tclibrary news blog

Love in the Library

2012-02-01T12:31:00.002-06:00

TC Library's February book display is all about love. Being the original people that we are, we thought that love would be a good theme to go with this month. And actually, since we don't have a bunch of books on love, the theme is more like marriage, couples, getting what you want out of a marriage, and that sort of thing. The assumption is there is love involved. However, not to discriminate

MLK Day Hours

2012-01-16T10:50:00.001-06:00

In honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., TC Library will be closing at 5:00pm on Monday, January 16th.

In Memoriam

2012-01-05T14:39:00.003-06:00

After a brief but courageous battle with the bird flu, W. T. (Wiggle Tail) l'Orange, the Twin Cities Library mascot, passed away during the winter holidays. W. T. graced us with his presence for almost three years. He held court next to the reference desk and was always ready to lend a helping fin when the library was busy. W. T. l'Orange was a great proponent of Lasallifin education and worked

Select EBSCO Databases Down

2012-01-04T10:16:00.004-06:00

5:00pm update: EBSCO suite is back up. Hooray! Several of our EBSCO databases are currently down. We will provide updates as they become available, and we apologize for the inconvenience! Databases affected are:Academic Search Premier Alt Health Watch Business Source Premier Consumer Health Complete EBSCO MegaFile ERIC Health Source: Nursing Academic MasterFILE Premier Professional

New Year, New Databases

2012-01-02T14:28:00.000-06:00

TC Library welcomes 2012 with two new databases: the Annual Review of Psychology and Market Share Reporter. We think this is a great New Year's resolution--bringing more resources to our students! Read about and access our new databases below. Annual Review of Psychology This database "critically reviews the most significant primary research literature to guide you to the principal contributions

Top Tens of 2011: Top Ten Fish Mascot Pictures

2011-12-14T15:28:00.000-06:00

2011 Top Tens: Top Ten Fish Mascot Pictures You might think this Fish Photography post is a little tongue in cheek, but little did you know how busy the library's beta fish has been in 2011. From updating our website to wearing a pink backpack, this little guy did his fair share of work! Our mascot is named W. T. l'Orange, by the way. Stands for Wiggle Tail. He's French. There was a slight

Top Tens of 2011: What People are Reading

2011-12-13T13:53:00.002-06:00

2011 Top Tens: Top Ten Books Read Saint Mary’s students, faculty, and librarians are an erudite bunch. Just look at the exciting titles most checked out from our collection over the past year! Learning in adulthood / Sharan B. Merriam The flock / Joan Frances Casey Introduction to rubrics: An assessment tool to save grading time, convey effective feedback, and promote student learning / Dannelle

Top Tens of 2011: Searching for Us

2011-12-13T13:53:00.000-06:00

2011 Top Tens: Searching for TC Library’s Website from the Internet No surprises here! Although apparently our qualitative/quantitative page is a favorite of people around the nation. We got these search terms from our Google Analytics account. saint mary's university of Minnesota smumn blackboard smumn smumn library smumn.edu st marys university mn st. mary's university of minnesota qualitative

Top Tens of 2011: Top Ten Busiest Days of 2011

2011-12-12T15:54:00.000-06:00

Top Tens of 2011: Top Ten Busiest Days of 2011 Did you know that every time someone walks through the doors of TC Library we make note of that? Well, we do as long as our heads aren't buried helping people at the computers or answering a question over chat or email. So while our methods are perhaps a little inaccurate depending on how much multitasking we're doing on the desk, we do try to keep

New Year's Facelift: GVRL

2011-12-09T12:49:00.003-06:00

Visit the new Gale Virtual Reference Library HERE. Gale Virtual Reference Library (GVRL) has a new interface. In early December, Gale "announced a totally redesigned user interface for Gale Virtual Reference Library (GVRL), its online ebook platform. After extensive user analysis and market feedback, the interface has been overhauled with improved navigation and organization, and a vibrant and

Holidazzling New Books

2011-12-07T10:34:00.003-06:00

In addition to being merry and caroling amongst the stacks, the librarians have purchased another round of patron-requested books. Check 'em out as you sip a glass of nog this holiday season. Intellectual character: what it is, why it matters, and how to get it / Ron Ritchhart; foreword by David Perkins. Outliers: the story of success / Malcolm Gladwell. Teaching reading to English language

Thanksgiving Hours

2011-11-17T19:54:00.000-06:00

TC Library will be closed over the Thanksgiving Holiday weekend. Our hours are: Wednesday, November 23: 9am-12:00pm (open for three hours) Thursday, Nov. 24-Sunday, Nov. 27: CLOSED Monday, November 28: Regular hours resume ,+*^^*+___+++_ ,*^^^^ ) _+* ^**+_ +^ _ _++*+

November's New Books

2011-11-09T14:33:00.000-06:00

TC Library's current library display is all about new books! Come by and check them out or, if you see one or seven in the list below that you'd like to get your hands on, message or email us and we will mail them to your home. If the item is checked out, sign into your account and place a hold on it. Just in time for a long Thanksgiving read-a-thon whilst the rest of the world watches football.

EBSCO Criminal Justice Database

2011-11-01T15:23:00.001-05:00

Attention law abiding citizens! We have a new database! Starting today, you can use EBSCO Criminal Justice Abstracts with Full Text. This new database contains over 200 full text trade magazines and journals. Topics covered include criminology, corrections, investigations, forensic science, substance abuse, and probation/parole. Twin Cities Librarians decided to review ProQuest and EBSCO's

Closed Friday, November 4th

2011-10-20T15:32:00.001-05:00

TC Library will be closed ALL DAY on Friday, November 4th. We've got an exciting bookshelf installation going on that day, which means a huge mess of books, particle board, and power drills in the library. For your safety, we ask that you use the student lounge or computer labs upstairs in LaSalle Hall for computer use. You never know with librarians and power drills. Please email

Wednesday, October 19th: Closed 9am-1pm

2011-10-17T11:06:00.001-05:00

The library will be closed 9:00 am - 1:00 pm on Wednesday, October 19th for a staff meeting. We apologize for the inconvenience!

New Books: Early October

2011-10-06T11:35:00.003-05:00

What better way to spend the cold, fall days than inside reading a new book? Alas, Mother Nature is treating us to SUPER HOT AWESOME SUMMER WEATHER, so perhaps you can read some of our new books whilst reclining on a grassy knoll in the sun. Marriage, a History: From Obedience to Intimacy, or How Love Conquered Marriage / 2005. By Stephanie Coontz Cover Letter Magic, 4th Ed: Trade Secrets of

Find It button down

2011-10-03T11:12:00.001-05:00

Tuesday, 10/4. ALL FIXED! Terminator Arnold fixed Find It. The Find It button in our databases will not be working Monday afternoon, October 3rd. We will update you when the linking system is back online. I assume SkyNet has something to do with this.

Off Campus Database Access Down

2011-09-22T16:32:00.003-05:00

ALL FIXED @ 4:40pm. As of 4:00pm on Thursday, off campus library users are not able to access any of our subscription databases. You will receive this error message: Unable to locate address for databasename.com, please try again later. Librarians are aware of the problem and will update you as we learn more. Thanks for your patience. If you need to do research ASAP, please come to the Library

New Books = Fun

2011-09-15T16:53:00.001-05:00

To our erudite readers: TC Library purchases new books all the time, but we rarely alert the SMU community to our new purchases. Alas, we will change that right now! You may recall we have recently changed how we go about making purchases--read about this change here. It is called "Patron Driven Acquisitions." Below are a few of our latest acquisitions. Click the link to find out what they're

Labor Day Hours

2011-09-01T09:33:00.000-05:00

It's that time of year again: The bittersweet end of summer/beginning of fall. TC Library will be outside dabbling its toes in a lake; thus the Library will be closed on Monday (have to dry out the books). Hours are below. Saturday, September 3rd: CLOSED Monday, September 5th: CLOSED Tuesday, September 6th: Regular semester hours resume.

New ProQuest Database Interface

2011-08-29T00:00:00.056-05:00

ProQuest gets an upgrade. Click here to access a ProQuest database. In August ProQuest databases revealed their new user interface. Improvement highlights include a cleaner look, more intuitive searching and search results pages, easier ways to limit to relevant search results, and an overall feel similar to another set of beloved databases--EBSCO. New features of ProQuest include: personal user

Hold Request Button on Hold

2011-08-25T13:19:00.001-05:00

August 30th Update: WORKS AGAIN! Just looks a bit different. Try it out. You are currently unable to place holds on books in our library catalog. When you try, you'll get this error: There was a problem with your Hold Request. Unable to create title level request. No available items associated with record. Who even knows what that means. Don't panic. Instead, email tclibrary@smumn.edu or call

Friday, Aug. 19 Hours

2011-08-17T13:04:00.001-05:00

Hello Library Users, TC Library is open 9am-11:30am and 3pm-5pm on Friday, August 19th. We're closed from 11:30am-3pm due to the annual SMU Staff Picnic. We'll be open from 8am-3pm Saturday, August 20th. Last day of the semester!

Find It button & Gale Databases

2011-08-12T15:07:00.004-05:00

9/2/11 Update: Problem fixed! SOMETIMES THIS HAPPENS. Sometimes it doesn't. But you should be aware: Our suite of Gale databases is inaccessible when entered via the Find it button in another database or through Google Scholar. You get an error message that says the database is down. THIS IS NOT THE CASE! FIX: Enter the Gale database from our Databases A-Z page. Do an article title search

ILL Textbook Policy Change

2011-08-05T15:03:00.001-05:00

As of Fall Semester 2011, the Twin Cities Campus Library is implementing a change to our interlibrary loan textbook-ordering policy. The policy is below. You can also read it here. Though we understand that textbook prices are high, Twin Cities Campus Library will not order any edition of a book that is required in a course syllabus (in other words, textbook) through Interlibrary

Free Books

2011-08-04T12:44:00.000-05:00

Free books for Saint Mary's University students and staff! What makes an August day even better? Lugging a pile of free books home in the hot, humid weather! Not only are individual book pages great at absorbing the perspiration you will no doubt shed as you carry the books home, but you can also read them once you've set them out to dry. So come on down to TC Library! We have a whole big

EBSCO's Find It Button Unavailable

2011-07-12T16:00:00.006-05:00

The Find It button and many java script functions in the search results of all EBSCO databases are currently unavailable when using Google Chrome AND Mozilla Firefox. Regarding Firefox, this issue may be limited to using the newest versions of Firefox available. Issues noticed with EBSCO databases when used in Google Chrome and Firefox: On the search page, the "Choose Databases" link

4th of July Weekend Hours

2011-07-01T12:27:00.001-05:00

TC Library will be closed Saturday, July 02 - Monday, July 04 in honor of Independence Day. Regular library hours will resume Tuesday, July 5th. Have a safe and happy long weekend! And don't worry, Will Smith's got your back. Not sure what Jeff Goldblum's got. He'll probably bring some chips to your 4th of July BBQ. Yeah.

Thursday, June 9th: CLOSED 9am - 1pm

2011-06-07T14:36:00.000-05:00

The library will be closed 9:00 am - 1:00 pm on Thursday, June 9th for a staff meeting. We apologize for the inconvenience!

Mobile Website Survey

2011-05-26T09:46:00.002-05:00

This happens to me All. The. Time. I wake up at 2am thinking "what are TC Library’s hours on Thursday?" If only I was able to check their hours on my smartphone and go back to bed…but I cannot so I spend hours lying awake pondering the hours of operation. My cat hates it. For this reason alone, TC Library is developing a mobile website. OK, actually, mobile computing puts learning into the hands

Memorial Day Hours

2011-05-25T09:11:00.001-05:00

Happy Memorial Day SMU Community. In honor of Memorial Day, TC Library will be closed Monday, May 30th. Normal hours resume Tuesday. Have a safe and happy long weekend--the unofficial start to summer!

Counseling & Therapy in Video still on semester break

2011-05-09T14:59:00.002-05:00

5/10/11: All better now. 5/09/11: The streaming video database Counseling & Therapy in Video is currently not letting us access videos. While you can access the front page of the database, you are unable to perform searches or watch streaming video. We will update you as soon as this issue has been resolved. This database is likely skipping school and planting veggies in its garden, since Mother

SMU Authors

2011-04-18T12:21:00.005-05:00

Hey SMU Community, Did you know you're surrounded by published authors? Even better, did you know that you can find a lot of those published resources right here in TC Library? Click here to find books and videos authored by your fellow students and faculty.If you or someone you know (who is connected with the SMU community) has authored a book or video, let a TC Librarian know! We would love to

Closed over Semester Break

2011-04-14T09:56:00.014-05:00

Twin Cities Library closed Friday, April 22 - Sunday, May 8TC Library will be closed to students over Easter Weekend and the two week semester break. Ask a Librarian, our instant chat service, will NOT be available during semester break. Many services will still be available, however. You can still access and order thousands of articles, books, and videos online. Students waiting for items

Gale Databases Down

2011-02-04T15:06:00.008-06:00

Wednesday, March 02: Databases working again. February 28: Databases down in most Internet browsers. Access a weird text-based version of them using Google Chrome. Talk to a librarian to get Chrome installed on your computer. Just like Jay Sean or even Kenny Powers, our suite of Gale databases is down today. We are aware of the problem but unless it fixes itself, we probably won't be able to

Interlibrary Loan Unavailable-Sat., Jan. 29

2011-01-31T10:03:00.005-06:00

Interlibrary Loan is unavailable Saturday, January, 29 due to a migration to a new catalog. Interlibrary loan book and article requests may be submitted on Sunday, January 30 and thereafter. All items requested on Friday and Sunday will be received.

Thursday, January 27th: CLOSED 9:00 am-1:00 pm

2011-01-25T14:13:00.002-06:00

The library will be closed 9:00 am - 1:00 pm on Thursday, January 27th for a staff meeting. We apologize for the inconvenience!

MLK Day Hours

2011-01-13T09:39:00.002-06:00

In honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., TC Library will be closing at 5:00pm on Monday, January 17th. Enjoy the holiday!

Psychology Databases via EBSCO

2011-01-05T10:48:00.005-06:00

PsycARTICLES and PsycINFO are now searchable via EBSCO. EBSCO is known for its user-friendly search features, ease of gaining access to full text, and the ability to set up personal research accounts and save articles, searches, and more. PsycARTICLES and PsycINFO are know for their depth and breadth of resources for psychology. Could database searching for our Couns/Psyc, MFT, and PsyD students

Chat Service Not Working - UPDATE

2010-12-17T09:34:00.005-06:00

TC Library's Ask a Librarian chat service is currently out of order. If you have a question, please call us at (612) 728-5108 or email tc-library@smumn.edu. We apologize for the inconvenience! UDPATE: Chat service is now working. Thanks for your patience!

Hours: Friday, Dec. 10th

2010-12-06T09:15:00.006-06:00

Hi Library Community, Due to the Annual Holiday Luncheon for TC Campus faculty and staff, the library will be open only from 9:00am - 11:30am this coming Friday, December 10th. We are then closed all afternoon and will reopen Saturday, December 11th, from 8am-3pm.Really interested in reading about our upcoming Holiday Hours? Click here.

Holiday Break Hours

2010-12-03T12:25:00.010-06:00

Season's Greetings everyone! The librarians are planning on building an epic snowbeast* in the library near the end of December, probably about 28' in length. Because this is a large undertaking, TC Library will close for a week.** Our holiday break hours are listed below and on our hours page. Monday, Dec. 20 - Wednesday, Dec. 22 *change* Thursday, Dec. 23: 9am-12pmFriday, Dec. 24 - Sunday, Jan

Thanksgiving Holiday Hours

2010-11-23T15:53:00.004-06:00

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! The Librarians will be eating a fair amount of turkey, tofurkey, and beef jerky over the coming days, so TC Library will be closed.Wednesday, November 24: open 9am-noon.Thursday, November 25 - Sunday, November 28: CLOSEDNormal hours resume Monday, November 29 See our hours here.

Website Unavailable 11/26

2010-11-23T15:50:00.003-06:00

Hi Library Lovers, TC Library's Website will be inaccessible for a few hours this coming Friday. Read why below. Original from: Mike Montgomery The Information Technology Department is planning for a network outage on Friday, November 26th, 7am - 9am. This outage will affect network connectivity to the following services. Users residing off-campus (not physically present at the

TC Library Chat is Down

2010-11-12T10:31:00.000-06:00

Twin Cities Library's chat is temporarily down. We expect service to be restored later today.

Thursday, November 4th: Closing at 7:00pm

2010-11-04T14:58:00.001-05:00

TC Library will be closing at 7:00pm tonight (Thursday). We will resume our regular hours on Friday (9:00am - 5:00pm). We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience!

ERIC via EBSCO

2010-10-25T14:29:00.005-05:00

Education students rejoice! The beloved database vendor EBSCO has created a search platform for ERIC. Many of you have shied away from ERIC due to its not-super-intuitive search function. While brilliant, it was hard to use, I admit. But shy away no more! You can search in ERIC, using ERIC-specific search features, all while wrapped up in the happy and warm EBSCO interface. Try ERIC via EBSCO

Singing about VHS Tapes

2010-10-22T09:58:00.007-05:00

TC Library's bringing VHS back. Them other DVDs don't know how to act.I think it's special that VHS is back. So turn around and I'll plug in our new VHS/DVD combo station so you can watch this interesting VHS tape on Adlerian Therapy. That's right SMU community! We've got an in-house VCR now!!!! We've got your headphones too, so you can ROCK OUT and bring your own VHS back.

Free Books

2010-10-22T09:55:00.001-05:00

Once again the TC Librarians have weeded our collection. We have some good quality, older editions of texts that need new homes. Stop by the Library and help yourself--they go fast!!

Databases on Vacation

2010-10-11T09:26:00.017-05:00

Oct. 13: MOST UP-TO-DATE UPDATE! No need to worry anymore. Database problems fixed. Lesson learned: Always check our blog for the most up-to-date information! Oct. 12: You can access EBSCO databases through the ELECTRONIC LIBRARY FOR MINNESOTA databases page. Note that some of these databases may require your public library barcode for access. Also note--there will NOT be a Saint Mary's

Art on Park Opening, 10/7

2010-10-01T15:23:00.000-05:00