Milne Library News

Milne Library's Getting It System Toolkit (GIST) presents at national conference

2009-11-11T11:49:00.010-05:00

In August, the Getting it System Toolkit (GIST) was rolled out to Geneseo faculty and staff, giving users new options as they initiated purchase and IDS requests for books and media. On November 7th, GIST was introduced to a national audience at the 29th Annual Charleston Conference, a yearly gathering of acquisitions and collection development librarians, publishers and vendors in Charleston, South Carolina. Milne Library staff (Tim Bowersox, Cyril Oberlander, Kate Pitcher and Mark Sullivan) presented a session entitled, "The Getting It System Toolkit: The GIST of making informed decisions and the workflow of buying, borrowing, downloading or viewing", a detailed look at how Milne Library is changing the purchase request process by enabling users to make decisions about what the library buys, borrows and accesses. It is all done through the creation of an innovative new tool which places decision-making ability in the patron's hands, using:

Automated holdings information checking to see if other libraries within our network own the material
Purchase price look-up service to compare prices of different book vendors
The collection of user feedback (should library purchase this item? Is it essential, non-essential,etc.)
Customizable emails and workflow enhancement for staff behind the scenes
Reviews and ratings via Amazon and Google APIs to make easy decisions
Automatically find full-text, online availability and present to users at point of decision-making

For more information about how to place purchase requests, visit the library's website at http://eres.geneseo.edu/library/requests/requests/purchaserequest.shtml.

To request more information about the GIST project and releases of future versions, please visit http://idsproject.org/Tools/GIST.aspx.

It's a girl! Milne Welcomes Olivia Hoffman.

2009-10-16T11:08:00.002-04:00

Kim Davies Hoffman and her husband Brian are thrilled to welcome their first child, Olivia Joan Hoffman! Olivia was born at 3:15 pm on Wednesday, October 14, 2009, weighing 7lbs, 13 oz. and measuring 21 inches long.

New online meeting service called "GoToMeeting" launched

2009-10-15T11:56:00.005-04:00

Milne Library and the Teaching and Learning Center (TLC) are pleased to announce the launch of the new service called GoToMeeting.

GoToMeeting is an online service that enables users to easily, securely and cost-effectively present information and collaborate on projects with other participants. The new service is only available to Geneseo faculty and staff. Learn more about the features of this service here.

Thanks to the campus bookstore and CAS for contibuting to our new Text Books on Reserve program!

2009-10-15T11:23:00.004-04:00

The campus bookstore (Follett) and Campus Auxiliary Services (CAS) graciously donated almost $2000 worth of books to our new Text Books on Reserve pilot program, begun in fall 2009.

Faculty also donated many text books in support of the pilot.

These generous contributions have enabled us to kick off this very worthwhile program in the library.

Students can search for textbook titles through GLOCAT.

Questions about the program? You can ask at the circulation desk or email Sonja Landes, Head of Access Services

Sage Handbooks Trial

2009-10-13T19:13:00.001-04:00

During the month of October Milne Library has full text access to 80 social science handbooks from Sage.
To access the Sage handbooks:
1. Go to http://sage-ereference.com
2. Select ALL SAGE Reference Online Handbooks A –Z

These are well-known and well-respected reference titles covering the following topics:

* Aging & Gerontology
* Business & Management
* Communication & Media Studies
* Counseling & Psychotherapy
* Criminology & Criminal Justice
* Economics
* Education
* Family Studies
* Gender & Sexuality Studies
* Geography
* Health & Social Welfare
* History
* Politics & International Relations
* Psychology
* Public Policy & Public Administration
* Research Methods & Evaluation
* Social Issues
* Social Work & Social Policy
* Sociology
* Urban Studies & Planning

Library Hours for Fall Break

2009-10-07T11:32:00.004-04:00

The library will have reduced hours over fall break:

Friday, October 9	7:30 AM - 4:00 PM
Saturday, October 10	12:00 PM - 6:00 PM
Sunday, October 11	12:00 PM - 6:00 PM
Monday, October 12	8:00 AM - 9:00 PM
Tuesday, October 13	7:30 AM - 1:00 AM

A reference librarian will be available for research help throughout the weekend.

Heads-Up! Significant Changes to MLA Citation Style.

2009-10-02T10:43:00.009-04:00

Key changes made to MLA citations include:

Titles are italicized instead of underlined
URLs are optional, though encouraged if the citation does not lead easily to the source.
Volume and issue numbers are required, regardless of pagination.
Publication Medium info is required at the end of the citations: Print, Web, Performance, DVD, or TV.
New Abbreviations for web sources: N.p. for no publisher given, n.d. for no date of publication, and n. pag. for no pagination. (MLA Update 2009, Purdue).

Stop by the reference desk in Milne if you have citations questions. The librarian on duty will be happy to help!

Source:
"MLA Update 2009." The Owl at Purdue. Purdue University. n.d. Web. 2 October 2009.

Caution: Facebook Malware Attacks

2009-10-02T09:57:00.004-04:00

Cyberspace is alight with talk of a new Facebook malware attack. Social media news alerts warn against clicking any link like the one shown here. For more information about these attacks, see Mashable's Article at http://mashable.com/2009/10/01/new-facebook-attack/.

Books & Bytes Grand Opening

2009-09-22T08:10:00.004-04:00

Join us in Milne Library on September 28th, 29th & 30th to celebrate our sleek new cafe! It's been a summer of hard work renovating to make it bigger, better and more beautiful.

Come try out a tasty pannini and chips or grab a healthy salad; there are lots of choices now as well as the standards like baked goods and of course, plenty of coffee. If that's not enough to tempt you, there are prizes to be given out throughout all three days.

Monday kicks off with a Ceremonial Coffee Toast and you can still enter to win a SEMESTER of FREE COFFEE!

"Coffee Beans" image courtesy of Flickr user Refracted Moments (TM)

Satellite Writing Center in Milne to open Sunday, Sept. 13

2009-09-10T09:05:00.005-04:00

The Satellite Writing Center in Milne will open this Sunday, September 13th from 3 to 9 p.m. Tutors will be available in the library study area to the left of the reference desk.

Hours of operation for the Satellite Writing Center in Milne will be Monday through Thursday 8-11 p.m. and Sunday 3-9 pm. For more information about The Writing Learning Center visit the WLC web page.

Reading with no overdue fines & more...

2009-09-09T17:25:00.003-04:00

Milne Library is trying something new...

If students are studying for the semester, why not check out books for that long? Milne’s new circulation policy has books in the general collection now due back 99 days from the day you check them out.
If a book (not reserves or equipment) is a little overdue, don’t worry about it, we won’t charge pesky overdue fines. Don’t get carried away though - There still is a lost book billing and service charge if you don’t return the book.
Check out our other circulation policies

Comments or suggestions? Email cyril@geneseo.edu or leave a comment below.

College Colors Day is Friday, September 4

2009-09-01T08:46:00.004-04:00

People across America will be sporting their favorite
college or university apparel throughout the day of Friday, September 4.

Don't forget to wear your Geneseo colors!

IM a Reference Librarian

2009-08-31T08:00:00.002-04:00

You can now contact librarians via Instant Messages. Just click on from the library's website and type into the chat box.

Or, use your prefered chat client to contact a reference librarian:

	AIM	MilneRefDesk@aim.com
	Yahoo!	milnereference@yahoo.com
	MSN/Windows Live	milnereference@hotmail.com
	Google Talk	milnereference@gmail.com

IM Reference Service for Milne will be available whenever the Reference desk is staffed. Reference Service hours at Milne Library:

Monday - Thursday	9:00 AM - 10:00 PM
Friday	9:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Saturday	12:00 PM - 5:00 PM
Sunday	3:00 PM - 9:00 PM

Access to ScienceDirect and Scopus databases will be unavailable on Saturday, August 29th

2009-08-27T11:24:00.007-04:00

Due to scheduled maintenance, library users will not have access to our the ScienceDirect and Scopus databases from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Saturday, August 29th.

We apologize for the inconvenience.

Know your options before buying course texts

2009-08-27T10:59:00.002-04:00

With a new campus textbook vendor and many different choices for accessing required course materials, students may be left struggling with the best (and cheapest) way to access their course readings.

In an effort to provide options before students buy their books, please see the enumerated list below:

1) Follett Higher Education Group, MacVittie Student Union

2) Text Book on Reserve Pilot Program, Milne Library – A limited number of textbooks have been donated by SUNY Geneseo professors while others have been purchased for us by Follett/CAS, allowing students in certain courses to borrow textbooks for 4 hours at a time.

3) Information Delivery Services, Milne Library – While it is not encouraged that students request textbooks through IDS, they are free to order other readings that have been assigned in a course. For example, novels, personal narratives and non-fiction materials may be sent from other libraries if Milne Library does not currently maintain an available copy.

4) Online Options – MSNBC spotlights an article providing suggestions on ways in which college students can save money on their required textbooks. This article only shares a few of the numerous online resources for college students. Following are many more links that could be of interest:

Affordable Textbooks for the 21st Century
FAQ on Textbook Rental Programs, National Assoc of College Stores (NACS)
Ecampus
Google Books and many other options
Textbook Revolution
Textbooks Store, Amazon
Textbooksnow.com

E-Textbooks

Textbook Rental

BookRenter
Book Swim
Campus book rentals – textbook rentals with a humanitarian twist
Chegg.com – textbook rentals with an environmental twist

Textbook Swap

Comparison Shop

Textbook Resale

WorldCat Local - your better alternative to Google

2009-08-24T09:17:00.015-04:00

The Quicksearch box on the library home page now uses WorldCat Local. This search tool quickly finds books, articles, and materials held in Milne Library and in other libraries across the country.

Unlike Google which searches billions of web sites of unknown authority, WorldCat Local (containing 55 million articles) provides items from reputable databases that the library subscribes to. Search results can be narrowed to specific databases and refined by author, format, year, language, and content. Items not available in Milne or online are easily obtainable using Get Text/IDS service.

Post written by Rich Dreifuss.

Library information for your mobile device

2009-08-23T10:03:00.004-04:00

Milne Library is now pleased to provide library hours, contact information and a few search tools to cell phone and smart phone users.

Mobile users can point their browsers to

library.geneseo.edu/m

Users can access contact information for the reference desk or library office, or get information to contact a subject librarian via email or phone.

A few mobile search tools are available:

Worldcat.org
Google Books mobile (public domain books only)
PubMed

Of course, iPhone or Smartphone users also access the main library webpage from their phones at

library.geneseo.edu

Access to paid databases will be unavailable on Thursday, August 20th

2009-08-12T09:22:00.000-04:00

Due to an upgrade of our authentication system, off-campus users will not have access to our subscription databases during the day on Thursday, August 20th.

On campus users will still be able to access databases if the "EZProxy" portion of the database URL is removed. Popular resources can be reached via these links:

If you need access to additional databases or have questions about access, please contact the reference desk (245-5595).

Access should be restored by 6pm.

Easier Access to Chemical Information: SciFinder is now on the web

2009-07-27T09:50:00.003-04:00

SUNY Geneseo students, faculty and staff can now access chemical information via SciFinder on the web.

In order to use the new version of SciFinder, users must first register. Once registered, users can easily access SciFinder via any web browser.

This new web version of SciFinder has the same robust search features, including the ability to find chemical substance information, search for chemical literature, and search for chemical structures.

New features include the ability to save searches and get email alerts when new items matching a search are added to the database.

The client (stand alone) version of SciFinder will still be accessible through early October, at which time our access will be cut off.

Please contact Bonnie Swoger (585-245-5593) if you have any questions about accessing or using the web version of SciFinder.

Browser Add-ons to Make Your Research Easier

2009-07-17T14:33:00.008-04:00

We can all use a bit of help finding and managing the heaps of information that we need for a project.

The Firefox extension Zotero.

One of the most time consuming tasks that needs to be completed after writing and before turning in a paper is the formatting of the Works Cited section. Zotero is here to help. Using this add-on, you can save and sort the references for your paper, insert an appropriate citation, and format your bibliography in any of thousands of bibliographic styles (everything from the typical APA and MLA styles to styles from specific journals).

Students can appreciate the amount of time this will save while their professors will like seeing a correctly formatted bibliography.

The LibX toolbar for Firefox and Internet Explorer.

This extension can help you find resources more quickly.

First, it allows you to search the Milne Library catalog, GLOCAT, right from the toolbar.

Second, no matter what webpage you are looking at, the tool bar will insert a link for any resources it finds, connecting you to the materials available through Milne Library. For example, when searching Amazon.com, the LibX toolbar will allow you to easily check to see if Milne Library owns a copy of the book you want. Or if you find a journal article cited on a webpage, you can easily get access to the full-text article.

Additional information about these add-ons

2010 Census: A New Portrait of America

2009-06-26T12:37:00.004-04:00

Check out this video from the US Census Bureau. It explains how communities benefit from Census Bureau data collection efforts. Testimonials describe the importance of a complete count and why the 2010 Census will be the most important count in our nation's history. (Running time 3:23)

Congratulations to our 2009 PowerPoint Contest Winners

2009-05-18T13:29:00.005-04:00

Congratulations Yolanda Gonzales and Stephanie Aquilina.

Their MS PowerPoint presentation on Building A Community Supported Market was chosen as this year's winner of Milne Library's 2009 Student PowerPoint Presentation Contest.

This presentation highlights their Summer 2008 WWOOF (World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms) experience, Geneseo's Community Supported Market, and the many reasons for foodsharing and eating locally.

Congratulations! These students will share a $50 prize.

Pardon our dust

2009-05-15T10:37:00.005-04:00

Books & Bytes Café will be expanded and painted over the 2009 summer session. Our hope is to provide a more proficient layout for the cafe to better serve students' needs.

Please excuse the noise and dust during renovations.

If you have questions or comments, please feel free to post them below. Or, leave them on Milne's make a suggestion page.

Milne Library Summer Hours

2009-05-11T11:16:00.002-04:00

The library will be closed on the following days:

Memorial Day, May 25
Saturday, June 27
Saturday, July 4

Monday, May 18 to Saturday, July 4, 2009

Monday	8:00 AM - 9:00 PM
Tuesday - Thursday	8:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Friday	8:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Saturday	10:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Sunday	CLOSED

Sunday, July 5 - Friday, July 31, 2009

Monday - Thursday	8:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Friday	8:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Saturday	10:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Sunday	10:00 AM - 9:00 PM

Saturday, August 1 - Friday, August 7, 2009

Monday	8:00 AM - 9:00 PM
Tuesday - Thursday	8:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Friday	8:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Saturday	10:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Sunday	CLOSED

Saturday, August 8 - Sunday, August 23, 2009

Monday - Friday	8:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Saturday - Sunday	CLOSED

Confused about Copyright?

2009-05-05T10:18:00.002-04:00

The Copyright Clearance Center (CCC) provides a short video explaining the basics. Check it out for a better understanding of copyright issues regarding copying, sharing, and fair use.

The Copyright Clearance Center is an international licensing agency that licenses the rights to works with people in over 180 countries around the world. Such works include books, journal and newspaper content, websites, blogs, podcasts, music, artwork and more. To find out more about the CCC or about copyright issues, visit their website at Copyright.com.