on living the good life.
Made for Goodness: And Why This Makes All the Difference. Desmond Tutu. 2010.
Reflect with one of the transparent movers and shakers of our time on the outworking of sin, goodness, and forgiveness.
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Accessing Textbooks Through the Library
Students have a variety of options to access required course materials through the Gardner-Harvey Library:
1. The library may have purchased the course textbook as part of our Textbooks on Reserve program. The current list of available textbooks (arranged by course) is available at http://www.mid.muohio.edu/library/textbookreserves.htm The library will also purchase additional textbooks as requested for Summer Semester. Each textbook may be borrowed from the library for two hours, or if checked out after 5:00pm, it can be kept until 9:00am the next morning.
2. Faculty members may have placed textbooks or other materials on library reserve. Many of the textbooks provided by faculty members are on the list linked above. If a faculty member would like to place an item on reserve, please consult the information at http://www.mid.muohio.edu/library/reserves.htm and use the online form at the bottom of that page.
3. Students may be able to borrow a copy of the textbook from another Miami University Library or from one of our OhioLINK library partners around the state. Materials may be borrowed for up to 15 weeks through OhioLINK. The starting point is to use our library catalog at http://www.lib.muohio.edu/multifacet (this searches all Miami libraries) and then to click on “Request Item.” Library staff would be happy to run searches and assist anyone in checking the availability of a title in OhioLINK.
4. Some textbooks are available as electronic books purchased through OhioLINK. A quick way to search these e-book collections (along with the print collections of OhioLINK libraries) is to use the University System of Ohio’s Textbook Portal at http://textbooks.uso.edu/ Enter either the ISBN or a combination of the title and author of the book to see if it is available.
The library stands ready to assist any student or faculty member who needs help with these matters. Please contact us at 513-727-3222, midref@lib.muohio.edu, IM us @ askghl, or contact any of our staff members directly using the information at http://www.mid.muohio.edu/library/contactus.htm
1. The library may have purchased the course textbook as part of our Textbooks on Reserve program. The current list of available textbooks (arranged by course) is available at http://www.mid.muohio.edu/library/textbookreserves.htm The library will also purchase additional textbooks as requested for Summer Semester. Each textbook may be borrowed from the library for two hours, or if checked out after 5:00pm, it can be kept until 9:00am the next morning.
2. Faculty members may have placed textbooks or other materials on library reserve. Many of the textbooks provided by faculty members are on the list linked above. If a faculty member would like to place an item on reserve, please consult the information at http://www.mid.muohio.edu/library/reserves.htm and use the online form at the bottom of that page.
3. Students may be able to borrow a copy of the textbook from another Miami University Library or from one of our OhioLINK library partners around the state. Materials may be borrowed for up to 15 weeks through OhioLINK. The starting point is to use our library catalog at http://www.lib.muohio.edu/multifacet (this searches all Miami libraries) and then to click on “Request Item.” Library staff would be happy to run searches and assist anyone in checking the availability of a title in OhioLINK.
4. Some textbooks are available as electronic books purchased through OhioLINK. A quick way to search these e-book collections (along with the print collections of OhioLINK libraries) is to use the University System of Ohio’s Textbook Portal at http://textbooks.uso.edu/ Enter either the ISBN or a combination of the title and author of the book to see if it is available.
The library stands ready to assist any student or faculty member who needs help with these matters. Please contact us at 513-727-3222, midref@lib.muohio.edu, IM us @ askghl, or contact any of our staff members directly using the information at http://www.mid.muohio.edu/library/contactus.htm
Tuesday, May 04, 2010
New Materials Added in March and April
The March and April new materials list is now available. We added 549 books, DVDs, and other items over those months, thanks to the impressive efforts of our faculty selectors and the library staff.
Have a suggestion of something to order? Use our online request form, email one of our staff members or drop by the library with your request. Thanks!
John
Have a suggestion of something to order? Use our online request form, email one of our staff members or drop by the library with your request. Thanks!
John
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Books of Botswana Reading Challenge
As part of its celebration of the nation of Botswana this year, Middfest International is sponsoring a Books of Botswana Reading Challenge. It features the works of Alexander McCall Smith, specifically his "No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency" series which is set in Botswana. The books are a great introduction to the country as well as intriguing detective fiction. I have read several of them and really enjoyed them.
There is a flyer which outlines the reading challenge. The overall goal is to inspire individuals to read one or more of the books, email Middfest to enter a prize drawing, and then attend a Botswana Tea 'N Talk on September 26, 2010 (just prior to Middfest itself, which runs from October 1-3). That event will feature a talk by a historian of Botswana and prize drawings for readers. Just to note, the April 21 book signing by Alexander McCall Smith had to be cancelled due to the Icelandic volcano interrupting his travel plans (there is hope it will be rescheduled).
The Gardner-Harvey Library would like to support this effort by offering our resources over the summer or in the early part of fall semester. I have recently ordered copies of all 11 No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency books for our collection (in addition to two by the historian) for individuals to use. Our library would be happy to serve as a meeting spot for any interested book discussion groups. I would be interested in leading a book discussion group as well. If I or my staff can help get groups started or offer guides to discussion questions, we would be glad to do so.
We also have DVDs of the first season of the HBO series based on the books. I would love to offer viewings of the episodes on campus or we'd be happy to lend those out for individual use.
If you would be interested in reading one or more of the books, watching the DVDs, participating in or leading a discussion group, please contact the library. It's great to read on your own, but discussing books with a group can be a lot of fun and bring out aspects of a work you never noticed.
There is a flyer which outlines the reading challenge. The overall goal is to inspire individuals to read one or more of the books, email Middfest to enter a prize drawing, and then attend a Botswana Tea 'N Talk on September 26, 2010 (just prior to Middfest itself, which runs from October 1-3). That event will feature a talk by a historian of Botswana and prize drawings for readers. Just to note, the April 21 book signing by Alexander McCall Smith had to be cancelled due to the Icelandic volcano interrupting his travel plans (there is hope it will be rescheduled).
The Gardner-Harvey Library would like to support this effort by offering our resources over the summer or in the early part of fall semester. I have recently ordered copies of all 11 No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency books for our collection (in addition to two by the historian) for individuals to use. Our library would be happy to serve as a meeting spot for any interested book discussion groups. I would be interested in leading a book discussion group as well. If I or my staff can help get groups started or offer guides to discussion questions, we would be glad to do so.
We also have DVDs of the first season of the HBO series based on the books. I would love to offer viewings of the episodes on campus or we'd be happy to lend those out for individual use.
If you would be interested in reading one or more of the books, watching the DVDs, participating in or leading a discussion group, please contact the library. It's great to read on your own, but discussing books with a group can be a lot of fun and bring out aspects of a work you never noticed.
Friday, April 16, 2010
The End of Overeating: Casper Lecture, & Book Discussion
This year Miami University Middletown invited Dr. David Kessler, former U. S. Food and Drug Commissioner and current Dean of the University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine to campus as the 2010 Casper Lecture Series speaker. Dr. Kessler is a physician, lawyer, and author of The End of Overeating: Taking Control of the Insatiable American Appetite, 2009. On the evening of April 13, 2010 and again on the morning of April 14, Dr. Kessler spoke earnestly and knowledgeably of the brain circuitry and conditioned hypereating the American food industry has fostered by combining sugar, fat, and salt in its food products and which it uses to its advantage. He shared his scientific findings and suggested ways of addressing these health concerns as individuals and as a nation. To learn more, watch this video.
Prior to Dr. Kessler’s visit, the MUM Book Discussion group had a merry time discussing a number of questions, ideas, and insights gleaned from the book’s pages. The Gardner-Harvey Library provided free copies of the title to ten participating readers. Eating for health is not as easy as one might think, given the American culture of 24/7 eating and ubiquitous access to processed food. Food rehab is needed to combat the Cue-Urge-Reward-Habit cycle. Specific strategies to aid individuals are supplied in the closing chapters. If you would like to read and discuss this title with others, please see the list of book discussion questions that follow, compiled by the Assistant Library Director and discussion facilitator Beth Tumbleson.
- Why do we eat: nutrition, survival, stimulation, entertainment? Why do Americans tend to overeat?
- Before reading The End of Overeating, were you aware of the deliberate attempt by the food industry to capture your appetite and your dollars?
- After reading The End of Eating, what insights and impressions have lingered and shaken your core beliefs?
- What new vocabulary did you learn in these pages? (Bliss Point, Conditioned Hypereating, Hyper-palatable, Multisensory Experience)
- What startling scientific discoveries did you make in reading these pages? (Rewiring Brain Circuitry, Elevated Dopamine Levels, etc.)
- How are the efforts of the food and advertising industries personally affecting you the consumer at the grocery store, restaurants, vending machines, etc.?
- Why does the American culture foster 24/7 eating? How has the average American’s weight changed since the 1960s?
- What role do fast food restaurants and junk food play in your family’s life? Why?
- When eating/consuming becomes big business where profit matters more than nutrition, what ethical dilemmas are raised in the American culture?
- Do business and government have a responsibility to safeguard the individual’s and nation’s health? What reforms would you like to see put in place nationally? (Insurance Rates Tied to Lifestyle Choices, Financial Incentives for Healthy Lifestyle Choices, Food Tax on Unhealthy Items, Calories Listed on Menus, Healthier School Cafeteria Menus, etc.)
- How has your life and those you love been threatened by overeating? How has the obesity epidemic touched your life? What diseases concern you most? (Cancer, Cardiovascular, Type 2 Diabetes, Stroke)
- In what ways are the health care and insurance industries also profiting from the Western diet which results in chronic medical conditions?
- Now that you understand the Cue-Urge-Reward-Habit cycle, what changes will you make which were outlined in the Food Rehab chapters?
- Because eating cues are personal and are related to our emotions and memories, how might you establish healthier habits in future? How might you assume greater accountability in one or two areas of your life?
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
You asked, and asked, and asked . . . and we answered
In a recent post, we shared some statistics on how the library has been used in the first seven months of this academic year. One item we mentioned was a year long tallying of questions you asked us at our InfoDesk. During 2009, we did our best to keep track of the questions asked at the desk. Here's what we learned from that tallying:
- You asked us 5245 questions during the year.
- That averages out to 19.5 questions per day. This is in addition to more routine, but essential, activities that we didn't count, like checking books out and back in.
- 19% of those questions came by phone, and 2% through instant-messaging, with the rest in-person (we also get a lot of questions in email, but we did not track those).
- The topics of those questions were fairly evenly divided, with nearly 20% in each of the categories of research (where to look for articles on X, etc.), technology (how to double space in Word, etc.), circulation (when will the book I requested arrive, etc.), and the ever-popular "other" category.
- 90% of the questions came between 8:00am and 5:00pm.
So, we know a bit more about what you need to know from us and when you need to know it. We're still analyzing the data and seeking to find applications to staffing our InfoDesk and training ourselves. We are also planning a new way to gather stats on questions and also get down some details on the content of each question that might guide us further.
All we can say to you is thanks for seeking assistance and keep those questions coming. As it says at our doorways, "how can the library help you today?"
- You asked us 5245 questions during the year.
- That averages out to 19.5 questions per day. This is in addition to more routine, but essential, activities that we didn't count, like checking books out and back in.
- 19% of those questions came by phone, and 2% through instant-messaging, with the rest in-person (we also get a lot of questions in email, but we did not track those).
- The topics of those questions were fairly evenly divided, with nearly 20% in each of the categories of research (where to look for articles on X, etc.), technology (how to double space in Word, etc.), circulation (when will the book I requested arrive, etc.), and the ever-popular "other" category.
- 90% of the questions came between 8:00am and 5:00pm.
So, we know a bit more about what you need to know from us and when you need to know it. We're still analyzing the data and seeking to find applications to staffing our InfoDesk and training ourselves. We are also planning a new way to gather stats on questions and also get down some details on the content of each question that might guide us further.
All we can say to you is thanks for seeking assistance and keep those questions coming. As it says at our doorways, "how can the library help you today?"
Spring time and the linking is easy . . .
Making links to any library resource available to you or other MU students, faculty, and staff from off-campus is easy . . . if you know the proxy secret. What is the proxy secret? (shhhhh! not so loud! read quieter in your head!) Here's the scoop:
If you find an article in a database and then email the URL of that article to a friend, the friend may not be able to get to the article unless he or she is on campus. This is what the proxy server is all about - giving access to library databases and resources to any MU person off-campus.
Here's how it works: if you want to post a link to an article, or e-book, or anything that you find through the library's web site, you add something to the front of the URL to make sure someone else can read it off-campus. That something is this:
https://proxy.lib.miamioh.edu/login?url=
That part of the URL makes the link take a detour through the proxy server, asking the link clicker to enter his or her UniqueID and password to get access to the end part of the link.
The databases themselves (like Academic Search Complete or Lexis-Nexis Academic Universe) already have this detour built in to their URLs for off-campus users - those on-campus never notice this. But if you are linking to a journal title like Business Week, don't just put a link in like this:
https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bft&jid=B7OA&site=eds-live
Add the proxy, and it will work fine off-campus.
https://proxy.lib.miamioh.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bft&jid=B7OA&site=eds-live
It's a great way to share articles or other items you find without making people do the searching for it themselves. Just look for links marked as "persistent links" or "link to this publication (article, etc.)." Try it out, or be sure to ask us if you have questions.
If you find an article in a database and then email the URL of that article to a friend, the friend may not be able to get to the article unless he or she is on campus. This is what the proxy server is all about - giving access to library databases and resources to any MU person off-campus.
Here's how it works: if you want to post a link to an article, or e-book, or anything that you find through the library's web site, you add something to the front of the URL to make sure someone else can read it off-campus. That something is this:
https://proxy.lib.miamioh.edu/login?url=
That part of the URL makes the link take a detour through the proxy server, asking the link clicker to enter his or her UniqueID and password to get access to the end part of the link.
The databases themselves (like Academic Search Complete or Lexis-Nexis Academic Universe) already have this detour built in to their URLs for off-campus users - those on-campus never notice this. But if you are linking to a journal title like Business Week, don't just put a link in like this:
https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bft&jid=B7OA&site=eds-live
Add the proxy, and it will work fine off-campus.
https://proxy.lib.miamioh.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bft&jid=B7OA&site=eds-live
It's a great way to share articles or other items you find without making people do the searching for it themselves. Just look for links marked as "persistent links" or "link to this publication (article, etc.)." Try it out, or be sure to ask us if you have questions.
Friday, March 19, 2010
New Materials Added in February
The February new materials list is now available. We added 152 books, DVDs, and other items over that month, thanks to the impressive efforts of our faculty selectors and the library staff.
Have a suggestion of something to order? Use our online request form, email one of our staff members or drop by the library with your request. Thanks!
John
Have a suggestion of something to order? Use our online request form, email one of our staff members or drop by the library with your request. Thanks!
John
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Your Life. Six Words. Can You?
The Gardner-Harvey Library is sponsoring an exercise in self-authorship based on the idea of the six-word memoir. Can you describe your life in six words? It's a lot of fun to try. Come by the library and see what people are writing about themselves on our white board (by the blue chairs). You can also peruse two books of collected six-word memoirs for ideas (with many well-known authors and others participating). The concept has been popularized by Rachel Fershleiser and Larry Smith of Smith Magazine.
Thursday, February 18, 2010
How is the library being used?
We have a lot of statistics available to us on how our patrons (you!) are using the library, and we tend to share them only at the end of the year with a few people (if at all). We thought it would be interesting to you to see some of these stats in the midst of the academic year. How is the library building used? How many database searches happen in a year? How many books and DVDs and whatnot are checked out? Who else is using the library's collections? What is the reach of the library's services? We can't fill in the entire picture with the stats we have, but we can give you some idea on how we are utilized.
These stats reflect what's happened so far this year, running from July 1, 2009 to January 31, 2010. Some stats we keep locally, others we pull from university-wide or OhioLINK-wide systems, and some are provided by database vendors.
Both a Borrower and a Lender Be
- GHL patrons checked out 2,756 books, DVDs, videos from us (1,300 from our local collection, 915 ordered from other MU libraries, and 541 items ordered from OhioLINK - that means that over half of the items used by campus patrons came from libraries beyond GHL).
- The GHL collection registered 3504 checkouts (that's the 1300 items checked out by Middletown patrons above, plus 1,259 items sent to OhioLINK users, 851 sent to other MU libraries, and 94 items sent to libraries around the world - that means that more than 60% of the uses of our materials came from libraries beyond GHL).
- GHL patrons checked out 2,122 course reserve items from us (this includes faculty-placed course reserves, textbooks on reserve, laptops, Wii games, and other equipment).
- In addition to the printed or physical materials above, Middletown patrons have downloaded 3,610 e-books from the OhioLINK E-Book Center.
- In terms of building up our collection, Middletown faculty and staff have ordered 619 items to add to our collection so far this year.
The Quest for Information
- Middletown patrons have performed 29,635 searches in databases provided to us by Ebsco and those hosted by OhioLINK. Statewide, 52% of database searches are done in Academic Search Complete, and our results are right on that average.
- Middletown patrons downloaded 11,757 full-text articles from the Electronic Journal Center. This is in addition to full-text articles found right within Ebsco or other databases.
- As part of getting to these databases, 74 people visit our web site every day. That's a total of 11,445 visits for the year, by 3,397 unique individuals.
A Place for Work, Study, and Remove from the World
- GHL is open 65 hours per week.
- We average 288 visitors per day, for a total of 43,333 vistors this year.
- We regularly schedule the library learning lab (GRD 111) for occasional class sessions. We also had 12 classes meeting in there weekly during fall semester and have 9 meeting in there during this spring.
- Our two STAR Lounges have been checked out 200 times this year, or roughly 1.25 times per day. STAR Lounge 2 is used weekly by a class for its class meetings in this semester.
Helping You Find What You Need
- Inside and outside of the library, we've given library instruction presentations in 51 classes this year, reaching 987 students.
- Our Blackboard Embedded Librarian program reached students in 19 course sections in fall semester and we're working with 21 sections this semester. We expect to reach a total of 700+ students and help them with their information needs.
What don't we know about how the library is used?
- One key part missing from these figures is off-campus use of library resources: all off-campus use is tallied as MU-wide use, so we do not know how many patrons are using databases from home.
- We don't have stats for all database searches - we're missing uses of Lexis-Nexis and other databases.
- We don't know (yet) how many questions we field in a day at our InfoDesk (whether in person or by phone or email or text). We completed a year-long tally of questions in December 2009, but haven't finished analyzing the results yet.
- We haven't surveyed the campus population at large about their use of our resources and their perception of the quality of our service for some time. We are hoping to offer such a survey in the next academic year, but we hope in the meantime you'll let us know what you think about the library, what you need from us, and what materials we should order for the collection.
On Average
Taking these numbers and guessing at a total Middletown community of 2500 students, faculty and staff members, and community patrons, here's what can be said about the average library patron. She:
- visits the library every nine days.
- checks four items out from the library in a year (reserves and local/MU/OhioLINK collection items)
- performs 22 database searches per year.
- accesses the library web site eight times per year.
- views 2.5 e-books each year.
- participates in a library instruction session every other year (if she is a student).
With a little over half a year in, we're interested to see how the rest of the year comes together. Thanks to everyone for making the library and its resources a vital part of your academic lives!
These stats reflect what's happened so far this year, running from July 1, 2009 to January 31, 2010. Some stats we keep locally, others we pull from university-wide or OhioLINK-wide systems, and some are provided by database vendors.
Both a Borrower and a Lender Be
- GHL patrons checked out 2,756 books, DVDs, videos from us (1,300 from our local collection, 915 ordered from other MU libraries, and 541 items ordered from OhioLINK - that means that over half of the items used by campus patrons came from libraries beyond GHL).
- The GHL collection registered 3504 checkouts (that's the 1300 items checked out by Middletown patrons above, plus 1,259 items sent to OhioLINK users, 851 sent to other MU libraries, and 94 items sent to libraries around the world - that means that more than 60% of the uses of our materials came from libraries beyond GHL).
- GHL patrons checked out 2,122 course reserve items from us (this includes faculty-placed course reserves, textbooks on reserve, laptops, Wii games, and other equipment).
- In addition to the printed or physical materials above, Middletown patrons have downloaded 3,610 e-books from the OhioLINK E-Book Center.
- In terms of building up our collection, Middletown faculty and staff have ordered 619 items to add to our collection so far this year.
The Quest for Information
- Middletown patrons have performed 29,635 searches in databases provided to us by Ebsco and those hosted by OhioLINK. Statewide, 52% of database searches are done in Academic Search Complete, and our results are right on that average.
- Middletown patrons downloaded 11,757 full-text articles from the Electronic Journal Center. This is in addition to full-text articles found right within Ebsco or other databases.
- As part of getting to these databases, 74 people visit our web site every day. That's a total of 11,445 visits for the year, by 3,397 unique individuals.
A Place for Work, Study, and Remove from the World
- GHL is open 65 hours per week.
- We average 288 visitors per day, for a total of 43,333 vistors this year.
- We regularly schedule the library learning lab (GRD 111) for occasional class sessions. We also had 12 classes meeting in there weekly during fall semester and have 9 meeting in there during this spring.
- Our two STAR Lounges have been checked out 200 times this year, or roughly 1.25 times per day. STAR Lounge 2 is used weekly by a class for its class meetings in this semester.
Helping You Find What You Need
- Inside and outside of the library, we've given library instruction presentations in 51 classes this year, reaching 987 students.
- Our Blackboard Embedded Librarian program reached students in 19 course sections in fall semester and we're working with 21 sections this semester. We expect to reach a total of 700+ students and help them with their information needs.
What don't we know about how the library is used?
- One key part missing from these figures is off-campus use of library resources: all off-campus use is tallied as MU-wide use, so we do not know how many patrons are using databases from home.
- We don't have stats for all database searches - we're missing uses of Lexis-Nexis and other databases.
- We don't know (yet) how many questions we field in a day at our InfoDesk (whether in person or by phone or email or text). We completed a year-long tally of questions in December 2009, but haven't finished analyzing the results yet.
- We haven't surveyed the campus population at large about their use of our resources and their perception of the quality of our service for some time. We are hoping to offer such a survey in the next academic year, but we hope in the meantime you'll let us know what you think about the library, what you need from us, and what materials we should order for the collection.
On Average
Taking these numbers and guessing at a total Middletown community of 2500 students, faculty and staff members, and community patrons, here's what can be said about the average library patron. She:
- visits the library every nine days.
- checks four items out from the library in a year (reserves and local/MU/OhioLINK collection items)
- performs 22 database searches per year.
- accesses the library web site eight times per year.
- views 2.5 e-books each year.
- participates in a library instruction session every other year (if she is a student).
With a little over half a year in, we're interested to see how the rest of the year comes together. Thanks to everyone for making the library and its resources a vital part of your academic lives!
Tuesday, February 09, 2010
Free textbooks? A new source for course texts
While we've been trying to help cut students' textbook costs by keeping Textbooks on Reserve and encouraging students to search OhioLINK for copies of their textbooks owned by other libraries in the state that they can borrow or use as online e-books, another tack to take is for faculty to adopt textbooks that are freely available online.
A new site devised for California's community colleges identifies and offers peer review of over 400 open textbooks and links to the textbooks themselves. Check out the Open Educational Resource Center for California to see the collection they've amassed.
We've been using a free Web version of a textbook for the EDT 251: Effective Use of Libraries course, and it has worked well so far.
A new site devised for California's community colleges identifies and offers peer review of over 400 open textbooks and links to the textbooks themselves. Check out the Open Educational Resource Center for California to see the collection they've amassed.
We've been using a free Web version of a textbook for the EDT 251: Effective Use of Libraries course, and it has worked well so far.
Tuesday, February 02, 2010
New Materials Added in December and January
The December and January new materials list is now available. We added 169 books, DVDs, and other items over those months, thanks to the impressive efforts of our faculty selectors and the library staff.
Have a suggestion of something to order? Use our online request form, email one of our staff members or drop by the library with your request. Thanks!
John
Have a suggestion of something to order? Use our online request form, email one of our staff members or drop by the library with your request. Thanks!
John
New Playaways for your audio enjoyment!
Now is the time to see our new list of Playaway digital audio devices! We have added 81 more titles to our collection in January, taking us toward 293 titles in the collection.
Read more on what these devices are and how they work, or take a look at the new list (just click on the titles for a summary of the digital audio book and to request us to hold one for you).
Read more on what these devices are and how they work, or take a look at the new list (just click on the titles for a summary of the digital audio book and to request us to hold one for you).
Friday, January 22, 2010
Need Government Data? Try this Brand New Site.
For the first time starting Friday January 22, 2010, more government data from all cabinet levels will be released online as part of the Obama initiative for greater transparency in government.
All new data collections will be added to Data.gov @ http://www.data.gov/
"Required to release the three new data sets are the departments of State, Treasury, Defense, Justice, Interior, Agriculture, Commerce, Labor, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, Transportation, Energy, Education, Veterans Affairs, Homeland Security and the Environmental Protection Agency, the offices of the U.S. Trade Representative and the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and the Council of Economic Advisers." Read more at:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/22/government-data-released_n_432632.html
All new data collections will be added to Data.gov @ http://www.data.gov/
"Required to release the three new data sets are the departments of State, Treasury, Defense, Justice, Interior, Agriculture, Commerce, Labor, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, Transportation, Energy, Education, Veterans Affairs, Homeland Security and the Environmental Protection Agency, the offices of the U.S. Trade Representative and the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and the Council of Economic Advisers." Read more at:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/22/government-data-released_n_432632.html
Wednesday, January 06, 2010
Need Tax Forms?
2009 tax forms for federal, Ohio, and states in the midwest are just a click away, online.
Monday, January 04, 2010
Share video with classes using Video on Demand!
Video on Demand, a new service from Miami University Libraries, is entering its second semester of use at the Gardner-Harvey Library. Faculty members may request that Miami-owned videos and DVDs be encoded for viewing over the web. A link to the encoded video is then provided to the faculty member to place in his or her Blackboard classroom. Students may view the videos on campus or from off-campus.
Off-campus viewing requires students to install the Cisco Virtual Private Networking client on the computer on which they wish to watch the video. From that computer, students should go to https://muvpn.muohio.edu/ and login using their Unique IDs and passwords. Then follow the on-screen instructions to install the Cisco VPN Client.
They should then run the Cisco VPN Client (from the "Start-->All Programs" menu), which will prompt them to enter their UniqueID and password to connect securely from off-campus. Once this connection is made, they may enter their Blackboard classroom and click on the URL for the video to start playing. Repeated viewings of videos only requires students to run the Cisco VPN Client and login -- there is no need to install the VPN client multiple times.
Please contact the library with your questions on Video on Demand or use our online reserve form (selecting the "Video on Demand" option from the drop-down menus) to have visual materials added to Video on Demand.
Off-campus viewing requires students to install the Cisco Virtual Private Networking client on the computer on which they wish to watch the video. From that computer, students should go to https://muvpn.muohio.edu/ and login using their Unique IDs and passwords. Then follow the on-screen instructions to install the Cisco VPN Client.
They should then run the Cisco VPN Client (from the "Start-->All Programs" menu), which will prompt them to enter their UniqueID and password to connect securely from off-campus. Once this connection is made, they may enter their Blackboard classroom and click on the URL for the video to start playing. Repeated viewings of videos only requires students to run the Cisco VPN Client and login -- there is no need to install the VPN client multiple times.
Please contact the library with your questions on Video on Demand or use our online reserve form (selecting the "Video on Demand" option from the drop-down menus) to have visual materials added to Video on Demand.
Wednesday, December 09, 2009
What do you wish the library had?
Have a suggestion of a book, DVD, or other item you think the library should have?
Use our new online request form to make a suggestion.
We will respond to your request and order any item we do not already own or that is not already available through Miami University Libraries or OhioLINK. Thanks!
Use our new online request form to make a suggestion.
We will respond to your request and order any item we do not already own or that is not already available through Miami University Libraries or OhioLINK. Thanks!
New Materials Added in October and November
The October and November new materials list is now available. We added 106 books, DVDs, and other items over those months, thanks to the impressive efforts of our faculty selectors and the library staff.
Have a suggestion of something to order? Use our online request form, email one of our staff members or drop by the library with your request. Thanks!
John
Have a suggestion of something to order? Use our online request form, email one of our staff members or drop by the library with your request. Thanks!
John
Tuesday, December 08, 2009
Blackboard Embedded Librarians in Your Course
Dear Faculty:
Would you like to collaborate with a Blackboard Embedded Librarian next semester, Spring 2010? Have you been toying with the idea, just to see what difference it might make to your students’ research efforts? Have you heard colleagues talking about this online approach to delivering library services and resources that are customized for the courses you teach?
The Gardner-Harvey Librarians have been building research tools and planning for Spring Semester 2010 with you and your students in mind. Before you close your office door for the semester on Friday December 18, 2009, please let John Burke and Beth Tumbleson know of your interest.
To recap the Pilot Program from a year ago, Gardner-Harvey librarians worked with instructors teaching upper and lower division courses across the disciplines. The purpose of the program is to develop information literacy skills in students, whether enrolled in traditional, off-campus, hybrid, or online courses. Once you express interest, we will send you a two page overview of options to determine your needs and schedule an appointment to discuss assignments and your curricular goals in terms of student research. Once you enroll the librarian as a course builder or instructor, content will be added next to the assignment, on the Embedded Librarian page, or wherever appropriate. Then students have direct access to research assistance from a librarian familiar with the course and Miami University Libraries’ collections.
Common research strategies and concepts addressed in prior semesters have included:
• a short list of the most relevant databases and online collections
a list of appropriate subject terms
help narrowing a topic
guidance finding statistics
assistance citing sources using RefWorks and other tools
methods of evaluating Websites
identifying scholarly sources.
If you think your students would benefit from such a faculty-librarian collaboration within Blackboard, please reply to this e-mail and provide the information requested below:
To Complete and Return by December 18, 2010
Name:
email:
Telephone:
Courses: Section, Time/Day, & Location
Best regards,
Beth Tumbleson, Assistant Director
John Burke, Director
Would you like to collaborate with a Blackboard Embedded Librarian next semester, Spring 2010? Have you been toying with the idea, just to see what difference it might make to your students’ research efforts? Have you heard colleagues talking about this online approach to delivering library services and resources that are customized for the courses you teach?
The Gardner-Harvey Librarians have been building research tools and planning for Spring Semester 2010 with you and your students in mind. Before you close your office door for the semester on Friday December 18, 2009, please let John Burke and Beth Tumbleson know of your interest.
To recap the Pilot Program from a year ago, Gardner-Harvey librarians worked with instructors teaching upper and lower division courses across the disciplines. The purpose of the program is to develop information literacy skills in students, whether enrolled in traditional, off-campus, hybrid, or online courses. Once you express interest, we will send you a two page overview of options to determine your needs and schedule an appointment to discuss assignments and your curricular goals in terms of student research. Once you enroll the librarian as a course builder or instructor, content will be added next to the assignment, on the Embedded Librarian page, or wherever appropriate. Then students have direct access to research assistance from a librarian familiar with the course and Miami University Libraries’ collections.
Common research strategies and concepts addressed in prior semesters have included:
• a short list of the most relevant databases and online collections
a list of appropriate subject terms
help narrowing a topic
guidance finding statistics
assistance citing sources using RefWorks and other tools
methods of evaluating Websites
identifying scholarly sources.
If you think your students would benefit from such a faculty-librarian collaboration within Blackboard, please reply to this e-mail and provide the information requested below:
To Complete and Return by December 18, 2010
Name:
email:
Telephone:
Courses: Section, Time/Day, & Location
Best regards,
Beth Tumbleson, Assistant Director
John Burke, Director
Saturday, November 07, 2009
New Materials Added in July, August, and September
The July, August, September new materials list is now available. We added 172 books, DVDs, and other items over those months, thanks to the impressive efforts of our faculty selectors and the library staff.
Have a suggestion of something to order? Use our online request form, email one of our staff members or drop by the library with your request. Thanks!
John
Have a suggestion of something to order? Use our online request form, email one of our staff members or drop by the library with your request. Thanks!
John
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Clickers now available!
A cooperative effort of the Educational Technology Center, the Center for Teaching and Learning, and the Gardner-Harvey Library is now making an expanded collection of Turning Point clickers available to the campus.
Three sets of clickers (personal response systems) may now be checked out from the Library. Each set contains 30 clickers and a receiver. They may be checked out for 3 hours at one time. Please stop by the library at any time we are open to access the clickers or contact us at 727-3222 to reserve a set for a given class period.
Not sure what clickers are? See this brief overview of clickers from EDUCAUSE (It’s a bit dated, but still a good overview of the process.)
The CTL will sponsor a lunchtime conversation with Janet Hurn on December 2 from 12:00-1:00 in Room 136/137 JHN to share examples of how clickers are used in the classroom.
Need more information? Andrea Han is happy to provide one-on-one training and consultation on the clickers.
We greatly appreciate the work done by Technology Services to install Turning Point software in all of the mediated classrooms. Now it is easy to just set up the receiver and click away.
Andrea Han, Educational Technology Coordinator, hanan@muohio.edu
Ellenmarie Wahlrab, Center for Teaching and Learning Co-Coordinator, wahlrae@muohio.edu
John Burke, Library Director, burkejj@muohio.edu
Three sets of clickers (personal response systems) may now be checked out from the Library. Each set contains 30 clickers and a receiver. They may be checked out for 3 hours at one time. Please stop by the library at any time we are open to access the clickers or contact us at 727-3222 to reserve a set for a given class period.
Not sure what clickers are? See this brief overview of clickers from EDUCAUSE (It’s a bit dated, but still a good overview of the process.)
The CTL will sponsor a lunchtime conversation with Janet Hurn on December 2 from 12:00-1:00 in Room 136/137 JHN to share examples of how clickers are used in the classroom.
Need more information? Andrea Han is happy to provide one-on-one training and consultation on the clickers.
We greatly appreciate the work done by Technology Services to install Turning Point software in all of the mediated classrooms. Now it is easy to just set up the receiver and click away.
Andrea Han, Educational Technology Coordinator, hanan@muohio.edu
Ellenmarie Wahlrab, Center for Teaching and Learning Co-Coordinator, wahlrae@muohio.edu
John Burke, Library Director, burkejj@muohio.edu
Tuesday, October 06, 2009
It's National Information Literacy Awareness Month!
President Obama has declared October as National Information Literacy Awareness Month, and the Gardner-Harvey Library has some useful sources to help you increase your awareness.
The Information Literacy Instruction page on our website details our efforts to teach information literacy skills to individuals and classes. One useful area of the page is the link to research guides, which features these helpful items:
The CRAAP Test, which you can use to help you evaluate the information you find.
The Research Project Calculator, which will help you plan your research project and consider the necessary steps and strategies.
The Developing a Research Topic Brainstorming Chart, which helps you turn your topic into a more specific and efficiently-searched statement.
We hope these will be of use to you or your students. What do you find frustrating about the research process? This video shows some common complaints among college students. We'd like to hear yours and help you solve those frustrations.
The Information Literacy Instruction page on our website details our efforts to teach information literacy skills to individuals and classes. One useful area of the page is the link to research guides, which features these helpful items:
The CRAAP Test, which you can use to help you evaluate the information you find.
The Research Project Calculator, which will help you plan your research project and consider the necessary steps and strategies.
The Developing a Research Topic Brainstorming Chart, which helps you turn your topic into a more specific and efficiently-searched statement.
We hope these will be of use to you or your students. What do you find frustrating about the research process? This video shows some common complaints among college students. We'd like to hear yours and help you solve those frustrations.
Tuesday, September 08, 2009
Textbooks for Fall: where we stand
The Textbooks on Reserve program at the library has recently been updated. We have (starting in the summer and working through the first tow weeks of fall) added 24 new editions of existing textbooks and added 14 new books (either for existing courses or new courses). It is always a little tricky for us to get new books on our shelves right at the beginning of the semester, and we are grateful to the MUM Bookstore and to faculty members for assisting us to make this possible.
We now have books for 94 courses offered at Middletown that the library has purchased, and textbooks on hand for at least 17 other courses provided by individual faculty members or departments. The full list is available here.
We've already had 79 checkouts of these items in the first two weeks of class. If you can help further spread the word that the textbooks are available, that would be most helpful. If you want to correct information on our list, please let us know. If you have suggestions on other courses we should consider buying textbooks for, be sure to contact me.
We thank you for your use and support of this program!
We now have books for 94 courses offered at Middletown that the library has purchased, and textbooks on hand for at least 17 other courses provided by individual faculty members or departments. The full list is available here.
We've already had 79 checkouts of these items in the first two weeks of class. If you can help further spread the word that the textbooks are available, that would be most helpful. If you want to correct information on our list, please let us know. If you have suggestions on other courses we should consider buying textbooks for, be sure to contact me.
We thank you for your use and support of this program!
Friday, September 04, 2009
The Kindle is here!
As promised in our Fall 2009 library newsletter, we now have two Kindle readers available for you to check out. You can read about the particulars of borrowing them and the current list of books available on them here. In sum, these devices check out for a week at a time, have 12 preloaded books, and offer a lightweight, enjoyable reading experience.
We are really curious to see what you think of them. Consider checking one out today. We are also maintaining a waiting list for them -- please contact the library to get your name on it.
We are really curious to see what you think of them. Consider checking one out today. We are also maintaining a waiting list for them -- please contact the library to get your name on it.
The web site is all new!
That's right! We switched over to our new web design today. We designed the site to better integrate with the changes to the University Libraries' site and to continue our abilities to better serve you with information resources and information on our services.
Take note of the blue tabs at the top of the page. Each will lead you to a particular type of information and a suggested group of databases and other resources to help you find what you need. Research resources, service information, and other library-related facts make up the three columns below the tab areas. The upper right corner links to the various methods you can use to contact us. And the News and Notes area will feature blog posts and tweets.
The Gardner-Harvey Library staff is extremely grateful to Beth Gray who did the design and HTML programming work needed to make these changes. She also ran a usability testing program for the older site during the summer. This was all done as part of a practicum Beth is completing with the Kent State University School of Library and Information Science toward her Master of Library and Information Science degree.
Is there something you can't find on the new site that you used to use on the old one? Has our work to correctly link documents on the page oft gang aglee? If so, please contact us forthwith so that we can help you navigate and/or fix the issues with the site. We hope you will enjoy this fresh interface to information!
Take note of the blue tabs at the top of the page. Each will lead you to a particular type of information and a suggested group of databases and other resources to help you find what you need. Research resources, service information, and other library-related facts make up the three columns below the tab areas. The upper right corner links to the various methods you can use to contact us. And the News and Notes area will feature blog posts and tweets.
The Gardner-Harvey Library staff is extremely grateful to Beth Gray who did the design and HTML programming work needed to make these changes. She also ran a usability testing program for the older site during the summer. This was all done as part of a practicum Beth is completing with the Kent State University School of Library and Information Science toward her Master of Library and Information Science degree.
Is there something you can't find on the new site that you used to use on the old one? Has our work to correctly link documents on the page oft gang aglee? If so, please contact us forthwith so that we can help you navigate and/or fix the issues with the site. We hope you will enjoy this fresh interface to information!
Monday, August 10, 2009
Wellness Book Discussion Comes to GHL
Munch a Good Lunch @Your Library!
The Gardner-Harvey Library and the Miami Middletown Wellness Committee invite all health-minded individuals to join us for a book discussion of:
In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto by Michael Pollan (2008)
Thursday September 24, 2009, 12 Noon - 1 PM
Library, Main Level in the big blue chairs
In his latest book, Pollan critics the Western diet, the nutritionists' focus on foods' "chemical constituents", and the food industry's goal to produce a profit. He contends it is better to "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." In the following pages, he elaborates on this simple wellness formula and points to cultural traditions and common sense as a guide to eating well.
Pick up a copy and prepare for a lively discussion facilitated by Ruth Orth and Beth Tumbleson.
The Gardner-Harvey Library and the Miami Middletown Wellness Committee invite all health-minded individuals to join us for a book discussion of:
In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto by Michael Pollan (2008)
Thursday September 24, 2009, 12 Noon - 1 PM
Library, Main Level in the big blue chairs
In his latest book, Pollan critics the Western diet, the nutritionists' focus on foods' "chemical constituents", and the food industry's goal to produce a profit. He contends it is better to "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." In the following pages, he elaborates on this simple wellness formula and points to cultural traditions and common sense as a guide to eating well.
Pick up a copy and prepare for a lively discussion facilitated by Ruth Orth and Beth Tumbleson.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Gardner-Harvey Blog RSS Feed in Twitter
The Gardner-Harvey Library News Blog is now connected to Twitter via RSS feed! If you prefer keeping up with tweets rather than blog posts, you can follow us entirely at www.twitter.com!
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Think Before Googling
Researchers in quest of information, data, articles, topic overviews, and more are often tempted to turn to their favorite search engine... The key to successful searching of Google or any other search engine lies in taking the time to think. A well designed search string does wonders for removing the irrelevant or questionable. Then more critical thinking must be applied in scanning the results. As Howard Rheingold writes in "Crap Detection 101", June 30, 2009:
"Unless a great many people learn the basics of online crap detection and begin applying their critical faculties en masse and very soon, I fear for the future of the Internet as a useful source of credible news, medical advice, financial information, educational resources, scholarly and scientific research. Some critics argue that a tsunami of hogwash has already rendered the Web useless. I disagree. We are indeed inundated by online noise pollution, but the problem is soluble. The good stuff is out there if you know how to find and verify it. Basic information literacy, widely distributed, is the best protection for the knowledge commons: A sufficient portion of critical consumers among the online population can become a strong defense against the noise-death of the Internet.
The first thing we all need to know about information online is how to detect crap, a technical term I use for information tainted by ignorance, inept communication, or deliberate deception. Learning to be a critical consumer of Webinfo is not rocket science. It's not even algebra. Becoming acquainted with the fundamentals of web credibility testing is easier than learning the multiplication tables. The hard part, as always, is the exercise of flabby think-for-yourself muscles. "
See the complete post for helpful detection strategies of content found on the Internet. By the way, these "detection strategies" are often referred to as information literacy skills, which librarians are pleased to reveal upon request. Contact one of the Gardner-Harvey librarians for a research consultation or classroom instruction soon.
"Unless a great many people learn the basics of online crap detection and begin applying their critical faculties en masse and very soon, I fear for the future of the Internet as a useful source of credible news, medical advice, financial information, educational resources, scholarly and scientific research. Some critics argue that a tsunami of hogwash has already rendered the Web useless. I disagree. We are indeed inundated by online noise pollution, but the problem is soluble. The good stuff is out there if you know how to find and verify it. Basic information literacy, widely distributed, is the best protection for the knowledge commons: A sufficient portion of critical consumers among the online population can become a strong defense against the noise-death of the Internet.
The first thing we all need to know about information online is how to detect crap, a technical term I use for information tainted by ignorance, inept communication, or deliberate deception. Learning to be a critical consumer of Webinfo is not rocket science. It's not even algebra. Becoming acquainted with the fundamentals of web credibility testing is easier than learning the multiplication tables. The hard part, as always, is the exercise of flabby think-for-yourself muscles. "
See the complete post for helpful detection strategies of content found on the Internet. By the way, these "detection strategies" are often referred to as information literacy skills, which librarians are pleased to reveal upon request. Contact one of the Gardner-Harvey librarians for a research consultation or classroom instruction soon.
Friday, July 10, 2009
Tweet tweet! GHL is now on Twitter!
Attention all social-networkers: GHL has joined Twitter! Follow our tweets posted under the name "askghl."
What is Twitter, some of you may ask? Ellyssa Kroski explains in the Online Education Database blog, iLibrarian:
What is it
Twitter is a free communication and social networking tool which allows you to convey short messages of up to 140 characters to your circle of friends via the Twitter website, SMS, email, IM, or other Twitter client. Messages appear not only within your profile on Twitter, but are sent to your community of followers who have signed up to receive your updates. Often referred to as microblogging, this new phenomenon has caught on with over 300,000 users on Twitter alone including Barack Obama and John Edwards. Twitter recently made the cut as one of Time’s Best 50 Websites of 2007. Librarians are using it to communicate at conferences and events and to keep up with developments in the field, and libraries have begun using it to promote their services."
How to use it
Check out some of these great how-to guides which will have you twittering in no time:
The 12 Minute Definitive Guide to Twitter
WebJunction: Mobile Instant Messaging Meets Social Networking: Twitter - A Beginner’s Guide, Part 2
Newbie’s guide to Twitter
David Lee King: Twtter Explained for Librarians, or 10 ways to use Twitter
Screencasts:
David Free: Welcome To The Twitterverse
David Lee King: Twitter, part 2: the “fluff
Read more of Ellyssa's post at: http://oedb.org/blogs/ilibrarian/2007/a-guide-to-twitter-in-libraries/
Happy Twittering! :o)
Sarah
What is Twitter, some of you may ask? Ellyssa Kroski explains in the Online Education Database blog, iLibrarian:
What is it
Twitter is a free communication and social networking tool which allows you to convey short messages of up to 140 characters to your circle of friends via the Twitter website, SMS, email, IM, or other Twitter client. Messages appear not only within your profile on Twitter, but are sent to your community of followers who have signed up to receive your updates. Often referred to as microblogging, this new phenomenon has caught on with over 300,000 users on Twitter alone including Barack Obama and John Edwards. Twitter recently made the cut as one of Time’s Best 50 Websites of 2007. Librarians are using it to communicate at conferences and events and to keep up with developments in the field, and libraries have begun using it to promote their services."
How to use it
Check out some of these great how-to guides which will have you twittering in no time:
The 12 Minute Definitive Guide to Twitter
WebJunction: Mobile Instant Messaging Meets Social Networking: Twitter - A Beginner’s Guide, Part 2
Newbie’s guide to Twitter
David Lee King: Twtter Explained for Librarians, or 10 ways to use Twitter
Screencasts:
David Free: Welcome To The Twitterverse
David Lee King: Twitter, part 2: the “fluff
Read more of Ellyssa's post at: http://oedb.org/blogs/ilibrarian/2007/a-guide-to-twitter-in-libraries/
Happy Twittering! :o)
Sarah
Wednesday, July 01, 2009
June New Materials
The June new materials list is now available. We added 68 books, DVDs, and other items over the last month, thanks to the impressive efforts of our faculty selectors and the library staff.
We added a total of 1228 items to the collection this year. A few more of the items ordered this year are still working their way in, but many of that total have arrived. We hope that we'll be able to pursue a similar amount of items next year (depending on how the budget ends up).
You can find our current and previous new materials lists on the left hand side of our web site under "Faculty" or "Students", and then "New Materials Lists."
Have a suggestion of something to order? Email one of our staff members or drop by the library. Thanks!
John
We added a total of 1228 items to the collection this year. A few more of the items ordered this year are still working their way in, but many of that total have arrived. We hope that we'll be able to pursue a similar amount of items next year (depending on how the budget ends up).
You can find our current and previous new materials lists on the left hand side of our web site under "Faculty" or "Students", and then "New Materials Lists."
Have a suggestion of something to order? Email one of our staff members or drop by the library. Thanks!
John
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Save Ohio's Public Libraries!
The current funding situation for Ohio's public libraries is in a fairly distressing state as our public servants strive to balance the budget. Serious reductions in state funding could close branches within library systems or even entire library systems. I encourage you to inform yourself on the issue and, if you are so moved, act to assist our public library colleagues. The Save Ohio Libraries site provides much useful information.
"Libraries will get you through times of no money better than money will get you through times of no libraries." - Anne Herbert
"Libraries will get you through times of no money better than money will get you through times of no libraries." - Anne Herbert
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
The secrets of Google Scholar
Have you used Google Scholar (http://scholar.google.com) ? Here are a few tips to make your research life a little easier:
Google Scholar provides a simple way to broadly search for scholarly literature. From one place, you can search across many disciplines and sources: peer-reviewed papers, theses, books, abstracts and articles from academic publishers, professional societies, preprint repositories, universities and other scholarly organizations.
Keep in mind that you have access to many of these same materials in full-text through the Miami University Library system! Setting your preferences using the directions below will help you see if a given resource in Google Scholar is available through the libraries:
•Use “Scholar Preferences” --> Library Links --> enter “OhioLINK” and check the box
When you see an article in your Google Scholar search results, you may find out if the library has full-text access to the article by clicking the “Find it with OLinks” or “OhioLINK OLinks” links.
Google Scholar provides a simple way to broadly search for scholarly literature. From one place, you can search across many disciplines and sources: peer-reviewed papers, theses, books, abstracts and articles from academic publishers, professional societies, preprint repositories, universities and other scholarly organizations.
Keep in mind that you have access to many of these same materials in full-text through the Miami University Library system! Setting your preferences using the directions below will help you see if a given resource in Google Scholar is available through the libraries:
•Use “Scholar Preferences” --> Library Links --> enter “OhioLINK” and check the box
When you see an article in your Google Scholar search results, you may find out if the library has full-text access to the article by clicking the “Find it with OLinks” or “OhioLINK OLinks” links.
Netbooks are here!
The Library has added seven Acer Aspire One netbooks to our one-day loan laptops on reserve. The netbooks are small and lightweight (with 8.9" screens, weighing just over 2 pounds), yet powerful and capable of your web-browsing and document-creating needs (a fairly large keyboard, 6 hours of battery time, and includes the full Microsoft Office application suite).
Check one out today to enjoy easy, go-anywhere access to coursework. Netbooks, like our other laptops, check out through the time the library closes on the next day we are open. Check out a netbook on Tuesday at 10:30am, and it's due back on Wednesday at 7:00pm (our summer hours) or 9:00pm (when school starts back in August).
The Library now has 12 laptops available for students and 8 laptops for faculty and staff to check out.
Check one out today to enjoy easy, go-anywhere access to coursework. Netbooks, like our other laptops, check out through the time the library closes on the next day we are open. Check out a netbook on Tuesday at 10:30am, and it's due back on Wednesday at 7:00pm (our summer hours) or 9:00pm (when school starts back in August).
The Library now has 12 laptops available for students and 8 laptops for faculty and staff to check out.
Thursday, June 04, 2009
April/May New Materials
The April/May new materials list is now available. We added 358 books, DVDs, and other items over the last month, thanks to the impressive efforts of our faculty selectors and the library staff.
More orders from this year are still appearing as we enter June. I will post an update for the academic year on our acquisitions with the July new materials list.
You can find our current and previous new materials lists on the left hand side of our web site under "Faculty" or "Students", and then "New Materials Lists."
Have a suggestion of something to order? Email one of our staff members or drop by the library. Thanks!
John
More orders from this year are still appearing as we enter June. I will post an update for the academic year on our acquisitions with the July new materials list.
You can find our current and previous new materials lists on the left hand side of our web site under "Faculty" or "Students", and then "New Materials Lists."
Have a suggestion of something to order? Email one of our staff members or drop by the library. Thanks!
John
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Information Literacy Workshop, June 17, 2009
MUM Faculty and Staff are invited to participate in a Wednesday morning workshop from 9 am to 12 noon with brunch at the Gardner-Harvey Library, which will be facilitated by Sarah Frye and Beth Tumbleson. Participants will review the results from Project Information Literacy Progress Report which targets where students struggle with course-related research. We will discuss ACRL national standards and individual solutions to providing instruction in information literacy. Finally, attendees will have the opportunity to rework an assignment to incorporate one such information literacy skill. This strengthens student academic achievement.
Watch "Prometeus the Media Revolution", Part I, 5 minutes to review changes in the information world over the centuries.
Watch "Prometeus the Media Revolution", Part I, 5 minutes to review changes in the information world over the centuries.
Friday, May 15, 2009
Everything's working now - search at will!
Library databases and services are fully working again. Both on-campus and off-campus access are restored.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Library servers down Tues. evening - alternate route
Miami University Libraries servers will be down this evening from about 6pm until 5:30am due to an electrical outage. The Gardner-Harvey Library website will not be affected by the outage.
If you need to access our databases and electronic resources during the server outage, many of them are available through remote access at OhioLINK. Go to http://auth.ohiolink.edu/ to login and then choose your database or resource using the alphabetical or subject-oriented lists of resources.
The OhioLINK Central Catalog will also be operating while the Miami catalog is down: access it at http://olc1.ohiolink.edu/search/.
The Gardner-Harvey Library closes at 5:00pm tonight and does not reopen until 8:00am on Wednesday morning. If you have any difficulties in between those times, please email us at midref@lib.muohio.edu
If you need to access our databases and electronic resources during the server outage, many of them are available through remote access at OhioLINK. Go to http://auth.ohiolink.edu/ to login and then choose your database or resource using the alphabetical or subject-oriented lists of resources.
The OhioLINK Central Catalog will also be operating while the Miami catalog is down: access it at http://olc1.ohiolink.edu/search/.
The Gardner-Harvey Library closes at 5:00pm tonight and does not reopen until 8:00am on Wednesday morning. If you have any difficulties in between those times, please email us at midref@lib.muohio.edu
Tuesday, May 05, 2009
Beth's Beach Bag of Books
Are you headed for the beach this summer? Lake shore or seaside? Even if you remain seated by a stream in Ohio, you may still linger over leisure reading. Here are the titles I plan to stuff in my summer“beach bag”. It’s an eclectic mix of fiction and nonfiction by winners of the Pulitzer Prize of Fiction, authors of New York Time best-sellers, world class authors, and the spiritually attuned.
Jiles, Paulette. The Color of Lightening. William Morrow. 2009.
McCall Smith, Alexander. Tea Time for the Traditionally Built. Pantheon Books. 2009.
Robinson, Marilynne. Home. Farrar, Staus, & Giroux. 2008.
Strout, Elizabeth. Olive Kittredge. Random House. 2008.
Taylor, Barbara Brown. An Altar in the World: A Geography of Faith. HarperOne, 2009.
Jiles, Paulette. The Color of Lightening. William Morrow. 2009.
McCall Smith, Alexander. Tea Time for the Traditionally Built. Pantheon Books. 2009.
Robinson, Marilynne. Home. Farrar, Staus, & Giroux. 2008.
Strout, Elizabeth. Olive Kittredge. Random House. 2008.
Taylor, Barbara Brown. An Altar in the World: A Geography of Faith. HarperOne, 2009.
Summer Offerings @ Your Library
Spring semester exams conclude the year, but don’t let that stop you from visiting the Gardner-Harvey Library throughout the summer months. Academic libraries have much to offer all year long. Job-seekers may want internet access to check job postings online and rework resumes using Microsoft Office. Readers may want to browse for good reads in the New Books collection which includes fiction and non-fiction. Film fanatics may want to scan the latest DVDs added to the IMC collection. And then there is the STAR Lounge for Wii gamers and presenters who wish to practice in private. So come by the library Monday-Thursday 8 AM to 7 PM and Friday 8 AM to 5 PM. The library staff will be on hand to guide you through the information universe.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Public scanner available in the library!
The library has just purchased (and Technology Services has installed) a scanner in the library for anyone to use. It's located on the wall with the copiers and printers, just before you get to the STAR Lounge.
It does a great job with photos, documents, and other items (even cell phones - I tried it 8-) ). You can save scans in a variety of file formats, including PDF.
There is no charge for the service, and we're happy to help you get your scanning done.
It does a great job with photos, documents, and other items (even cell phones - I tried it 8-) ). You can save scans in a variety of file formats, including PDF.
There is no charge for the service, and we're happy to help you get your scanning done.
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Extended open hours on Saturday
The library is open for extended hours this coming Saturday, May 2, from 11:00-5:00 if you need help or a quiet place to study. Our IM reference service will also be up and operating during this time.
Good luck on finals!
Good luck on finals!
Thursday, April 09, 2009
February/March New Materials
The February/March new materials list is now available. We added 210 books, DVDs, and other items over the last month, thanks to the impressive efforts of our faculty selectors and the library staff.
I expect that April will be a big month for new items as well - many books and DVDs are appearing in the back room each day and heading out to the shelves.
You can find our current and previous new materials lists on the left hand side of our web site under "New Materials Lists."
Have a suggestion of something to order? Email one of our staff members or drop by the library. Thanks!
John
I expect that April will be a big month for new items as well - many books and DVDs are appearing in the back room each day and heading out to the shelves.
You can find our current and previous new materials lists on the left hand side of our web site under "New Materials Lists."
Have a suggestion of something to order? Email one of our staff members or drop by the library. Thanks!
John
Monday, April 06, 2009
Celebrate @ Your Library!
National Library Week, April 12-18, 2009
The Gardner-Harvey Library invites you to celebrate National Library Week with us. We will hold a Wednesday Wii Tournament On April 15 for all-comers in the STAR Lounge throughout the day. Prizes will be awarded to the 3 top bowlers. We will also run a Quotations Quiz to identify the author/speaker of a number of quotes from Monday, April 13 to Thursday, April 16 at noon. Prizes will be awarded to 3 winners. Throughout the week, we will offer lifesavers, bookmarks, and pens for those who visit the Miami University Middletown Library. Join in the fun and find a good read while you are here.
The Gardner-Harvey Library invites you to celebrate National Library Week with us. We will hold a Wednesday Wii Tournament On April 15 for all-comers in the STAR Lounge throughout the day. Prizes will be awarded to the 3 top bowlers. We will also run a Quotations Quiz to identify the author/speaker of a number of quotes from Monday, April 13 to Thursday, April 16 at noon. Prizes will be awarded to 3 winners. Throughout the week, we will offer lifesavers, bookmarks, and pens for those who visit the Miami University Middletown Library. Join in the fun and find a good read while you are here.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
EJC is back!
The good folks at OhioLINK have notified us that the Electronic Journal Center (EJC) is now up and running with all publishers' journals included. As you work through our databases and click on the Find It! link, full-text articles that are located in the EJC will now click through correctly (please let us know if you see any remaining issues). You may also search the EJC directly. Thank you so much for your patience with this situation.
Thursday, March 05, 2009
GHL Librarians Go West
While some head south to bask on sunny beaches, the Gardner-Harvey Librarians will be heading west over spring break! Destination: Seattle to attend the Association of College and Research Libraries biennial meeting over four days. Why would they travel so far? "To Push the Edge: Explore, Engage, Extend!" Naturally they will return with wild, wild west ideas to implement right here at Miami University Middletown. Watch and see.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
New Playaway Titles Added
Now is the time to see our new list of Playaway digital audio devices! We have added 41 more titles to our collection, taking us toward 212 titles in the collection.
Read more on what these devices are and how they work, or take a look at the new list (just click on the titles for a summary of the digital audio book and to request us to hold one for you).
Read more on what these devices are and how they work, or take a look at the new list (just click on the titles for a summary of the digital audio book and to request us to hold one for you).
Monday, February 16, 2009
EJC Restoration Update
From the good folks at OhioLINK:
While content in the Electronic Journal Center remains unavailable, OhioLINK is working diligently to provide access to the same content on each publisher's Web site. Available publishers’ sites are listed here and we continue to update this list as needed. Project Muse has been added to the list today and their content is now available. Links to the listed publisher sites work for both on and off campus users.
Over the weekend OhioLINK staff were able to restore EJC content from 2008-2009 for most publishers, except Elsevier, Springer and Blackwell. We continue to work to restore the remaining EJC content as quickly as possible, but do not have all the reload processes in place yet nor the experience to provide a useful time line for full EJC restoration. We hope to be able to share a schedule in the near future.
Since we have a growing body of available content, we restored the alphabetical title links on the EJC home page. These links show only those journals that are currently available, for other journals or issues please continue to visit the publishers’ sites.
While content in the Electronic Journal Center remains unavailable, OhioLINK is working diligently to provide access to the same content on each publisher's Web site. Available publishers’ sites are listed here and we continue to update this list as needed. Project Muse has been added to the list today and their content is now available. Links to the listed publisher sites work for both on and off campus users.
Over the weekend OhioLINK staff were able to restore EJC content from 2008-2009 for most publishers, except Elsevier, Springer and Blackwell. We continue to work to restore the remaining EJC content as quickly as possible, but do not have all the reload processes in place yet nor the experience to provide a useful time line for full EJC restoration. We hope to be able to share a schedule in the near future.
Since we have a growing body of available content, we restored the alphabetical title links on the EJC home page. These links show only those journals that are currently available, for other journals or issues please continue to visit the publishers’ sites.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
New materials for December/January
The December/January new materials list is now available. We added 61 books, DVDs, and other items over the last month, thanks to the impressive efforts of our faculty selectors and the library staff.
You can find our current and previous new materials lists on the left hand side of our web site under "New Materials Lists."
Have a suggestion of something to order? Email one of our staff members or drop by the library. Thanks!
John
You can find our current and previous new materials lists on the left hand side of our web site under "New Materials Lists."
Have a suggestion of something to order? Email one of our staff members or drop by the library. Thanks!
John
Monday, February 09, 2009
The Ways the Publishing World Is Changing
How knowledge is organized is often overlooked or assumed, but it is foundational in terms of storing and retrieving knowledge and information throughout the centuries. This has been the challenge libraries and "keepers of the book" have faced since ancient times. (Yes, valuable books were once chained.)
We benefit from understanding how information comes to be published and how much or little editing is done before it becomes available to the public. Then we are in a better position to evaluate its worth.
Currently the world of writing, information, and publishing is undergoing upheaval. Historically we have come from handwritten scrolls, to the Gutenberg printing press, to the wide distribution of printed materials by publishers, and now self-publishing online through Web sites, wikis, and blogs. Creators of content need no longer wait for the journal editor or publishing house agent to approve, edit, and publish their work. See this thought-provoking article in Time Magazine to learn more about the ways the world of publishing is changing.
Grossman, L., & Sachs, A. (2009, February 2). Books Unbound. Time, 173(3), 71. Retrieved February 7, 2009, from MAS Ultra - School Edition database.
We benefit from understanding how information comes to be published and how much or little editing is done before it becomes available to the public. Then we are in a better position to evaluate its worth.
Currently the world of writing, information, and publishing is undergoing upheaval. Historically we have come from handwritten scrolls, to the Gutenberg printing press, to the wide distribution of printed materials by publishers, and now self-publishing online through Web sites, wikis, and blogs. Creators of content need no longer wait for the journal editor or publishing house agent to approve, edit, and publish their work. See this thought-provoking article in Time Magazine to learn more about the ways the world of publishing is changing.
Grossman, L., & Sachs, A. (2009, February 2). Books Unbound. Time, 173(3), 71. Retrieved February 7, 2009, from MAS Ultra - School Edition database.
Electronic Journal Center problems
Important Message to the OhioLINK community of students, faculty, and staff:
Beginning Wednesday afternoon, February 4, the OhioLINK computer disk storage system suffered a widespread, and supposedly not possible, multiple component failure affecting all major services with the exception of the OhioLINK Library Catalog. We have restored all services except the Electronic Journal Center (EJC). Restoration of the EJC remains under vigorous analysis, but unfortunately we know that any solution will not be immediate. In light of this, we are taking immediate steps to provide alternative access to the resources of the EJC through the various Web sites of the EJC journal publishers.
As noted on this page, we have immediate access to many EJC publisher sites and are working to expand access to the rest as quickly as possible. While the EJC is down, we will continue to improve this site to direct you to the proper publishers. We will also work to adjust our systems that link article citations to full text in the EJC by redirecting links to the publisher sites. We are examining every possibility to keep you connected to resources you need and to improve that connectivity as quickly as possible, while the EJC is not available.
We will keep you up to date through this Web page and the “New at OhioLINK” announcements at www.ohiolink.edu.
Your local library will also always know the latest news.
The OhioLINK staff is sincerely sorry for this significant disruption in services. We remain committed, as we have since 1992, to providing high quality information resources on a consistent and reliable basis to the Ohio higher education community.
Sincerely,
Tom Sanville, Executive Director, tom@ohiolink.edu
February 8, 2009
Beginning Wednesday afternoon, February 4, the OhioLINK computer disk storage system suffered a widespread, and supposedly not possible, multiple component failure affecting all major services with the exception of the OhioLINK Library Catalog. We have restored all services except the Electronic Journal Center (EJC). Restoration of the EJC remains under vigorous analysis, but unfortunately we know that any solution will not be immediate. In light of this, we are taking immediate steps to provide alternative access to the resources of the EJC through the various Web sites of the EJC journal publishers.
As noted on this page, we have immediate access to many EJC publisher sites and are working to expand access to the rest as quickly as possible. While the EJC is down, we will continue to improve this site to direct you to the proper publishers. We will also work to adjust our systems that link article citations to full text in the EJC by redirecting links to the publisher sites. We are examining every possibility to keep you connected to resources you need and to improve that connectivity as quickly as possible, while the EJC is not available.
We will keep you up to date through this Web page and the “New at OhioLINK” announcements at www.ohiolink.edu.
Your local library will also always know the latest news.
The OhioLINK staff is sincerely sorry for this significant disruption in services. We remain committed, as we have since 1992, to providing high quality information resources on a consistent and reliable basis to the Ohio higher education community.
Sincerely,
Tom Sanville, Executive Director, tom@ohiolink.edu
February 8, 2009
Monday, January 12, 2009
Textbooks on Reserve: Ready for Spring!
The library's collection of Textbooks on Reserve (TOR) has been revamped for Spring 2009 courses. You can see the full list of books that we have on reserve here. We provide the main texts for 87 Miami courses, in addition to the many textbooks and additional readings placed on reserve individually by faculty members..
Last fall, the TOR program was heavily used, with 341 individuals checking out a book from the collection during the semester. The ten most popular textbooks checked out by students at MUM are the following (based on lifetime checkouts):
- ELEMENTARY AND INTERMDIATE ALGEBRA (MTH 102)
- MATERIALS AND PROCESSES IN MANUFACTURING (ENT152)
- ENGINEERING MATERIALS - (ENT 151)
- HOLE'S HUMAN ANATOMY & PHYSIOLOGY - (ZOO 171)
- PREALGEBRA (MTH002)
- PSYCHOLOGY (PSY 111)
- New perspectives on Microsoft Office 2007 : first course (CIT 154)
- BASIC COLLEGE MATHEMATICS (MTH001)
- ART THROUGH THE AGES (ART 187)
- CONTEMPORARY MANAGEMENT (BTE 111)
Remember that the textbooks are available for two hour checkout during the day, but may also be taken home overnight if checked out within two hours of the time we close that day.
Last fall, the TOR program was heavily used, with 341 individuals checking out a book from the collection during the semester. The ten most popular textbooks checked out by students at MUM are the following (based on lifetime checkouts):
- ELEMENTARY AND INTERMDIATE ALGEBRA (MTH 102)
- MATERIALS AND PROCESSES IN MANUFACTURING (ENT152)
- ENGINEERING MATERIALS - (ENT 151)
- HOLE'S HUMAN ANATOMY & PHYSIOLOGY - (ZOO 171)
- PREALGEBRA (MTH002)
- PSYCHOLOGY (PSY 111)
- New perspectives on Microsoft Office 2007 : first course (CIT 154)
- BASIC COLLEGE MATHEMATICS (MTH001)
- ART THROUGH THE AGES (ART 187)
- CONTEMPORARY MANAGEMENT (BTE 111)
Remember that the textbooks are available for two hour checkout during the day, but may also be taken home overnight if checked out within two hours of the time we close that day.
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Blackboard Embedded Librarian Pilot Program Starting Spring Semester 2009
10 Miami University faculty members teaching 19 sections of 13 different courses will be participating in the Spring 2009 Blackboard Embedded Librarian Pilot Program through the Gardner-Harvey Library, Miami University Middletown. This faculty-librarian collaboration to address the information literacy needs of students enrolled in Blackboard courses, whether online, off-campus, or the traditional classroom is currently being implemented nationally and internationally at public, private, and for-profit colleges and universities. The pilot program represents the first Miami University partnership. Once the faculty member and librarian agree upon the specifics of their instructional collaboration, the embedded librarian has the opportunity to interact with students directly. The embedded librarian is able to offer students much more than the typical fifty minute instructional session permits by creating course-specific links to electronic reference sources, full-text databases of scholarly articles, authoritative Web sites, digital media, and promote electronic tools like RefWorks to manage bibliographic citations or Reference Universe to locate reference essays. Further, the embedded librarian will address students’ individual research concerns; suggest search terms and strategies, and appropriate electronic resources. Better research projects and papers with less frustration on the student’s part are the expected outcome. It’s a win-win approach to learning in the 21st century.
Information Literacy Forum Starting in January 2009
Participants will interact with a series of articles, podcasts, and digital videos on information literacy and its impact on teaching and learning. Reading, listening and watching will introduce key concepts in a way that mirrors the 21st century information environment. Dialogue will take place during spring semester 2009 in two face to face meetings, at the start and conclusion of the project, and on a blog in between. The intended outcome is to increase awareness of the current state of students’ information literacy and research skills. This enlarged understanding may alter expectations of students’ abilities and classroom instruction methods to better meet students at their current level and introduce them to efficient academic research methods and resources. Today’s information problem solvers benefit greatly from knowing how information is produced, organized, distributed, searched, and accessed at no charge through academic libraries as opposed to other information channels. These skills are learned and not intuitive. Miami University Middletown faculty/staff, please consider joining the Gardner-Harvey librarians by contacting either fryesm@muohio.edu or tumbleb@muohio.edu by January 20, 2009.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Get it Together in the STAR Lounge
With all our announcement of the Wii, we really haven't fully mentioned the STAR (Space for Technology, Academics, and Recreation) Lounge on its own this year.
The Lounge is equipped with:
- a 47" LCD TV
- a DVD player/VCR unit
- cable TV
- a Nintendo Wii gaming system
- a computer with a wireless keyboard and mouse
- work tables by the TV
- a small round table
- a 4' x 6' white board
- six chairs (and more are available to bring in)
The Lounge may be used to:
- watch a DVD, a videotape, or a live TV program with a group
- create a presentation of write a document or work on software with a group
- practice a presentation before giving it in class
- work with a small group for training or group review of information using the computer and TV or the white board
- have a meeting using the white board, TV, or just talking to one another
- play a game on the Wii (see the list)
- record a podcast (using one of our digital voice recorders, or a microphone and Audacity)
We have some ideas about how you can use the room. How will you use it? Take a look today and imagine how it might work with your study group or class or ?
The room may be used for two hours at a time. We are also happy to reserve it for you ahead of time. Be sure to check in at the InfoDesk before using the STAR Lounge.
The Lounge is equipped with:
- a 47" LCD TV
- a DVD player/VCR unit
- cable TV
- a Nintendo Wii gaming system
- a computer with a wireless keyboard and mouse
- work tables by the TV
- a small round table
- a 4' x 6' white board
- six chairs (and more are available to bring in)
The Lounge may be used to:
- watch a DVD, a videotape, or a live TV program with a group
- create a presentation of write a document or work on software with a group
- practice a presentation before giving it in class
- work with a small group for training or group review of information using the computer and TV or the white board
- have a meeting using the white board, TV, or just talking to one another
- play a game on the Wii (see the list)
- record a podcast (using one of our digital voice recorders, or a microphone and Audacity)
We have some ideas about how you can use the room. How will you use it? Take a look today and imagine how it might work with your study group or class or ?
The room may be used for two hours at a time. We are also happy to reserve it for you ahead of time. Be sure to check in at the InfoDesk before using the STAR Lounge.
Attention All Music Fans!
Have you heard of Pandora Internet Radio?
If not, keep reading!
Pandora Radio is an internet radio player which allows users to create, blend, and share stations based on the music they like. From the Pandora main page, users have the option to type in the name of a favorite song or artist; Pandora then generates an internet radio station by compiling songs with similar musical qualities. Users can create as many stations as they like for free, or browse Pandora’s selection of genre stations. While listening, users can indicate whether they like or dislike a particular song to hear it more often, less often, or never again on a specific station. By creating an account, users can listen to their stations any time or place they have internet access. Stations can be blended for more diverse listening or shared with friends through email.
Pandora is based on the Music Genome Project, “the most comprehensive analysis of music ever undertaken.” The project studies various elements of music such as “melody, harmony, instrumentation, rhythm, vocals, lyrics ... close to 400 attributes!” Using this information, Pandora connects listeners to the music they love and helps users explore a wide variety of related new and lesser-known music.
What does this have to do with the library, you ask? Librarians are always looking for ways to share good information with our users and improve the overall library experience. This site is just FUN and we thought you would enjoy it. Stop by the library for a demo, or to ask for help navigating the site. We provide headphones, so you can listen while using the library computers for homework, research, or just surfing the net!
For more information, check out http://pandora.com/
If not, keep reading!
Pandora Radio is an internet radio player which allows users to create, blend, and share stations based on the music they like. From the Pandora main page, users have the option to type in the name of a favorite song or artist; Pandora then generates an internet radio station by compiling songs with similar musical qualities. Users can create as many stations as they like for free, or browse Pandora’s selection of genre stations. While listening, users can indicate whether they like or dislike a particular song to hear it more often, less often, or never again on a specific station. By creating an account, users can listen to their stations any time or place they have internet access. Stations can be blended for more diverse listening or shared with friends through email.
Pandora is based on the Music Genome Project, “the most comprehensive analysis of music ever undertaken.” The project studies various elements of music such as “melody, harmony, instrumentation, rhythm, vocals, lyrics ... close to 400 attributes!” Using this information, Pandora connects listeners to the music they love and helps users explore a wide variety of related new and lesser-known music.
What does this have to do with the library, you ask? Librarians are always looking for ways to share good information with our users and improve the overall library experience. This site is just FUN and we thought you would enjoy it. Stop by the library for a demo, or to ask for help navigating the site. We provide headphones, so you can listen while using the library computers for homework, research, or just surfing the net!
For more information, check out http://pandora.com/
Tuesday, December 02, 2008
New Materials for November
The November new materials list is now available. We added 99 books, DVDs, and other items over the last month, thanks to the impressive efforts of our faculty selectors and the library staff.
You can find our current and previous new materials lists on the left hand side of our web site under "New Materials Lists."
Have a suggestion of something to order? Email one of our staff members or drop by the library. Thanks!
John
You can find our current and previous new materials lists on the left hand side of our web site under "New Materials Lists."
Have a suggestion of something to order? Email one of our staff members or drop by the library. Thanks!
John
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