F.M. Smith Library Blog

Coffee Bar Opens for Fall Semester

2010-11-03T15:19:00.001-07:00

Free coffee and hot chocolate is available to library patrons between 6:30 p.m. and midnight from Sunday to Thursday, and from 1:30 -4:45 p.m. on Fridays.

We hope you will come and enjoy our beverages while you study!

Summer at the F,M. Smith Library

2010-06-04T07:56:00.000-07:00

We often get asked if we are open during the Summer. The answer is yes! We do, however, have reduced operating hours which are 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday-Friday. We are closed on weekends.

Please come in and enjoy the peaceful and cool environment during the Summer. We are open to all Graceland community members, including campus visitors and local residents. You will find plenty of stimulating reading materials to keep your intellect active!

Get More Out of Google!

2009-04-27T14:01:00.000-07:00

Please join us for a library workshop on how to get the most out of Google.

Most people are familiar with Google’s web search, but many do not go beyond the basic search on Google’s front page. Google has created a large number of tools that can make searching much more powerful and precise. They also have a number of useful non-search programs that can be very useful in the Web environment.

Some of the topics we will be covering are:

Advanced Searching Techniques
Specialized Search Tools
Ways to Focus on Scholarly Information
Useful Reference Resources
Personalized Alert Services
Customizable Start Screen
Portable Documents
Free Web Authoring

This workshop will be held on three separate times to allow as many people as possible to attend.

Tuesday, April 28^th at 3:30 p.m. – Library Basement, PC Lab 1
Wednesday, April 29^th at 4:00 p.m. – Library Basement, PC Lab 1
Thursday, April 30^th at 10:00 a.m. Library Basement, PC Lab 2

Please contact me if you have any questions

Francis Acland
5303
acland@graceland.edu

Late Night Hours Restored at the Library

2009-02-26T09:16:00.000-08:00

As a result of consultations with students and library staff, the Graceland administration decided to restore late night hours. We will close at 1:45 a.m. Sunday -Thursday. On Fridays we will be open from 8:00 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. Saturdays hours are now 1:00 p.m. - 4:45 p.m.

Thanks to all those who have shared their feelings on this topic.

Changes in Library Hours and Services

2009-01-28T14:37:00.001-08:00

You have probably noticed changes in library hours and the suspension of the downstairs coffee/hot chocolate bar. We have been trying to find ways to cut costs, and these two decisions were made as a way to save some money in our budget. In addition we made the decision to reduce our hours because one of our staff members has retired and we are unable to replace her, so shortening hours is a way to handle the reduction in staff hours.

Our new library hours are:

Sunday 1:00 p.m. - 11:30 p.m.
Monday - Thursday 8:00 a.m. - 11:30 p.m.
Friday 8:00 a.m. - 4:45 p.m.
Saturday 1:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.

We are encouraging students and staff to let us know of your reactions to these changes. We are keeping a file of student comments and are open to ideas about alternative ways of handling the current situation.

You can drop any comments in the suggestion box on the information desk in the library, or email them to Diane Shelton, Director of Library Services at shelton@graceland.edu

Free Audio Books!

2009-01-22T07:34:00.000-08:00

For those who like to listen to audio books, LibriVox might be a web site worth visting. This is a site where books in the public domain are recorded by volunteers and made available for anyone to listen to for free.

Public domain books are those which are not protected by copyright law. Most of the books recorded at LibriVox are over 75 years old, and the majority are classic works of literature, philosopy and religion.

If you would like to contribute a recording to the site, you can volunteer your services to be a reader or prooflistner.

Audio files are made in Mp3 and Ogg Vordis formats. They can be played as a live stream on a computer, or downloaded to a computer or a portable player.

Search for Magazine Articles in Google Books

2008-12-24T09:23:00.000-08:00

Google Book Search now allows users to search for articles from selected magazines, in addition to books. Articles from the most current issues are not available, but Google provides access to back issues going back many decades.

If you search Google Book Search from the main page, the magazine results will be incorporated in with all the book results. If you want to search only for magazine articles, you should use the Advanced Search feature , and check "Magazines" in the Content field.

Some examples of magazine titles available are:

Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists
Jet
New York Magazine
Popular Mechanics
Popular Science

LIFE photo archive hosted by Google

2008-12-06T08:25:00.000-08:00

Life may have just gotten better for those looking for historical images. Google has created a database of over 10 million photographs from the archives of LIFE magazine. LIFE (no longer published) was for decades the premier photojournalim publication, and many of its pictures have achieved iconic status. Most of the photgraphs in the Google archive were never published in the magazine - so they are now available to the public for the first time.

Visit the archive at http://images.google.com/hosted/life

Network Issues Resolved!

2008-12-04T20:17:00.000-08:00

I'm glad to report that it appears that our recent network issues have been resolved. You should now be able to log in to the databases normally - which means no login is required if you are on the Graceland campus, and if you are off campus, you can either use your ID# as username and last name as password, or use your regular Graceland network login (the one you use when accessing your Graceland email).

The New Library Blog!

2008-11-22T08:50:00.000-08:00

Welcome to the new F.M. Smith Library Blog! We have started this to give library news and information about library services and to provide research tips.

We are still suffering from the effects of the Graceland network problems. The most important changes you will notice are:

You will need to log on to many of our databases. When prompted for a username and password, use you regular Graceland network login (the one you use for accessing your Graceland email). If you don't know what that login is, you can use your Graceland ID number as your username, and your last name as your password.
In EBSCOhost databases, currently the "request this item through interlibrary loan" link is not working. To work around this problem, choose the email option and have the email sent to grabskelibrary@gmail.com. This will rout the request to Twila at the Independence campus who is handling EBSCOhost requests at present.