Black World now on microfilm!

It came to my attention recently that our holdings for the magazine Black World (known formerly as Negro Digest) was in really bad shape. While helping students track down a book review from the 1970s, the pages of the magazine crumbled in my hands.

This magazine is no longer in print, but it has real historical value, so we decided to replace our print holdings with microfilm. Now if you need to consult Black World for an article, you longer have to handle dusty, falling-apart, yellowed pages.

If you have any questions or concerns about using periodicals in print, electronically, or on microfilm, the reference staff is here at your service. You can call us at x2225, email us at reference@slc.edu, or stop by our office, which is located behind the circulation desk.

It's getting hot in here (so hot)

We just want to let you know that we are aware of the temperature conditions in the library, and are in touch with campus facilities in an effort to resolve the situation. We apologize for the heat, and hope to begin cooling off shortly

Sign up for a research consultation!

As Marky Mark might say, "It's about that time." If you're feeling overwhelmed by upcoming deadlines and looming conference work, make an appointment for research assistance with Carl, Maria, or Emily. We will meet with you individually to go over sources in your area and show you the ropes of the library's research collections. It's even more fun than it sounds!

Make an appointment by filling out our consultation request form located here, email us at reference@slc.edu, call us at x2225, or stop by our offices just behind the circulation desk on the main floor of the library. We look forward to meeting you!

Project MUSE

We have resolved our Project MUSE snafu, so you should now be able to retrieve full text articles from the database. If you have continuing trouble, please contact a reference librarian at ext. 2225, reference@slc.edu, or in our office just behind the circulation desk.

Elevator is Out of Order

We are sorry to report that our elevator is currently out of order. We had an incident involving the accumulation of water in the pit, and are now awaiting the arrival of new parts and inspection by the city. Please ask at the front desk for assistance if you are unable to navigate the stairs.

Project MUSE

If you have been thwarted in recent attempts to use the Project MUSE database, fear not--it's not you, it's us! Due to various difficulties with our subscription to Project MUSE, full access to this resource has been temporarily disabled. We are working on getting this straightened out ASAP, but in the meantime, if you are trying to get your hands on an article through Project MUSE, give us a call at x2225 or send email to reference@slc.edu, and let us help you out. We may be able to find alternative means of getting the article for you.

TimesSelect, free for students and faculty

Last year, the New York Times started charging for online access to 'TimesSelect' content, primarily the Op-Ed page. The paper has decided to offer free access to students and faculty with email addresses ending in '.edu.' You can sign up for your free account here.

Remember, you can access all of the New York Times online through our ProQuest databases. If you need help navigating through the Times in ProQuest, call us at x2225, stop by the office, or send us an email at reference@slc.edu.

Good News about Science Direct!

As many of you know already, we have access to ScienceDirect on a trial basis. We were able to get our trial extended through April 18, so this means you will continue to have on-campus access to this great resource through then. We are working on getting a permanent subscription to this database, but that won't happen until this summer. Until then, we are happy to get an extension on our trial, and we hope you are finding it to be a useful resource.

If you have any questions about using ScienceDirect, please feel free to stop by the reference office, or give us a call at x2225, or send email to reference@slc.edu.

LibriVox

Audiobooks can be a fantastic accompaniment to a workout, a commute to the college from off-campus, or as a supplement to reading for people with attention difficulties. Check out LibriVox, a new internet resource that provide free mp3 downloads of books in the public domain. Finally--a way to get through Joseph Lister's On the Antiseptic Principle of the Practice of Surgery without cracking a book!

Library workshop

Wednesday, March 7, 12:30 p.m. - 1:30 p.m., Library E2 classroom Knowledge is Power: Library Resources for Activists -- Social structures hide points of resistance and rupture, and libraries are no different. This research workshop with Emily will discuss strategies for cracking the library code find the range of information necessary for political work, from activist theory to relevant data.

New Databases!

We are pleased to announce that we are trialing two new databases: World Shakespeare Bibliography Online and Historical Statistics of the United States. Both of these databases are accessible via the Databases A-Z page from the library homepage. Because they are both trial databases, there is no off-campus remote access.

The World Shakespeare Bibliography Online is a searchable electronic database consisting of the most comprehensive record of Shakespeare-related scholarship and theatrical productions published or produced worldwide between 1962 and 2006. Containing over 110,000 annotated entries, this collected information is an essential tool for anyone engaged in research on Shakespeare or early modern England.

Historical Statistics of the United States is a standard source for the quantitative facts of American history. Fully indexed and cross-referenced, this tool allows you to create custom tables that are downloadable into Excel or CSV. Statistical data includes information about population, work and welfare, economic structure and performance, economic sectors, and governance and international relations.

If you would like any help learning how to use these new trial databases, please feel free to stop by the reference office, or give us a call at x2225, or request a research consultation.

Update: Catalog maintenance

Voyager will be down on Monday while the necessary software changes are made to accomodate Daylight Savings Time. Below, a message about these changes from Sha:

"We have been advised from Voyager support staff that they plan on
starting the installation of the DST patch at 8am on Monday March 5.

If you need help finding materials during the shutdown period, please
consult a librarian, who will be pleased to assist you. Meanwhile, we
apologize for any inconvenience caused by this unavoidable
maintenance procedure."

Catalog trouble.

You might have trouble accessing the catalog tomorrow. Here's an explanation from our library director as to why. Please ask us for help if you need to find something! Call us at x2225, stop by the office, or send us an email at reference@slc.edu.

"In August 2005, Congress passed an energy bill that included extending Daylight Saving Time by about a month. Beginning in 2007, DST will start the second Sunday of March and end on the first Sunday of November. As a consequence of this change, the system software for the server that runs our Voyager library catalog will have to be patched so that its internal clock changes on the appropriate date (March 11).

Unfortunately, Voyager will be unavailable for a minimum of one hour while the patch is being applied, and may actually be unavailable for the whole day. The date of the closure is dependent on the availability of the Voyager support engineers -- the most likely date is Friday March 2, with Monday March 5 and Friday March 9 as alternatives, all starting at 8am. We will let you know as soon as we have further information from Voyager support.

If you need help finding materials during the shutdown period, please consult a librarian, who will be pleased to assist you. Meanwhile, we apologize for any inconvenience caused by this unavoidable maintenance procedure."