STUDY ROOMS 201 – 211 WILL BE UNAVAILABLE APRIL 30 – SEPT 19

Due to the Bryant Center Renovation Project, offices located in the Bryant Center are being relocated to the Bello Center for the Spring, Summer, and beginning of Fall.  As a result, study rooms 201 through 211 will be unavailable for student use from April 30th through September 19th.  As far as we know, rooms 215 and 216, the study rooms located within the 2nd floor quiet area will remain usable and available for online bookings, though if that changes we will get the word out ASAP.

Everyone apologizes for the inconveniences this may cause.  If you need study space during final exams, we’ll leave the classrooms open when we can and we have requested extra tables to set up throughout the library during this period.  We appreciate your patience and understanding.

S.O.S. – Save Our Scanner!

If you have had the chance to use our new BookScan Station, we’re willing to bet you love it (well, as much as you can love a scanner, anyway).  It’s fast, it’s quiet, it’s easy to use… it’s pretty much the scanner of our dreams.

Unfortunately, it might be going away.

We’ve been using it for the past couple of months on a trial basis, and the trial is just about over.  It’s an expensive piece of machinery, and the powers that be only want to pony up for it if we can prove that it people like having it and that it’s being used.

So if you’ve been using the scanner and you love it (come on, you’re TOTALLY the type of person who can love a scanner… you can admit it, Krupp Konnection is a safe space), let people know!  How?  Glad you asked.  Here are a few suggestions:

• Email us at library@bryant.edu and tell us why you like it and how much you use it.  We’ll forward it to the right people.
• Bring it up at Student Senate.
• Post about it on our Facebook or Twitter pages.  Use the hashtag #SaveOurScanner.
• Post about it on your own Facebook or Twitter accounts (just be sure to link back or @ reply to us so we see it).
• Write a letter to the Archway or call WJMF!  We have media, use it to get the word out.
• If you work for the Archway or WJMF, talk it up in your column or on your show!
• Parade around with a sign at in the rotunda or at Salmo!
• Heck, shout it from your dorm room window if the mood strikes!

Basically, we like this thing and we really want to keep it.  The BookScan Station makes our lives easier, and we’re willing to bet it makes your lives easier, too.  But the voice of fewer than two dozen library staffers won’t make nearly as big an impact on the decision as those of a big group of students.

This is your university, your library, and your scanner… but only if you let it be known that you do indeed want it.

(And not that we’re trying to sway your vote or anything, but we help you guys with sooooooooooooooo many projects.  And we’ve given you all a ton of candy lately.  Just puttin’ that out there.)

The Presidential Election

The 2012 Presidential Election is just around the corner. If you are a United States citizen, age 18 or over, you are eligible to vote in November. Hopefully you are registered to vote!

The library has some excellent resources about the history of elections and politics in the United States. Before the election on November 6^th browse through these selected titles which are all available at the library.

U.S. Election System – this book is an introduction to the history and structure of our election system.

Tea Party Goes to Washington – this source details the rise and wide ranging influence of the Tea Party movement in American politics.

Hopelessly Divided – Post-9/11 politics, the widening gap between Democrats and Republicans, and the resurgence of populism are detailed in this book.

The Conservative Century – this work gives a history of Conservative politics in the United States with important figures like Barry Goldwater, Ronald Regan etc.

The Achievement of American Liberalism – the New Deal, The Great Society, and post-1960’s American liberalism is the focus of this book.

We hope that you find these sources useful while you get ready to exercise your right to vote. This election will decide the course of the nation for the next four years so it’s time to get informed and get involved. If you need help finding sources related to the election, or any other topic, come to the reference desk in the library or contact us!

Instamatic Instruction: Learn how to use the library via Instant Messaging

Have you ever IM-ed a Librarian? If you have you may have experienced something pretty cool. You asked a question and the librarian said “If you give me a quick minute, I can show you how to use this database” or “Just a sec and I’ll send you a short video on how to do that.”

The library staff is making use of some freely* available tools to help teach you how to be an independent library user. Now don’t get us wrong, we love helping you with your intriguing queries. We get to learn something new every time you ask a question! But… we also want to contribute to your success as a well educated and capable individual upon graduation and part of that is giving you the tools to “do it yourself!”

We have two approaches we use to demonstrate search strategies, how to use a particular database, where to find a book, etc.

1. Video-casting – The library uses the free version of a tool called Jing (by TechSmith) to quickly record a specific activity on our computer screen.  We can add voice overs, but often simply show where to go, what to type, what to click and more without sound.  Because of the design of the tool, we are able to create a video, upload it and generate a link for you in less than a minute.  That means that you are given visual instruction to teach you how to find the answer to your query often in a matter of minutes!  See an example here.
2. Screen-sharing – The library uses a the free version of a tool called Join.me to share our screen with you, an IM user, on the fly.  We simply send a link through the IM chat box, you click and immediately you are able to see our screen and all we do on our computer.  This has several perks such as an embedded chat box, the ability for us to give you control of our computer and more!  Screen-sharing with Join.me even allows us to work collaboratively online, if you want to demonstrate something to the librarian; it can function as a two-way street.

The feedback we have received from you, the student, has been really positive.   So next time you decide to IM the library, feel free to ask to see our screen or get a video to demonstrate the “how-to” answer to your question.  Maybe you’ll find a way to use the tools for your group projects or help your friend figure out how to set-up a new feature on their Facebook profile.

We look forward to getting your next question and teaching you via Instamatic Instruction, how to find your answer!

*We often refer to free versions of tools as “free-for-now.”  With the quick evolution of web-based services, companies often take away the free version once they’ve got users hooked, so it is always a good idea to have other tools to choose from as alternatives. 

Here are a couple:

Screencast-O-Matic

Skype with Screen-sharing – We have used this tool with students studying abroad.

There are many others available at a cost… enjoy exploring!

 

Helpful Government Sites

Depending on what kind of project you’re working on, you often need statistics to back up any claims you make.  While we at the library are lucky to offer students access to a wide variety of excellent databases, sometimes you need to look outside the databases for your information.  Sites like wikipedia or blogs are unacceptable for scholarly research, and you may occasionally come across an article that lists statistics but doesn’t cite its sources.  There are many government sites that offer well-organized, current information and statistics to serve as a foundation for your research.

Here’s a shortlist of some that will be helpful to Bryant students:

CIA World Factbook: When doing research on other countries, it can be incredibly frustrating at time to just get basic information about the type of government, major industries or political structure.  The World Factbook is an excellent source for information on every country in the world.  In addition to that, there are links to intelligence literature, reports, press releases, maps and more.  The factbook is updated on a weekly basis, and is  not only an excellent source of information, but it’s actually interesting to read and browse.

US Census Factfinder: You can find industry specific economic factsheets for the whole country, or for individual cities then refine it further by industry.  There is also some data on foreign trade, current and historical, economic surveys and community surveys.

Congressional Budget Office: CBO provides Congress with: Objective, nonpartisan, and timely analyses to aid in economic and budgetary decisions on the wide array of programs covered by the federal budget; and the information and estimates required for the Congressional budget process.

To that end, CBO offers access to economic and employment projections, as well as publications ranging from agriculture to housing to federal personnel.  It also includes cost estimates for bills currently in congress and PAYGO tables.

Bureau of Labor and Statistics: BLS includes information on American labor statistics as well as international comparisons.  Major headings covered by BLS include: Inflation Prices, Unemployment, Employment, Spending and Time Use, Productivity, Pay and Benefits and Workplace Injuries.  You can look at current and historical information about the labor market in the US.  The Bureau of Labor and Statistics also includes the Occupational Outlook Handbook, which shows projected growth or decrease in demand by industry.  This is a useful economic indicator, but also is helping for individual career research.

US Patent Office: Have a great idea and need to know if it’s been done already?  This is where you go to find out.  The patent office site allows full text and image searching (with a tiff viewer) of historic and current patents.  There are also links explaining why patent something, how patent and copyright differ and links to forms.

Department of Health:  If you need information about statistics at the state level, often those can be found on that state’s Department of Health site.

Securities and Exchange Commission: Need information on a publicly-traded company? This should be one of your first stops.  You can search by ticker symbol or company name and bring up a complete list of SEC filings including press releases, quarterly reports, prospectuses and communications and more.

The White House:  The White House is the best place to look for unbiased current legislation information as well as statements, speeches and news from the nation’s capital.  It also includes basic civics lessons on the three branches of government and their functions, The Constitution, Links to state and local government and The White House blog.

National Center for Education Statistics: If you need education statistics, then this is where you need to look.  NCES is the primary federal entity for collecting and analyzing data related to education.  You can search the site for current statistics as well as read reports and publications.

Energy Information Administration: Monthly and yearly energy forecasts, analysis and statistics, congressional reports, greenhouse gas data, energy use statistics, and international energy data.

Good luck with your research!