News

Stop by the A.C. Clark Library for your summer reading needs!  We have a growing collection of best seller and popular reading titles.  You can view a full list of the collection here.  Remember to bring your BSU ID card and visit our webpage for hours and other information:  www.bemidjistate.edu/library

The library’s summer hours begin on Wednesday, May 15th and continue through August 2nd. The library will be open from 9:00 am to 3:45 pm, Monday through Friday, and will be closed weekends.

The library’s hours for Monday, May 13th and Tuesday, May 14th will be 9:00 am to 4:45 pm.

For detailed hours information, see:

http://www.bemidjistate.edu/library/hours/

See you in the Library!

The A. C. Clark Library will be hiring a Graduate Assistant for the 2013-2014 academic year:

http://www.bemidjistate.edu/academics/graduate_studies/Library%20GA%20Job%20Description%202013-2014.pdf

See the Graduate Studies page for details on how to apply:

http://www.bemidjistate.edu/academics/graduate_studies/assistantships/

The U. S. Department of Education has sent out an alert for limited availability of full text in ERIC. Users will get a page saying the PDF files are currently unavailable until some privacy issues are resolved. The producer has indicated that they will keep us informed as they work through the problems.

The Library has an extensive collection of ERIC documents  in the 1st floor microforms collection, so please check with us in case we have what you are looking for. If, after checking the Library’s ERIC microfiche collection, you are not successful in locating the full text of an ERIC document, the Interlibrary Loan department can attempt to obtain it for you. If you simply need an education-related article, you can also try Education Full Text or Educator’s Reference Complete.

If you need assistance locating an ERIC document, please call the Reference Desk at 1-800-860-0234 (218-755-3342), or use the Email Reference Service.

We are pleased to announce that BSU Public Computer Labs have extended to the first floor of the A.C. Clark Library. 25 fully-loaded computers with all BSU software programs are now available on the 1st floor of the Library.  The computers are dual-boot, running both Mac and Windows operating systems.

NEW: BSU Information Technology Services students are now available to help with questions and problems during all the hours the library is open.  For computer help, go to the 3rd floor of the Library (behind the Reference Desk), or to the 1st Floor service desk (across from the computers).

As always, if you need help with doing research or using the Library resources, please stop by the Reference Desk. We’re here to help!

The A. C. Clark Library is happy to announce that faculty, staff, and students now have several ways to get help with the library’s resources and services:

1)      Call us toll-free at 1-800-860-0234 (218-755-3342). Reference Librarians are available Monday through Thursday–9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Friday–9 a.m. to 4:45 p.m.

2)      Send questions through the Email Reference Service form:

http://www.bemidjistate.edu/shared/packages/forms/forms/library_reference_help.php

3)      Stop by the Reference Desk on the 3rd (main) floor of the library (M-Th, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m, F, 9 a.m. to 4:45 p.m.)

Please note: If you need in-depth research assistance or would like an immediate response to a question, please visit the Reference Desk from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, or call the Reference Desk at 1-800-860-0234 (218-755-3342).

More information on the service is available here.

Oxford Reference Online, a provider of some of the Library’s e-Reference content, has a new look and feel.

Take a tour of the new database at:

http://www.oxfordreference.com/page/tour/take-a-tour

In Fall Semester 2012, the Library purchased a limited number of course textbooks to be placed in the library’s Course Reserves Collection, using funds from student fees approved by the Student Senate. Students are encouraged to search the MnPALS Catalog course reserves to see if their course text might be on reserve.

If you have questions about the Textbooks on Course Reserves Pilot Project, please call the Reference Desk at 755-3342 (toll free 1-800-860-0234).

SAGE recently upgraded the interface to its reference e-book content, SAGE Reference Online. It is now called SAGE Knowledge.

Check out the How-to Guides for SAGE Knowledge below:

Browse by Subject

Browse by Title

Refine Encyclopedia Entries

Export Citations

If you have any questions on SAGE Knowledge, please contact the Reference Desk at 218-755-3342 (toll free 1-800-860-0234). Thanks!

The MnPALS Library Catalog will be down this Saturday (9/22) from 2 a.m. until sometime late in the afternoon on Sunday 9/23, due to a system upgrade.

During this downtime, the catalog will be available, but will not show live availability information. “Your Borrowing Record” and Interlibrary Loan request forms will also not be available during this time, so users should plan accordingly to renew items or initiate Interlibrary Loan requests before the downtime.

If you have any questions, please call the Reference Desk at 755-3342 (toll free 1-800-860-0234).

Due to the purchase of LexisNexis by ProQuest, LexisNexis Congressional is migrating to the ProQuest platform on Friday, September 21st.

Information on what’s new/better/different about the new platform is available here.

If you have any questions about the switchover or on using the ProQuest databases, please contact the Reference Desk at 218-755-3342 (toll free 1-800-860-0234).

Thank you.

For a quick tour of the Library web site, watch the overview video:

http://screencast.com/t/65TPUfffJfmb

For our library hours, click here.

If you have questions, please call the Reference Desk at 218-755-3342, or 1-800-860-0234 (toll-free).

Have a great year!

Check out these videos on the new features of ProQuest databases:

http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL943D4F9759615B70

The Library currently provides access to the legacy platform and “preview access” to the new platform on the Online Resources page.

Due to the purchase of Cambridge Scientific Abstracts (CSA) databases by ProQuest, databases that were previously on the CSA platform will now only be available on the ProQuest platform.

More info about the ProQuest interface is at:

http://www.proquest.com/en-US/promos/platform/user.shtml

If you have any questions about the switchover or on using the ProQuest databases, please contact the Reference Desk at 218-755-3342 (toll free 1-800-860-0234).

Thank you.

Hopefully users out there have had a chance to get acclimated to the “All New ProQuest Platform”, which has been available on the Online Resources page for the last year or so. Starting this Friday, databases that were previously on the Cambridge Scientific Abstracts (CSA) platform, such as Sociological Abstracts, will now only be available on the ProQuest platform.

The ProQuest interface is easy to use and intuitive. More info about the ProQuest interface is at:

http://www.proquest.com/en-US/promos/platform/user.shtml

If you have any questions about the switchover or on using the ProQuest databases, please contact the Reference Desk at 218-755-3342 (toll free 1-800-860-0234).

Thank you.

http://bsuproxy.mnpals.net/login?url=http://infotrac.galegroup.com/itweb/mnaaclark?db=NGMA

“The National Geographic Magazine Archive, provides full-text searching of every article of the world’s most recognized magazine from its first publication in 1888. This comprehensive archive is an essential tool for researchers of all ages for the study of science, nature, geography and much more.” — from the web site.

For those of you needing to study for final exams, the Library will be open from 7:45 a.m. until 8:45 p.m. on Friday, April 27th. For the complete listing of library hours for Finals Week and May and Summer Session 2012, see the library hours page:

http://www.bemidjistate.edu/library/hours/
Good luck on final exams, everyone!

Want to save paper when printing out content from Web sites?

Check out printfriendly.com, where you can enter a URL and get a print-friendly web page or PDF in seconds:

http://www.printfriendly.com/

Enjoy!

In honor of this year’s Student Scholarship and Creative Achievement Conference, here’s a puzzler:

Did you ever wonder where popular news sources get those research studies, featured in stories like this one from the Minneapolis Star-Tribune?

“To Attract Women, Men Can Turn Into Big Spenders”

Many times the original, published research articles (conducted by experts “in the field”) can be found in library databases! The previous article was based on the following study, published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (and available through the library’s subscription to PsycARTICLES):

“The Financial Consequences of Too Many men: Sex Ratio Effects on Saving, Borrowing, and Spending”

Happy Researching!

Please view this brief screencast (30 sec., no audio) on how to renew your materials through the “Your Borrowing Record” feature of the library web site. It’s easy to do, and helps keep those pesky overdue notices away…

http://screencast.com/t/a8xjXwo4ZW

For all of those people out there who may be working on research papers requiring a bibliography or list of works consulted….Enjoy!

http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2012/03/how-do-you-cite-a-tweet-in-an-academic-paper/253932/

ITS student workers, located on the 3rd floor of the Library behind the Reference Desk, are now available starting at 9 a.m. on most days to assist with tech questions and problems. Spring 2012 hours of service are:

9 a.m. to 8 p.m., M-TH

9 a.m. to 4:45 p.m., F

1 p.m. to 8 p.m., Sun

Please note that hours subject to change.

Starting on January 1st, 2012, the Education Full Text resource will be on the EBSCOhost platform, due to the H.W. Wilson Company being bought out by EBSCO. All of the same content is there, just a different interface.

Try out the database on EBSCO here:

http://bsuproxy.mnpals.net/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?authtype=ip,uid&profile=ehost&defaultdb=eft

For FAQs about the transition from Wilson to EBSCO, including information on the “My WilsonWeb” to “MyEBSCOhost” transition, see:

http://support.epnet.com/knowledge_base/detail.php?id=5702

Just a reminder of the Library’s hours from Wednesday, November 23 through Saturday, November 26. On Wednesday, November 23, the library will be open from 9 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. The library will then be closed from Thursday, November 24 through Saturday, November 26. The Library resumes its normal hours on Sunday, November 27.

Have a nice break!

Earlier this year, a major provider of library content, EBSCO, bought out the eBook provider NetLibrary. The library has access to thousands of these eBook titles, available through the library’s online catalog, MnPALS.

All the same content is there, but the look-and-feel and search is a bit different. And, they are also now accessible though the EBSCO databases (like Academic Search Premier, on the Online Resources page).

See this screencast for a how-to on limiting your search to eBooks in EBSCOhost:

http://screencast.com/t/k4QOf6Pc

The interface to ProQuest databases, including databases on the CSA platform, has a new look and feel. We’ve included Preview Access links to the re-designed search through the Library’s Online Resources page. Try them out, and let us know what you think.

http://www.bemidjistate.edu/library/resources/

Please note that access to the ProQuest and CSA legacy platforms will continue, until such time as they are retired and moved over to the All-New ProQuest Platform.

BSU Information Technology Services students are now available to assist with questions and problems with logging into campus computers, printing, D2L, etc. They are located on the 3rd floor of the Library behind the Reference Desk, and the hours of service are (Note: hours are subject to change):

11 am to 8 pm, M-TH

11 am to 4:45 pm, F

1 pm to 8 pm, Sun

If you need help with doing research or using the Library resources, please stop by the Reference Desk. We’re here to help!

Please note that the closing times for the A.C. Clark Library will be changing. The library will be closing at 10:45 p.m. Sunday through Thursday during the academic year. Friday and Saturday hours will remain the same as last year. This change will go into effect Monday, August 22.

Please see the Library Hours webpage for special dates and hours: http://www.bemidjistate.edu/library/hours/

The Library’s hours for Fall Start-up Week, August 17 through 19 are: 9:00 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. Normal academic year hours will begin on Monday, August 22nd. For detailed hours information see:

http://www.bemidjistate.edu/library/hours/

Just a reminder that beginning Friday, July 1st, Library hours will be:

9:00 a.m. to 2:45 p.m, Monday through Thursday. Note: The Library will be closed on Fridays.

The Library will be closed from Friday, July 29 to Tuesday, August 16, and will re-open on Wednesday, August 17.

Please visit the library web site for special dates and hours:

http://www.bemidjistate.edu/library/hours/

From BioOne (online biology journals):

“BioOne will be experiencing some scheduled downtime on Tuesday, June 28th, 2011 starting at 6:00pm EST (3:00pm PT). We expect the downtime to last no longer than four hours. Please accept our apologies for any inconvenience this causes.”

Polling the Nations, a public opinion survey database, sports an entirely new look and offers several new features…check it out:

http://bsuproxy.mnpals.net/login?url=http://poll.orspub.com

Due to the recent change in student email services, patrons should be aware that they may need to check the old (NetMail) system for e-mails regarding their library account or Interlibrary Loan requests. This is because requests made before the switch-over on May 10th were most likely sent to the old email address.

Going forward, emails to BSU students will be sent to the new “live.bemidjistate.edu” address.

Please call the Reference Desk at 218-755-3342 (toll free 1-800-860-0234) with any questions you may have.

Did you know that you can subscribe to RSS feeds to keep up with new materials as they are added to the Library’s collections?

Check out the New Books page, and click on the RSS icon links next to each subject category to subscribe to the feed:

http://www.bemidjistate.edu/library/new_books/

Looking for a good book to read in your spare time? Check out the Library’s new Popular Reading Collection!

You’ll find this collection on the main (3rd) floor of the Library, across from the Circulation Desk. Browse the Popular Reading shelf for bestselling and award-winning fiction and non-fiction, genres like Science Fiction and Mystery, as well as books on regional topics–all in one convenient location.

Happy Reading!

The Library’s open hours for Spring Break Week (Monday, March 7th through Friday, March 11th) will be from 11 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. Research assistance will be available during these times. Additionally, open hours on Sunday, March 6th, will be from 1 p.m. to 4:45 p.m.

Normal open hours will resume on Saturday, March 12th. See Library Hours for the full schedule.

Have a great break!

On Saturday, February 26th, the ScienceDirect database will be unavailable due to scheduled maintenance from 7:00 am EST to 7:00 pm (approximately)

As an example of the interconnectedness of libraries today, the A. C. Clark Library Interlibrary Loan department facilitates delivery of print and non-print materials (like electronic documents) from around the world. This week, the ILL department requested and received an electronic document for a BSU patron from Ferdinand Postma Library, North-West University (Potchefstroom campus), Potchefstroom, South Africa!

Check out this brief video overview of the new web site. If you have questions, please call the Reference Desk at 218-755-3342, or 1-800-860-0234 (toll-free).

The Library’s Web site has a new look, some new features, as well as all of the core elements and services you have come to expect. We hope that the new design will allow you to more quickly locate and access the resources you’ve grown accustomed to using, as well as point you to resources you may not have known about.

Please call the Reference Desk at 218-755-3342, or toll-free at 1-800-860-0234, with your questions and comments. Thanks!

Pete McDonnell
Systems/Distance Learning Librarian