Good news! Summer hours have been extended and are now on a consistent schedule.

June 28 - August 19, 2010:

What's the solution for frustrated students when there's increased demand and a limited number of copies of class reserves?

• The library has implemented a new strategy to encourage borrowers to return the coveted materials sooner. Reserve items that are restricted to building use only by the instructor now have a $5 per hour late fee, but the loan period was increased to 3 hours to make sure that adequate time is provided with the resources when needed. The change has worked extremely well, except when an impending due date complicates things for procrastinators.

• If you are teaching this summer and have an extra copy of a textbook, please put it on library reserve. Or, ask your department chair or dean if they can buy a copy of the textbook that can be placed on reserve. Students appreciate having a reserve copy to use in order to keep up with assignments because financial aid checks are delayed at the beginning of the fiscal year.

• New items to be placed on reserve for summer quarter, as well as updated forms for items to remain on reserve, can be sent to the library after June 1. However, we cannot store reserves over the summer (or any quarter) for classes not currently being taught.

Whether you're sunning on some tropical shore or in your own backyard, as long as you're connected to the Internet, you can take advantage of the new titles added to Gale Virtual Reference Library.

The GVRL database is an amazing e-book collection of over 125 subject encyclopedias covering a broad spectrum: arts, business, education, environment, history, law, medicine, multicultural studies, religion, science, and social sciences. All are full-text and easily searchable.

Some of the new titles:

• Encyclopedia of Alternative Medicine
• Encyclopedia of the Life Course and Human Development
• Encyclopedia of Play in Today's Society

Getting to GVRL is easy. At the library website, select Online Resources/Databases in the top orange bar, then select Gale Virtual Reference Library.

Want to see a list of all the titles? Once in GVRL, select Show All for the complete listing.

What's the difference between quiet and silent? It's all about laptops.

Responding to student requests, Cannell Library has added a Silent Study Room (Room 217) where laptops are off limits. This room is serenely free of the klickety-klak of keyboards that disturb concentrated studying.

In photo at left, students with laptops may use the Quiet Study Room (Room 218).

The next time you visit the library, take a closer look at the unique sculpture, Branik's Tree, at the end of the Reference Desk on the first floor.

Installed in 1990 by artist, Norie Sato, notice how it soars up to the skylight ... Look more closely to find "hidden" words.

Reference Librarians will be at Cannell Library and the Information Commons @ CTC, Mondays-Thursdays. Summer library hours may be shorter, but the Clark Libraries' 24/7 Chat with a Librarian is available ... 24/7!

Students can access 24/7Chat from the library’s website by following the Ask a Librarian link in the top orange-colored navigation bar.

When students log in to 24/7 Chat they can get research assistance from an academic librarian participating in the nationwide consortium. If the student supplies an email address, Clark Librarians have an opportunity to review the chat transcript and send a follow-up message, if needed.

When students use the e-mail reference service, Clark Librarians respond as soon as possible during the library’s open hours.

Our weekly, 30-minute 30 Clicks: Information Tools at Your Fingertips sessions are over for Spring quarter. We had a lot of informative fun, sharing tips on topics such as Inspiration, Mind42, streaming video, and blogs. And let us not forget the free chocolate!

If you missed any sessions, here is a link to the handouts.

Check back for a great Fall quarter lineup exploring new technologies and information tools. Everyone is welcome! (Clark faculty, students and staff)

Can't make it to Blockbuster or wait for that Netflix DVD to show up in the mail? Cannell Library's got the next best thing ... and it's free!

Our growing collection of DVDs has moved from behind the Checkout Desk and out next to the Library Instruction Lab (Room 103). Now everyone can browse through the collection instead of using the online catalog to find something to watch.

• Up to 3 DVDs may be checked out for 6 days, no renewals.
• You'll also find our CD collection (music and spoken word) to the left of the DVDs. Up to 3 CDs may be checked out for 21 days.

If you'd like to see what's included in the new DVD circulating collection:

1. At the library catalog, select DVDs 1st Floor from the Location dropdown menu.

2. Type an asterisk ,*, in the Keyword search box, then click Submit. This will pull up a list of all the DVDs you can browse through and check out for 6 days.

Our newst additions to the browsable DVD collection were selected from the American Film Institute's list of the 100 Greatest American Movies. We now have over 50 of the 100 ... Here's a chronological sampling:

King Kong - 1933

DVD PN1997 .K564 2006

Citizen Kane - 1941

DVD PN1997 .C549 2001

All About Eve - 1950

DVD PN1997 .A443 2002

Lawrence of Arabia - 1962

DVD PN1997 .L39 2008

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest - 1975

DVD PN1997 .O54 1997

Do the Right Thing - 1989

DVD PN1997 .D6 2009

Edited and photos by Roxanne Dimyan