Library News and Tips

Now that the May 2012 term is starting, many of you are probably wondering where to find your textbooks and course reading materials.  Usually, you can find these listed under Course Information in your online course in ANGEL.

The first place to check for your textbooks is the college bookstore at www.esc.edu/bookstore.  They have information on how to find your books, how to order online and their contact information listed there. If you have any questions or need help ordering your books, contact the bookstore.

If you just want a list of your textbooks to see if you can find them on your own, please check with the bookstore or look in your online course for this information.  The only ones who know what textbooks you need are the bookstore and your instructor. 

You are welcome to check the library e-book catalog to see if we have any of your textbooks in our online library but it is rare that we have textbooks available.  You can search the e-book catalog by clicking on Books on the library homepage at www.esc.edu/library.    If you do a search and your book is not listed, unfortunately, the online library does not have that book.

You may also have readings located in your course.  Often the instructor will list how to access the reading or might include a link to the reading.

When all else fails or you still are not sure what to do,  it is always best to check with your instructor.

Have you ever found a book or journal article that you need for your assignment but we don’t have it in the Empire State College library?  You have some options to try.

Locate Articles Elsewhere:

If you come across an article citation in a journal, newspaper or magazine that is not available in full-text within the Empire State College library collection, you still have a few options available to try to obtain it:

1. See if Google Scholar has a copy available online at: www.esc.edu/googlescholar (note:  GoogleScholar often charges for articles).
2. Determine if a nearby local library has the journal on its shelves that you can read or photocopy (see steps for locating a journal at a library near you via WorldCat at: http://www.esc.edu/worldcat).
3. If you are able to locate the journal that has the article you want at a SUNY or CUNY library near you, you may take your ESC photo ID to a librarian there and ask for assistance obtaining it via our Open Access Policy (for more information, visit: www.esc.edu/openaccess).
4. If available, use your local public or other library’s interlibrary loan service to have them obtain the article for you (this usually takes at least a week and often longer and is not available in some libraries – contact that library for details).
5. Use a commercial document delivery service [http://www.esc.edu/docdelivery] and pay for access

Find Books Elsewhere:

To obtain a book that is not available within our online collection, you still have a few options:

1. Go to Google’s Books page to see if they offer a copy online (note: often only previews of books are available and there is also often a fee for use)
2. Determine if a nearby library has the title on its shelves that you can borrow or read (see steps for locating a book at a library near you via WorldCat at: http://www.esc.edu/worldcat)
3. If you are able to locate the book you want at a SUNY or CUNY library near you, you may take your ESC photo ID to a librarian there and ask for assistance obtaining it via our Open Access Policy (for more information, visit: www.esc.edu/openaccess)
4. If available, use your local public or other library’s interlibrary loan service to have them obtain the book for you (this usually takes at least a week and often longer)

Find Books and Articles Elsewhere if you are Faculty, Staff or a Graduate Student with more than half time status:

To obtain an item that is not available within our online collection you still have a few options:

1. Determine if a nearby library has the title on its shelves that you can borrow or read (see steps for locating a book via WorldCat listed on this page: http://www.esc.edu/worldcat).
2. If you are able to locate the item you want at a SUNY or CUNY library near you, you may take your ESC photo ID to a librarian there and ask for assistance obtaining it via our Open Access Policy (for more information, visit: www.esc.edu/openaccess).
3. If you are a current graduate student in good standing, a staff member or a faculty member with a 50% or greater appointment, you are eligible to use our interlibrary loan service through the University at Buffalo libraries.  To register and request items, visit: http://www.esc.edu/library/services/interlibrary-loan/

This weekend, RefWorks has scheduled a Maintenance Window that will affect all RefWorks services for a few hours.

The Maintenance Window is schedule to start at:
12:00 AM EST, Sunday, May 6th

The work should take about 5 hours, ending at:
05:00 AM EST, Sunday, May 6th

While this work takes place, RefWorks services including RefMobile, RefAware, and Write-N-Cite will be unavailable.

We apologize for any inconvenience.

You may come across assignments where you need to find literary criticism of a certain written work or author or information on a particular author. Here are some steps on the best way to find this information in the online library.

1. Go to the library homepage at www.esc.edu/library and click on Resources by Subject.

2.  When you get to the Subject Guides List, scroll down and select Language & Literature.

3. When you get to the Language & Literature Subject Guide, select the first article database listed, Literature Resources from Gale.

4.  Once you get into Literature Resources from Gale, you will see the Basic Search area.  You can select to search for an author by clicking next to “Person – By or About.”  You can type the author’s name there and click Search.  If you are searching for a particular written work, click on “Name of Work” and do your search.

Below the search area you will see options to limit your search such as, limit to peer-reviewed publications, the ability to limit by date and you can even limit the type of content you search for.

5.  When you click search, you will get a list of search results.  Literature Resources from Gale organizes your search results nicely by providing tabs for each type of content.  The first tab is for literary criticism.  The next tab is for biographical information, and so on.

You can also limit your search results on this page if you choose to.  You can simply check the box to limit to peer-reviewed publications.

Since many students are working on annotated bibliographies as assignments, I wanted to share some resources that will help you with that.

The library has a link on our Citing Your Sources page to our Annotated Bibliographies guide.  You can get there from the library homepage at http://www.esc.edu/library/ by clicking on Cite Your Sources.  When you get to that page, click on Annotated Bibliography Guide.  This is a guide created by a librarian to help students with annotated bibliographies.  This guide includes information about what an annotated bibliography is as well as links to sources that can help you with how to create one, the formatting for one, your citation style and we also have a how to video available.

In addition to the sources on our guide, here are some other resources that might help you with your annotated bibliography assignments:

Skidmore College: How to Write an Annotated Bibliography

UNC College of Arts & Sciences: Writing Center – Annotated Bibliographies

University of Central Florida Libraries: Annotated Bibliographies

Announcement: Tonight’s workshop has been cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances.

Mon, 4/9 Citing Your Sources [instructor: Sara Hull]  If you were registered for this workshop, we apologize for any inconvenience. 

The Empire State College library will be closing today, Friday April 6, 2012, at 2:30pm EST.  We will re-open for normal business hours on Sunday, April 8 from 1-9pm.

In the meantime, if you need to ask a librarian a question, please submit a form, send us an email or leave a voicemail message and a librarian will get back to you on Sunday, April 8.

• online question form
• 800-847-3000, ext. 2222
• librarian@esc.edu

Due to a college-wide conference, Ask a Librarian Services will have limited availability on Thursday, March 29, 2012.    Chat Reference will not be available between 9am and 5pm and between 6:30pm-8pm.

If you need to reach a librarian, it is best to call and leave a message, email directly or fill out the online form. Our normal response time may be a bit delayed but you should hear back from a librarian shortly.

Contact a librarian:

• online question form
• 800-847-3000, ext. 2222
• librarian@esc.edu

We apologize for any inconvenience.

The Empire State College library currently has four professional librarians.  What does that mean when you say professional librarian?

A librarian is someone who:

• has successfully completed high school, Undergraduate and Graduate School.  Their Graduate Program needs to be a library science or information science program from an ALA accredited institution.
• may have more than 1 master’s degree.  Many librarians specialize in certain subject areas based on their Undergraduate background or their Graduate education in other fields.
• is qualified to work in many places like colleges, law firms, hospitals, prisons, corporations, legislatures, the military, and nonprofit agencies as well as libraries.
• needs to keep up-to-date on information and technological resources available to better serve patrons in helping them find the information they need.
• is a lifelong learner who continues learning and seeking out education to keep up with the constant changes in information systems, resources and technology they use and provide.
• has the following skills (as listed on the ALA website: LibraryCareers.org):
• Desire to meet and serve the library’s user community
• Ability to think analytically and to develop new or revised systems, procedures, and work flow
• Ability to exercise initiative and independent judgment
• Knowledge of computers, the internet, and commercially available library software
• Knowledge of a foreign language for communities with non-English speaking populations
• Ability to prepare comprehensive reports and present ideas clearly and concisely in written and oral form
• Ability to make administrative decisions, interpret policies, and supervise staff
• Ability to motivate, establish and maintain effective working relationships with associates, supervisors, volunteers, other community agencies and the public
• Knowledge of the philosophy and techniques of library service
• Ability to organize job duties and work independently
• Demonstrated knowledge of library materials and resources
• Creativity to develop and implement library programs and services
• Ability to communicate both orally and in writing
• Positive attitude toward library users with special needs
• Accuracy and skill in typing

Curious to know if you should become a librarian?  Try this quiz from About.com Career Planning: http://careerplanning.about.com/library/quiz/career_quizzes/bllibrarian_quiz.htm

Sources: 

Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2010-11 Edition, Librarians, on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos068.htm (Accessed March 23, 2012).

“How to Become a Librarian”, Career Suite @ suite 101, July 28, 2009.  http://sapna-nayyar-pellicane.suite101.com/how-to-become-a-librarian-a94337 (Accessed March 23, 2012)

“What Librarians Need to Know”, American Library Association, November 21, 2006. http://www.ala.org/educationcareers/careers/librarycareerssite/whatyouneedlibrarian (Accessed March 23, 2012)