Strength in Reserve (and Periodicals too)

FYI: Only one item in last week's incident report was interesting for us: 'Because Wilson Library has had persistent problems with some people using someone else's identity and password to log in to authenticated computers, we have implemented a tracking system in Wilson that logs IDs (without passwords) by time and machine. No searches are recorded, no confidential data is recorded, and data is retained for four days only. ... Since the system's implementation, the Libraries were able to identify one particular account that was clearly being used simultaneously in multiple locations. The detailed log of abuse was reported to OIT, the campus authority that addresses this type of abuse, issues warnings, and decides when to close accounts. Log-in abuse reports from our Wilson security monitors have dropped off considerably since that problem account was closed. OIT is very interested in our system and has asked for a demonstration.'

Posted by Laurie Jedamus at 12:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

As you may have noticed, Elena, Brent, Charlie & I (also Justin, Brandon, & Marge) went on a cleaning binge today in the front desk area. Now that it's less grimy, we're noticing that it still looks, well ... kind of drab. We're looking for ideas on how to make the front desk area more appealing. Please post any ideas on the blog, or stop by & talk to me - we'll try to start improving things next week.

Posted by Laurie Jedamus at 01:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Hi everyone, I have a saturday shift that is up for grabs. The first one to take it is the winner. I will be out of town this saturday, so I can't make it, but I'm sure it will be a thrilling shift! It is a desk shift from noon-2:30ish, the shift is over when Maggie arrives. Have a good weekend everyone!

Posted by Darin Vincent at 08:07 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Don't forget to ask patrons if they would please "Rate Your Library!"

Assessing patron satisfaction helps us to know how we can do our job better and improves overall customer service. Please remember to ask patrons to take a moment to fill out the blue smiley survey (it's friendly and fun!)

All students please comment that you have reviewed this post.

Thanks!

Posted by Elena Carrillo at 12:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (14)

Today is Margaret's last day. In the future, students should go to the following folks when questions/concerns arise:

(1) payroll and schedling issues can be addressed with Elena

(2) White Board questions, periodicals tasks and general periodicals questions can be addressed with Laurie. When periodicals related questions come up at the Reserve Desk, please go to Laurie when she's available. Laurie is in the office 9 am - 3 pm Monday - Friday.

(3) As always, e-Reserve questions go to Elena and traditional (print) Reserve questions go to Lois.

Laurie will be trying to introduce herself to each of you over the next week, but feel free to stop back and say hello to her as well.

Both Laurie and Elena are considered direct supervisors of all student employees in the unit.

All students please comment that you have reviewed this post. Thanks!

Posted by Margaret Ostrander at 03:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (13)

As all of you know, this Friday will be my last day with the University Libraries.

As I prepare to move on from the University, I wanted to thank all of you for creating such a wonderful & welcoming work environment each and every day. The experience of working with so many fabulous student employees has truly enriched my life. The co-workers I've been honored to to work with in our unit and throughout the Libraries have likewise been amazing. The experiences I've had over the past year and seven months at the University are treasures that I will carry with me.

Thank you!

Posted by Margaret Ostrander at 12:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Dear University of Minnesota Faculty, Staff and Students:

All of you are aware of the tragedy that struck Virginia Tech University on Monday, April 16. As members of the University of Minnesota community we are all impacted by this senseless tragedy in different ways. You are invited to attend We Are All Hokies: Reflecting on the Virginia Tech Tragedy on Thursday, April 19 at 11:00 am on Riverbend Plaza (behind Coffman Memorial Union).

This event is sponsored by the University of Minnesota, in conjunction with the Minnesota Student Association and the Graduate and Professional Student Assembly, and is an opportunity to reflect on this national tragedy, remember the victims, show our solidarity with the Virginia Tech community, and to support each other during a difficult time.

In addition to attending this event, we invite you to join the University community for lunch as a part of Beautiful U Day. Lunch will be served starting at 11:30 am in several locations, including the Coffman Memorial Union Plaza.

There will also be an opportunity to sign banners that will be sent to Virginia Tech on behalf of the University community.

In addition to attending this event we encourage all members of the University community to wear maroon and orange (Virginia Tech colors) on Friday, April 20 to show that Virginia Tech is in our thoughts.

-- Jerry Rinehart, Vice Provost for Student Affairs

Posted by Margaret Ostrander at 12:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

To: Students, Faculty and Staff

From: Robert Bruininks, President

I'm pleased to report that the eight buildings evacuated earlier in the day have been thoroughly searched and nothing unusual was located. We're grateful that everyone is safe. The buildings will remain closed and under surveillance this evening. Without further incident, the buildings will reopen tomorrow morning at their normal time and classes will resume.

The University is grateful for the support of all of the local, state and federal law enforcement agencies that assisted in this effort. We are particularly appreciative of the work of our own University of Minnesota Police Department for their professionalism and commitment to our safety.

Obviously, this is a stressful time for our community. The safety of our students, faculty and staff was our first priority and we appreciate your cooperation throughout the day.

Given the events of the past week, people might feel the need for support and counseling. The University has free, confidential counseling resources available to assist during this time. More information can be found at http://www.mentalhealth.umn.edu.

Also, to learn more about the University's safety, security and emergency preparedness resources, visit http://www.safety.umn.edu/.

Unquestionably, today's event was unsettling for many of us. Rest assured that appropriate plans are in place, professional emergency management staff is on duty, and this University is committed to protecting the safety of our students, faculty, staff and visitors. Thank you for your patience and support during this time.

Posted by Margaret Ostrander at 12:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Seven buildings on the East Bank campus are in the process of being evacuated due to a bomb threat. They include: Kohltoff, Smith, Frasier, Johnston and Morrill Halls as well as Walter Library and the Science Classroom Building. All classes and meetings in these buildings have been canceled for the remainder of the day. Students are asked to return to their residence halls or their off-campus housing. Please do not congregate in the Mall area.

Staff are encouraged to go to another Libraries location until we learn more or they can return to their buildings. Please watch for further announcements.

--Linda Watson, Acting University Librarian

Posted by Margaret Ostrander at 02:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The new term that puzzled me last week was "petascale computing." Basically, this means very large capacity computing and comes from petabyte. So what is a petabyte? A petabyte is measure of storage space equal to 2 raised to the 50th power (1,125,899,906,842,624 bytes). This is still mysterious, so I did some research. Starting at the beginning, a "bit" a unit of measurement of information (from binary + digit) and is either a one or a zero. A byte is 8 bits. A kilobyte (or 1 KB) represents 1,024 bytes. A megabyte (1 MB) represents 1,024 KB. A gigabyte represents 1,024 MB. A terabyte is 1,024 gigabytes. A petabyte is 1,024 terabytes.

In the late 1980s, the average home computer system had a single hard drive with a capacity of about 20 megabytes (MB).

In 1997, Michael Lesk wrote, "How Much Information Is There in the World? (http://www.lesk.com/mlesk/ksg97/ksg.html). At that time, he said that the total size of the Library of Congress was about 3 petabytes.

His calculations were based on:
-- 20 million books, each requiring 1 MB
-- 13 million photographs, even if compressed to a 1 MB JPG each, would be 13 terabytes.
-- 4 million maps in the Geography Division might scan to 200 TB.
-- Over 500,000 movies; at 1 GB each they would be 500 terabytes (most are not full-length color features).
-- 3.5 million sound recordings, which at one audio CD each, would be almost 2,000 TB.

Thomas Landauer suggested that the brain holds about 200 megabytes of information, taking into account the rate at which information is forgotten and the amount of information need to do normal activities.

For more information, read: (This article is available electronically. Use Citation Linker.)
Thomas K. Landauer: How Much do People Remember? Some Estimates of the Quantity of Learned Information in Long-Term Memory. Cognitive Science. 10(4): 477-493 (1986)

The Libraries new Netfiles "U" drive has the capacity for 600 gigabytes.This is the new system that Libraries staff is now using to store and organize our internal electronic documents.

-- Peggy Johnson, Associate University Librarian

Posted by Margaret Ostrander at 02:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

We now have 1,000 new microfilm reels -- the "square square" kind.

We can now return to normal practice for respooling bad (square/hole or hole/hole) reels.

Horray!

Posted by Margaret Ostrander at 02:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

There was one incident report filed last week. On 4/10, a patron in the Walter Library Computer Lab reported a lost wallet. UMPD were notified.

There were no police reports forwarded last week.

--Matt Bowers, Library Safety/Security Coordinator

Posted by Margaret Ostrander at 02:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

TO: University of Minnesota Faculty, Staff, and Students

FROM: E. Thomas Sullivan, Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost

SUBJECT: Today's tragedy at Virginia Tech

Dear students, faculty and staff:

Today's news of the tragic shootings at Virginia Tech University gives us all reason for pause. Our thoughts and prayers go out to all of those impacted by this tragedy.

We have one of the largest, most urban campuses in the country. Constantly improving security is an important priority for University officials. In recent years, we've invested millions in expanding video surveillance, growing our police force and providing critical training and planning for our police, security and emergency response officials.

Unfortunately, the best planning and preparation in the world are sometimes not enough to prevent random acts of violence. That is why it is so important for students, faculty and staff to pay attention to their friends, their surroundings and observe appropriate security protocols. If you observe potential risks to safety and security, please don't hesitate to report it to the University of Minnesota Police Department by calling 911.

The University has crisis counseling services available, including crisis and mental health services. This free, confidential service is a valuable resource for anyone struggling with personal challenges. To learn more, visit http://www.ucs.umn.edu/.

Also, to learn more about the University's safety, security and emergency preparedness resources, visit http://www.safety.umn.edu/.

We are all shaken and deeply saddened by this horrific tragedy at Virginia Tech. Thank you for your continuing personal efforts to keep our campus safe.

Posted by Margaret Ostrander at 07:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

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All students: please visit & thoroughly read: Wilson Periodicals Transfers to MLAC Storage

Note how the records will look in MNCat temporarily.

On April 16, staff will begin pulling the serial volumes for transfer to the MLAC compact storage facility in the Andersen Library. Over 34,000 volumes will be removed from the Wilson Periodicals collection. We anticipate this project will be completed by the end of May. There are two parts of this project; titles identified as cancelled or ceased, and those duplicated by JSTOR or Elsevier electronic journals. The cancelled/ceased titles will be transferred first.

The runs of the JSTOR and Elsevier titles are being split between Wilson and MLAC. Those volumes published prior to 1996 will be moved. Holdings records for the titles will be updated on a continuing basis throughout the project. During parts of the process, duplicate records will appear for Wilson in the catalog.

All students please comment that you have reviewed this post. Thanks!

Posted by Margaret Ostrander at 03:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (11)

So, if anyone here is a student, they will find this post very helpful.

A lot of times at the desk we get people who are just starting their research and are unsure of where to begin. Margaret recently introduced me to the Undergraduate Virtual Library. It is a great way to search many of the online indexes and MNCAT at the same time. The best part about this jumbo-index is that you can browse the articles it finds and save the most relevant ones to use later. Many are available online, so you can complete a lot of research at home!

The Undergraduate Virtual Library link is located on the library homepage on the left side of the page, when you show people how to use it. I highly recommend using this site as a resource for yourselves and patrons.

Visit the Undergraduate Virtual Library at http://www.lib.umn.edu/undergrad/

All students please go to this resource, try searching, and make a comment about how it worked for you. Thanks!

Posted by Maggie D at 05:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)

Did you know that the Magrath commons hosts a coffee break every Tuesday from 1-3 pm, where they serve coffee, cookies, and fresh popcorn?

Did you also know that there are now SMART Learning Commons at three locations at the university? Klaeber Court (East Bank), Magrath Library (St. Paul), and Wilson Library (West Bank). A fourth location, in Walter Library, is in the planning stage.

Do you know about all the cool services and equipment that the SMART Learning Commons offers for students at all of their locations? Not only do you have access to great technology, but you can get one-on-one assistance from Peer Learning Consultants in areas like mathematics, sciences, statistics, economics, writing, German, Spanish, and library research (check out the schedule!). There are also introductory workshops in Excel, PowerPoint, and other academic services available!

Posted by Elena Carrillo at 03:55 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Out of Order Signs are now available at the Reserve desk, near the maps.

If you discover that a micrographic scanner or copy machine is not functioning, please immediately tape a sign to it and inform full-time staff.

All students please comment that you have reviewed this post. Thanks!

Posted by Margaret Ostrander at 06:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (13)

I was at a meting last week at which I heard several terms used that were mysterious to me. While I had a general understanding of portals, I needed definitions of portlets, widgets, and APIs.

IBM definition of a Web portal: "Portals provide a secure, single point of interaction with diverse information, business processes, and people, personalized to a user's needs and responsibilities." One way to think about portals is that they provide a consistent and uniform way to interact with applications in the same way that Window managers (like Microsoft Windows) interact with operating systems. A portal is a central place for making all types of information accessible to a defined audience. Portals can be roughly broken down into two major classifications: the enterprise information portal and the content management portal. Most portals combine both functions. myU is a portal--it enables participants to asynchronously get personalized information, interact with friends and colleagues, and create and distribute dynamic Web content. See https://www.myu.umn.edu/metadot/index.pl

Portlets are pluggable user interface components that are managed and displayed in a Web portal. Portlets produce fragments of markup code that are aggregated into a portal page. Portlets, according to the WebSphere Portal site, are "visible active components users see within their portal pages... In the simplest terms, a portlet is a Java servlet that operates inside a portal." Portlet applications include e-mail, weather reports, discussion forums, and news.

A Web widget is a portable chunk of code that can be installed and executed within any separate HTML-based Web page by an end user without requiring additional compilation. They are akin to plugins or extensions in desktop applications. Other terms used to describe a Web Widget include Gadget, Badge, Module, Capsule, Snippet, Mini and Flake. Web Widgets often but not always use Adobe Flash or JavaScript programming languages.

An application programming interface (API) is a source code interface that a computer system provides in order to support requests for services to be made of it by a computer program. API stands for Application Programming Interface. Windows APIs are the function calls that are the fundamental building blocks of Windows programming. Each time Windows is loaded, or whenever Windows programs are run, many API calls are made. API calls manage memory, create and destroy windows, read keyboard and mouse actions, draw graphics, etc.

The term API is used in two related senses:
A coherent interface consisting of several classes or several sets of related functions or procedures.
A single entry point such as a method, function, or procedure.

-- Peggy Johnson, Associate University Librarian

Posted by Margaret Ostrander at 04:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I have a missing nametag to report. It must have been misplaced sometime on monday, so everyone who came in monday please check to make sure you didn't grab the wrong nametag. Thank you.

Posted by Darin Vincent at 08:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Following Margaret's last post, I tried to provide (in a now deleted posting) a detailed list of instructions that someone could follow to do this four-step process. In short, the process has this form:

1) Transfer new film (such as a recent Washington Post) to an old reel.
2) Transfer the new film again to another old reel.
3) Transfer the patron's film to any reel.
4) Transfer the patron's film to the new reel from step 1.

Of course, it is so hard to effectively write instructions. Many like myself have difficulty following them unless they see it done. So, here's a list of people who I know can demonstrate the process for swapping reels between film:

-Margaret
-Charlie (myself)
-Maggie
-Brent

Posted by Charles Heinz at 01:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

We have run out of "good" microfilm reels for respooling.

The bad/old reels (any with holes) do NOT work with any microfilm machine, including the newer scanners. Attempting to use the old reels any any of our equipment will cause problems.

If a patron needs the bad/old reels re-spooled, follow these steps:
1) Take a reel of microfilm from the newspaper room that has a good reel (square/square). (such as recent issues of the Washington Post).
2) Respool this "good" reel in order to free up the "good reel".
3) Respool the "bad" reel the patron has presented to you onto this freed up "bad" reel.

Good reel = square/square
Bad reel = square/hole or hole/hole

MOST OF ALL, DO NOT THROW AWAY REELS, EVEN THE BAD ONES. SET ALL ASIDE NEAR THE RESPOOLING MACHINE.

Note: Please disregard info posted today (which has now been deleted) directing folks to use the "bad" reels on microfilm scanners. While it is technically possible to put the "bad" reels on this equipment, you have to put it on in a way that still causes problems. The main problem is that the film is much more likely to split/break when the reel is put on in that manner. As a result, bad reels must always be respooled.

Posted by Margaret Ostrander at 04:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

As part of our commitment to good customer service, there are behaviors we need to demonstrate so that our users know the Libraries are a welcoming environment. While we are already doing a good job providing these services and interacting with our users, I thought it would be helpful to highlight some of the basic points.

* Make eye contact and smile, or otherwise acknowledge the person when users approach the service desk
* Greet approaching users (i.e. “Hello, how may I help you?”)
* Wear the Library Staff name tag
* Respect users and treat them accordingly
* When assisting users, ask if they found everything. When explaining policies and procedures, provide enough detail so the user fully understands. (e.g. borrowing options, MLAC, ILL)
* If unable to assist the patron, call in a co-worker for assistance or refer to a supervisor
* When giving directions to other locations, supply the users with a campus map or detailed directions (If there is not a print map handy, there are details about campus locations on-line at the U. of Minn. home page http://www1.umn.edu/twincities/index.php). If the service point has more than one person working and if the workload permits, offer to walk the person to other close by locations in the building. It can also be as simple as going with the person to get them started in the right direction (.e.g "Let me show where the Cash to Card machine is located")
* When users appear in need of assistance, offer to help (e.g. Is there something I can help you find?)

Thanks for continuing to build on the IADS commitment to consistently strive to deliver great service.
-- Jerrie Bayer

All students please comment that you have reviewed this post. Thanks!

Posted by Margaret Ostrander at 04:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (12)

Peggy Johnson, AUL of Access Services, is providing weekly "DId you know's" for Libraries staff about new technologies impacting libraries. Here is her latest snippet.

RSS is a format that supports delivering regularly updated Web content (e.g., news feeds, blogs, podcasts) as soon as it is available, without requiring the user to visit a Web site to look for new content. The initials "RSS" are variously used to refer to the following standards: Really Simple Syndication, Rich Site Summary, and/or RDF Site Summary. To set up an RSS "feed," a user subscribes to a feed by using a "feed reader" and supplying links to the desired feed (e.g., news feed, blog, etc.). The feed reader then checks the selected feeds to see if new content is available since the last time it checked. If content is found, the feed reader retrieves it and presents it to the user. A list of feed readers is available at http://dmoz.org/Computers/Software/Internet/Clients/WWW/Feed_Readers/. Many sites have an orange RSS button, which will allow you to set up an RSS feed. See, for example, Lorcan Dempsey's weblog on libraries, services and networks at http://orweblog.oclc.org/; look in the bottom left corner.

For an introduction to an RSS feed, go to the Library of Congress site http://www.loc.gov/aba/. In the lower left corner, you will find an orange button labeled RSS. This will take you to: http://www.loc.gov/rss/. Here you will find various topics from which to select.

--Peggy Johnson, Associate University Librarian

Posted by Margaret Ostrander at 05:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

One incident report was filed from Walter on 3/28, concerning a damaged computer terminal on Level F. The damage appeared to be intentional. There were no witnesses to the event.

Theft on campus is a big problem. Reports have come in from Mondale Hall, Vincent Hall, and Ford Hall of various thefts and break-ins. Facilities staff were called to Vincent Hall and Ford Hall to repair damage from break-ins. Two thefts were reported in the Libraries. On 3/28, UMPD were called about the theft of an IPod and billfold from a study carrel in Wilson. The victim had left her belongings unattended on 3/26 and discovered the theft when she was contacted by her credit card company about suspicious activity on her account. On 3/29, UMPD were called about a theft of a backpack with textbooks on Level F of Walter. The backpack had been left unattended. The victim recovered the backpack but the textbooks were missing. Both thefts occurred at times of the day when there is no security monitor coverage.

In March, security monitors reported 132 incidents in Wilson Library, down form 191 incidents in February. Most incidents involved unauthorized use of log-in computers.

--Matt Bowers, Library Safety/Security Coordinator

Posted by Margaret Ostrander at 12:47 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Congratulations to our Outstanding Library Student Employee Award Winners, Charlie Heinz and Oanh Nguyen. This award is presented to two students each year by the Friends of the Libraries.

Charlie has been a valued part of the University Libraries student work force since October 2004, including his current position at Wilson Library Periodicals & Course Reserve. As noted in his nomination, “Charlie models the most positive and proactive customer service skills.”

Oanh has been working in the Business Library since 2005. Her nomination included this high praise, “Her enthusiasm, dedication, and competence make her a great asset to the University Libraries.”

Please join us in congratulating Charlie on this honor.

Posted by Margaret Ostrander at 12:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)