University Library > What's New archive > What's New September 2002

What's New - September 2002

Library Catalog: New Functions

The Library's online catalog was upgraded on August 19th. New functionalities in the public catalog were added (These features require that you login to your "Personal Record" with your UW-W ID number and your last name.):
  • Bookbag - Send selected catalog records to your online "bookbag" and retrieve them whenever you want.
  • Preferences - Select how you want the library's catalog to look when you first login to your "Personal Record," including selecting a default search type.
  • Save Search Query - Save your search and rerun it when you want, or have it rerun automatically and send the results to your e-mail account.
Questions? Contact a reference librarian (phone: 262-472-1032 or e-mail refdesk@uww.edu).

New Online Resources for Research

Black Drama-1850 to Present | Business Dateline | CCH Products Liability & Safety | Early Encounters in North America: Peoples, Cultures, and the Environment | Knovel Scientific and Engineering Online References | North American Women's Letters and Diaries: Colonial to 1950 | Oxford Reference Online: The Core Collection | Scottish Women Poets of the Romantic Period

NOTE: Off-campus access to these databases requires a UW-W login.

Black Drama-1850 to present
Black Drama integrates approximately 1,200 rare and hard-to-find plays written from the 1850s to the present by playwrights from North America, English-speaking Africa, the Caribbean, and other African Diaspora countries. Nearly a quarter of the collection will consist of previously unpublished plays by writers such as Langston Hughes, Ed Bullins, Willis Richardson, Zora Neale Hurston, Femi Euba, Randolph Edmonds, and others.

Business Dateline
Andersen Library previously received this database of full-text articles from regional business publications in the U.S. and Canada in CD-ROM format. Now it is online through the FirstSearch service, and thus accessible both on and off campus.

CCH Products Liability & Safety
(Restricted to 2 UW-W users at a time)
Click on the link to the Research Network on the top of the screen. When the login screen appears, type in the CCH User ID and passsword. This provides access to CCH's treatise The Law of Products Liability.

Early Encounters in North America: Peoples, Cultures, and the Environment
A collection assembled from hundreds of sources, Early Encounters in North America: Peoples, Cultures, and the Environment documents the relationships among peoples and the environment in North America from 1534 to 1850. The collection focuses on personal accounts and provides unique perspectives from all of the protagonists, including traders, slaves, missionaries, explorers, soldiers, native peoples, and officials, both men and women.

Knovel Scientific and Engineering Online References
The Knovel database contains some of the leading engineering reference handbooks, databases, and conference proceedings. A few of the subject areas covered are: chemistry, chemical engineering, environmental engineering, concrete, asphalt, mechanical engineering, semiconductors, electronics, and surface engineering. Some of the standard reference texts included are Perry's Chemical Engineers' Handbook, Lange's Handbook of Chemistry, Marks' Standard Handbook for Mechanical Engineers, Machinery's Handbook, and the CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics. The content of more than 200 books is interactive and cross-searchable. Many titles have hyperlinked indexes.

North American Women's Letters and Diaries: Colonial to 1950
This collection includes one of the most comprehensive bibliographies of women's diaries and letters yet published. It lists over 2,000 published and unpublished items from a variety of sources, including online resources and microform. Drawn from more than 1,000 sources, including journal articles, pamphlets, newsletters, monographs, and conference proceedings, much of the material is in copyright. Represented are different age groups and life stages, different ethnicities, many geographical regions, the famous and the not so famous.

Oxford Reference Online: The Core Collection
Contains about 100 dictionary, language reference, and subject reference works published by Oxford University Press. It is a fully-indexed, cross-searchable database of these books, giving wide access to a comprehensive information resource.

Scottish Women Poets of the Romantic Period
Scottish Women Poets of the Romantic Period (SWRP) contains 60 volumes of Romantic Poetry, extensive contemporary critical reviews, as well as material specially written for this database by leading scholars.

Database Interface Changes

One reality of electronic library resources is that they are always subject to change. Not just which resources are available, but how the databases look and function. The databases from three vendors have a new look this fall:
  • EBSCOhost upgraded the interface to its databases (such as the very popular Academic Search Elite) at the beginning of August 2002. Not only the look is different, but there is an added folder feature.
  • LexisNexis upgraded its Academic, Congressional, and Statistical databases in mid-August. The word "Universe" was dropped from the titles of the databases. The default search in the LexisNexis Academic database is a "Quick News Search." Note that in all three databases, the other two databases are available on the left side of the search screen under the header "Search for Other Information."
  • WilsonWeb is expected to change its interface soon. Until the new interface is "live," it is possible to try it out with the Wilson Business Full Text database: select a WilsonWeb database, such as Education Full Text, click on the "Preview" button on the right side of the database list screen, and then click on the link at the top of the next displayed page.
Questions? Contact a reference librarian (phone: 262-472-1032 or e-mail refdesk@uww.edu).

Library Printing - FREE?

Thanks to the generosity of the Office of the Provost, printing from Library workstations has been free during summer 2002. It is hoped that this fall the Student Technology Fee Advisory Committee will approve continued support for the cost of printing in the Library. In the meantime, printing continues to be free.

Since the Circulation Desk no longer collects payments for printing, the laser printers have been moved out into the public areas: one on the first floor (Periodicals) and one on the second floor (Circulation & Reference) near the copiers.

Staff Changes

  • Carol Elsen joined the Reference & Instruction unit in April 2002. She was previously employed at the Harvard Business School's library.
  • Ronna Hoeper joined the Reference & Instruction unit in June 2002. She was previously employed at the business, engineering, and music libraries on the UW-Madison campus.
  • Carole Downs started as a new half-time LTE assistant to the Library Director on August 12.
  • Jennie Vano joins the Reference & Instruction unit on September 3, 2002. She was previously employed by the University of Texas at Austin.
  • Stephen Katz left the Reference & Instruction unit in April 2002.

Scanner

A scanner has been provided in the Reference alcove (in front of the Reference Desk). There is no charge. Scanned images may be saved to floppy or Zip disks, and/or they may be printed (black & white only).

Library Displays

Now on display in the Library (in display cases near the Circulation Desk): Native American artifacts collected by the Neumeister family. Nora Neumeister works in the Circulation/Reserves unit of Andersen Library.

Coming soon...
Andersen Library will honor the statewide Archives Week 2002 (October 20-26) with a display on this year's theme "Wisconsin in Wartime."

Friends of the Library Activities

The Friends of the Library will sponsor several events during fall 2002:
  • Third Annual Dinner & Program
    November 5, 2002, 5:30-9 p.m.
    Hamilton Center (James R. Connor University Center)
    Mr. Patrick Erin Monaghan discusses his research into Irish history and his novel Because They Never Do. Dinner and business meeting at 5:30 p.m. for Friends, followed by the program 7:30-8:30 p.m. - The program is open to all!
  • Fun Workshop using Microsoft Word: Adding Graphics to a Word Document
    November 15, 2002, 1:30-3:00 p.m.
    Bibliographic Instruction Lab (Andersen Library, L2211)
    Karolyn Alexander-Tscharnack, emeritus trainer, will show how to add photos, borders, clipart and drawing objects to a Word document.
  • Email Essentials
    December 6, 2002, 1:30-3:00 p.m.
    Bibliographic Instruction Lab (Andersen Library, L2211)
    Martha Stephenson, Bibliographic Instruction coordinator, will conduct a hands-on workshop. Topics covered include: sending new messages, forwarding, replying, saving, attaching documents and photographs, and adding friends to your address book. There will be plenty of time for experimentation. Platforms covered include Hotmail, Yahoo! Mail, IDC and Ticon Net. Bring along your questions.

Group Study & Video Viewing Space

Looking for a place for your study group to work? Does your group need to view a videorecording? Andersen Library has first-come, first-served group study rooms on its third floor. A cart with a television and VCR is available for check-out to the group study rooms from the Circulation Desk.

IE, Netscape, & Microsoft Office in the Library

Most Andersen Library workstations now allow users to choose between Internet Explorer and Netscape. In addition, most workstations offer the Microsoft Office suite (Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Access).

Questions? Contact a reference librarian (phone: 262-472-1032 or e-mail refdesk@uww.edu).

Distance Education Students & Document Delivery

Document Delivery is available to Distance Education students who are enrolled in UWW courses but don't come to campus and live beyond a thirty mile radius from Whitewater. Books that are not checked out will be sent to you with no delivery charge, however, students pay for the return postage. Photocopies of articles are also sent out with a charge of ten cents per page. The cost reflects what a person would pay if the copying were done in the library itself. It is also possible for these students to receive such articles electronically at no charge.

To initiate Document Delivery, go to the online Interlibrary Loan (ILL) forms web page and indicate in the "Department" field that you are a Distance Education student. To get the article electronically, be sure to indicate that you want to receive the article electronically and give your full email address in the space provided. ILL forms can be found at the following URL: http://library.uww.edu/forms/

Attention, UW-W faculty & staff:

Scholarship & Creative Achievements To Be Recognized

On November 26, 2002, from 3-4:30 p.m., the 15th annual reception celebrating scholarly and creative achievements by UW-Whitewater faculty and staff will take place in the Crossman Gallery (Greenhill Center of the Arts). This event, co-sponsored by the University Library, Crossman Gallery, and the Office of Research & Sponsored Programs, will recognize accomplishments during the period July 1, 2001-June 30, 2002. Refreshments, a bibliography of achievements, and a display of some of the honored achievements will be available. Please join us!

Faculty and staff interested in submitting scholarly or creative achievements accomplished between July 1, 2001 and June 30, 2002 should contact their department chairs for details. The guidelines also are available on the Library's website. The deadline for department chairs to forward materials to Sharon Knight (Andersen Library L1125D) is October 11.

This year the goal is to use this event to create a comprehensive record of scholarly and creative achievements by UW-Whitewater's faculty and staff.

Questions? Contact Sharon Knight (phone: 262-472-5515 or e-mail knights@uww.edu).

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