Always Connect

Are you leaving campus over the break? Want to use our databases, but not sure how to get to them? All you'll need is your Gustavus ID and an Internet connection. When you connect from off campus and click on one of our databases, an authentication form will appear. Simply type in the bar code number (embedded at the bottom of the bar code on your ID) and your last name to be recognized as an authentic Gustie.

Enhanced chat service now live!

You've probably noticed that the library offers chat reference service via instant messaging. Yesterday this service received an exciting makeover!

Visiting the library's Chat page now automatically connects a chat window to the reference librarian - you do not have to be signed into a chat client, such as AOL Instant Messenger, to begin a session. Icons at the bottom of this page still indicate whether or not a librarian is available.

If you haven't tried our chat reference service, now is the time! We hope this improved service will make it easier for library patrons anywhere and everywhere to connect with us.

Times Select Goes to College

The New York Times apparently is having second thoughts about its Times Select program (the one that locks selected content up unless you are a subscriber). Now students and faculty have free access to Select content whether they are subscribers or not. Sign up for an account and have at it!

The library, of course, has already been a subscriber for you - providing access to The New York Times and many more newspapers through LexisNexis and Proquest Newsstand Complete. But we won't mind if you sign up for their Web version, too.

Another new arrival!

Room 106 is now home to Helen - twin to Hector, but without a camera. Like her brother, Helen is a Mac mini with a huge flatscreen monitor, two keyboards, and a cord to hook your own laptop up to her keyboards and screen. Helen is perfect for collaborative projects!

Soon a calendar will hang on the door of room 106 so groups may reserve this room in advance (Hector's calendar was hung earlier this week). Until then, use is first-come, first-served.

Next on the horizon: for the enterprising public speaker, the library will be installing a presentation practice space with blue screen, camera, and playback methods in place.

Library is open today

The library will be open Friday, March 2, from 8am-6pm, but most services will be unavailable.

We will be open regular hours (10am-6pm) tomorrow, Saturday, March 3, with full services (reference 10-5, etc.).

Closing at 10pm today

Due to the winter weather, the library will be closing at 10pm on Thursday, March 1.

We hope to return to regular hours on Friday, March 2.

In the meantime, enjoy the snow!

Chalepa ta kala - unless they're 12,000 Greek texts!

The library now offers Thesaurus Linguae Graecae (or, TLG). This digital library serves up virtually all surviving Greek texts from Homer's time (8th century BCE) to the fall of Byzantium in 1453 CE. One could call it the EEBO of ancient Greece!

Due to the nature of this product and the cost of a campus-wide license, TLG is only accessible from three designated computers on campus - one in the Classics department office, one on the main floor of the library, and one Mac on the library's lower level. Each of these computers is marked with a blue sign indicating the availability of TLG.

Thanks to the internet, we can search and sort these texts at lightening speed. But it is still good to remember what Thales said: Ti tachiston? Nous. Dia pantos gar trechei. Enjoy.

Introducing...Hector (group computing)

Room 102 (a study room on the library's lower level, Chapel side) is now home to Hector, a Mac mini with a wide flatscreen monitor, two keyboards, a laptop hookup and an iSight camera. This flexible workspace is perfect for groups writing collaborative papers, creating Powerpoint for group presentations, or working on other computing projects.

Currently, use of this room is first-come, first-served only, but as soon as the calendar arrives, groups may also begin to sign up to reserve Hector for up to three hours at a time. More on our signup policy can be found here. We have also drafted a few guidelines for the use of the room to help our users be good citizens when they're in there.

The library partnered with GTS to create this space, and much thanks is due Jessie Twaddle for his work putting it together. GTS is also hard at work on creating a room specifically designed for practicing and taping speeches and presentations, which will be located across the hall from Hector.

While our students have been discovering and using this room already, we hope faculty members will promote its use for group projects.

Photo of Sid filming Courtney with Hector.

New anthropology resource!

The library has just set up a trial to AnthroSource, the premier online resource for anthropology. It includes the full text of 32 scholarly journals published by the American Anthropological Association (AAA), most dating back to the first issue and about half continuing to the present. Topics in physical anthropology, cultural or social anthropology, linguistic anthropology, and archaeology are all covered.

Access AnthroSource from the Databases menu on our home page or from our guide to databases for anthropology, and let us know what you think.

SFX Downtime Sunday morning

The Journals link from the library's home page and the button in our databases will be disabled from approximately 9:30-10:30am Sunday morning, February 11, as the University of Minnesota moves the SFX server and runs updates on the software. Thank you for your patience!

Happy Darwin Day!

In honor of Charles Darwin's birthday, we've pulled together some library books, on display near the front door.

Don't want to come out in the cold? We understand. Luckily, the British Library has put Darwin's complete works online. You could also browse a museum exhibit, or see how clergy around the country have discussed the compatibility of science and religion at the Clergy Letter Project.

photo courtesy of KateMonkey.

Interlibrary Loan Jan. 4-8

Due to continued work on our software upgrade, the Interlibrary Loan (ILL) function will not be available through MnPALS or MnLINK from 5:00 pm Thursday, January 4 through sometime on Monday, January 8. During this time you will be able to request items in one of four ways:

1. Submit a printout of what you need at the ILL desk.
2. Fill out a paper ILL form at the ILL desk.
3. Use the online request form on the ILL homepage
4. Use the "Find It!" button in our databases to request ILL materials not available in print or full-text online.

Although you will not be able to request materials directly through MnPALS or MnLINK, we will be accepting all ILL requests that come in through any of these four options. Questions? Contact Kathie Martin.

Boy, these software upgrades certainly keep us on our toes! Thanks for your patience.

Interlibrary Loan

For the next few days, our usual interlibrary loan forms won't be available while we upgrade to a new version of MnPALS. In the meantime, you can use this form to request books or articles.

Take a Holiday on Us

Because of some work going on at the Minnesota State University, Mankato, the servers that run our MnPALS catalog, interlibrary loan, and the authentication system for our databases will not be available on the morning of December 28th, and perhaps unavailable for the entire day. Looks as if we all may just have to take the day off from research, at least any that entails searching our catalog and databases.

Which reminds us of why sometimes we like to have real, printed books in our hands...

EndNote Web is now available!

Access to , the online version of the popular citation management software, is now included with the library’s subscriptions to Science Citation Index Expanded and Social Sciences Citation Index (Web of Science).

From on campus, visit EndNoteWeb.com and click on the “EndNote Web Login” link to sign up for an account. If you already have a personal account in Web of Science, you should already have access.

Once you have signed up, you can begin to use EndNote Web from any web-accessible computer. You can:

• import references from any database (Web of Science, WorldCat, PubMed, etc.)
• save citations to folders
• download plugins to create footnotes and bibliographies in Microsoft Word

If you are currently using EndNote software on your personal computer (version X.0.2 or higher), you can transfer references seamlessly between it and EndNote Web. Earlier versions of EndNote can import references from EndNote Web via a text file.

The library will also continue to offer , a similar web-based citation management tool, to the Gustavus community.

For more information on using EndNote Web, see their online tutorials.

Interlibrary Loan Dec. 16-17

Due to software upgrades, the Interlibrary Loan (ILL) function will not be available through MnPALS or MnLINK from 5:00 pm Saturday, December 16 through noon on Sunday, December 17. During this time you will be able to request items in one of four ways:

1. Submit a printout of what you need at the ILL desk.
2. Fill out a paper ILL form at the ILL desk.
3. Use the online request form on the ILL homepage
4. Use the "Find It!" button in our databases to request ILL materials not available full-text or online.

Although you will not be able to request materials directly through MnPALS or MnLINK, we will be accepting all ILL requests that come in through any of these four options. Questions? Contact Kathie Martin.

*Please note that ILL through MnPALS and MnLINK will also be unavailable January 2-5 due to the second stage of the software upgrade. We will send out additional information at that time, and you will be able to request materials through the same four methods described above.

Primary Sources: New York Times & More

As we slowly but steadily update our web pages to their new look, we are also adding new resources and content. Our updated subject guide for finding Primary Sources includes links to digital collections such as the Library of Congress's American Memory historical collections and the Historical New York Times database.

Purchased last spring, the Historical New York Times contains the full text of the paper from its first issue in 1851 to 2003. An additional year of content is added annually (2004 content will be added next summer), with our subscription to ProQuest Newsstand filling the gap. The database is fully indexed and searchable with full-page images, including graphics. Now we just need volunteers to help move our microfilm into storage!

Extra Extra! Digital Archive of the Gustavian Weekly

Wondering what Gusties were up to in the past? Trying to find that great Gustavian article from last year? Look no further! This summer, the library's Periodicals Department and College Archives spearheaded a project to digitize backfiles of the Gustavian Weekly. You can now search, browse and view issues from 1980-2005 online. To access, click this link: http://www.arcasearch.com/us/mn/, or visit the library's homepage and choose "Gustavian" in the Databases menu. The library hopes to add older issues in the future.

Poster Presentations Tonight

Students in the Common Readers First Term Seminar will give brief presentations Wednesday Nov. 29th at 7:30 p.m. on their research into four information ethics issues: music file sharing, surveillance cameras in schools, social networking online, and (an issue that hits close to the pocketbook) the increasing price of textbooks. The presentations will be held on the lower level, near the current periodicals, and yes, there will be refreshments.

Their posters will be on display in the library for the next couple of weeks for people too busy to fit another event into their schedule, but who need an interesting way to waste time when they should studying for that test tomorrow morning.

Chat Reference Service

Ever find yourself with a reference question when you're miles from the library? Try the library's new Instant Messenger reference service! Use chat reference for answers to factual questions or to be directed to resources that best address your research question. To use the service, visit the library's chat reference page. Follow the instructions to connect live with a Gustavus librarian.


Also consider using chat reference when you're in the library but don't want to give up your computer. As always, you can also contact the librarians in person, via email, or phone. We look forward to chatting with you soon!