Changes to Campus Research & LexisNexis

Posted on April 23, 2007 by kyle

If you have used Campus Research or LexisNexis before, you may be in for a surprise when you use it in the future. Westlaw has tweaked the search interface for Campus Research with subtle changes. They have added a Basic Search and an Advanced Search, common among other library databases. Additionally, you can search up to ten different legal categories at once, such as American Law Reports and Supreme Court Cases. The left navigational bar still contains shortcuts to popular features like the legal guides and famous documents.

While Westlaw took the subtle route, LexisNexis has completely redesigned the LexisNexis Academic search interface. It is currently in the beta stage of development, slated for full release in July. The new release will include more content and more search capabilities. The current version requires that you switch from different “Search Forms” to find different information. The beta version streamlines the process, allowing you to search national and world news at the same time, among other things. You can try out the beta version by going to LexisNexis Academic and clicking on the Try the Beta release now… banner at the top.

Campus Research from Westlaw

LexisNexis Academic from LexisNexis

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We’ve Still Got Books For Sale

Posted on April 20, 2007 by kyle

Thought you missed the book sale? Well, technically, you did. But there’s still plenty of books out in the lobby for the picking. Prices have been slashed and you can even fill up a bag and take it all for $5. Now that’s a deal.

COME SUPPORT YOUR LIBRARY!

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Tech books online

Posted on April 19, 2007 by kyle

Safari logo

The Library is pleased to announce its newest addition to the growing collection of online resources, Safari Books Online! Through Safari, you can browse and read approximately one hundred titles of core information technology books “cover-to-cover” from respected publishers such as O’Reilly, Microsoft Press & Adobe Press.

Don’t think that only programmers and IT professionals will find these useful. Have to put together a web page for class? Try HTML, XHTML, & CSS, Sixth Edition: Visual QuickStart Guide. Crazy about putting photos on Flickr? Get the most out of it with Flickr Hacks. Can’t stop looking at the Great Wall of China on Google Maps? See what else you can do Google Maps Hacks. To see all the titles you can access, click on Library on the top navigation bar to browse or use the search box and select My Bookshelf.

Thanks to the Information Technology & Business Education department for helping to get this great product!

Safari Books Online

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Day of Silence – not just in the library

Posted on April 18, 2007 by kyle

Some of you may noticed that campus is quieter today than most, not just in the library. As part of Pride Week, IMPACT, the campus LGBTA student union, is taking part in the National Day of Silence, an event “to echo the silence the L[esbian] G[ay] B[isexual] T[ransgender] and ally students face each day.” The event started back in 1996 at the University of Virginia and has grown into an international event, with support of the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network (GLSEN).

Want more information? Harris Interactive, in conjunction with GSLEN, conducted a survey in 2005 about the issue of school bullying with regards to sexual orientation and gender identity. The full report is available on GLSEN’s website.

Furthermore, the Library has plenty of materials about the LGBT community in general – you can search in the catalog or just browse the shelves. The majority of the items will begin with the call number HQ12-449, which pertains to the sexual life.

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New Stuff Tuesday – April 17

Posted on April 17, 2007 by kyle

Just like music being released on Tuesday, this weekly column will highlight some of the Library’s latest acquisitions on, you guessed it, Tuesday.

Now, for the first New Book Tuesday:

who can say it, who shouldn't and why

The N Word: Who Can Say It,
Who Shouldn’t, and Why
Jabari Asim
E185 .A85 2007
New Book Island, 2nd floor

Jabari Asim, deputy editor of the Washington Post Book World, takes the reader on a journey through four hundred years of history of the n word, from its origins in an essay by Thomas Jefferson to its current usage by hip hop artists. Asim states in his introduction that the subject of the book is “how whites from all levels of society worked to keep us there — through a combination of custom, law, myth, and racial insult.” With chapters such as “N*ggerology” (Parts 1 & 2), “To Slur with Love” and “N*gger versus N*gga,” the author illustrates how the epithet continues to “keeps blacks at the bottom of America’s socioeconomic ladder.”

So who can say it and who shouldn’t? You’ll have to read the book to find out.

how revolutionary was the digital revolution?

How Revolutionary Was the Digital Revolution?
Edited by John Zysman & Abraham Newman
HC79 .I55 H686 2006
New Book Island, 2nd floor

This volume, edited by professors from UC-Berkeley and Georgetown University, examines the new era, one in which borders no longer translate into barriers. The book focuses on technological change and its effects on governments, corporations, markets, and individuals from around the world. Topics include offshoring, copyright in the digital context, and mobile technology as a new case for the analysis of market evolution. Anyone curious as to how much (or little) technology has transformed our world will find this work intriguing, as it covers a lot of ground.

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Library Book Sale!

Posted on April 16, 2007 by kyle

10th Annual Friends of the Library Book Sale
April 16-19, 2007

In conjunction with National Library Week, the Friends of the Library will be holding the 10th Annual Book Sale from Monday, April 16 until Thursday, April 19. Proceeds of the sale go to benefit Library purchases of materials.

guy carrying stack of books

Book Sale Schedule

April 16, 6-8 PM

Pre-sale for University students, faculty/staff and Friends

April 17-18, 8 AM – 8 PM

Sale

April 19 – 8 AM – 4 PM

Everything’s HALF PRICE!

Book Sale Prices

Books – $3
Mass Market Books – $1
Magazines – 25¢
All other items as marked

COME SUPPORT YOUR LIBRARY!

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Google’s Book Project Keeps On Scanning

Posted on April 13, 2007 by kyle

Avid users of Google may have noticed the “Book Search” links that appear in the search results. Those links stem from the Google Book Project, the top search engine’s project to digitize the world’s printed material for all to access electronically. Logically, the company approached libraries to offer their collections for digitization. Leading universities in the US and abroad has signed up to participate in the project, such as Harvard, Princeton and Oxford University in the UK, as well as closer to home at UW-Madison.

Some may ask how could the mass digitization of books could benefit libraries? An article from the Detroit News details the University of Michigan Libraries, another participant, and their current progress. According to associate university librarian John Price Wilkin, the library can put more time and resources into preserving materials in delicate condition. If left by themselves, scanning the entire collection would take 1,400 years at 5,000 items a year. Google would make relatively quick work of the library, only taking about five to seven years for the entire collection.

Continue reading →

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Popular Movies at the Library!

Posted on April 12, 2007 by kyle

movie collage with Curious George, Brokeback Mountain, A Beautiful Mind and Ray

Did you know that you can borrow movies like Curious George, Brokeback Mountain, A Beautiful Mind and Ray from the Library? We have received a number of popular titles on DVD, from Oscar nominees to foreign films and much more, all available for checkout for two weeks. We’re getting new titles everyday, so check often!

You can find these movies two ways:

  • Browse the New Book Island on the second floor and the Center Media Collection on the first floor in the call number sections PN 1997 and PN 1997.2.
  • Search in the catalog for “feature films” AND DVD – and use the ‘Videorecording’ quick limit.
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Hurricane Katrina: A Nation Still Unprepared

Posted on April 11, 2007 by Kate

A Nation Still Unprepared

You’ve heard about the havoc Hurricane Katrina wreaked on the coasts of Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. Now you can read all about the effects the storm had on the residents of these affected areas and the government’s response to the human tragedy that hit the U.S. coast in the summer of 2005.

The Senate Committee of Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs has compiled a 700-page bound document entitled Hurricane Katrina: A Nation Still Unprepared, filled with colored photos of the devastated areas, detailed descriptions of what happened before, during, and after the hurricane hit, and the chaos and confusion created by government failure to meet the people’s needs. As a result, this document cites the fraud and wasteful spending which followed the devastation, errors and mistakes that should not have been made, and provides recommendations from their findings on how to prevent the chaos from happening during any other emergency situation as well as key points to help better prepare the nation for future disasters that will avoid the confusion, wasted time and funds, and better meet the needs of the people affected.

Government Printing Office logo

The University Library is a federal depository with many federal, state, local, and international documents on a variety of current and relevant issues available to you in print, microfiche, CD-ROM, and electronically. Come check out your government at the University Library!

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The Early Bird Gets the Worm…

Posted on April 10, 2007 by kyle

Did you attend the Taylor Branch lecture and want to read his Pulitzer Prize winning work? If you search for the books in our catalog, you may be disappointed because someone beat you to it.

Fortunately for you, the Library has the perfect solution: Universal Borrowing (UB). In situations like these, you can request the available titles from the other UW campus libraries and get the book in a few days.

If you’re unfamiliar with UB, here’s what you do:

  • Click on ‘Universal Borrowing’ under the Find Books, Videos, Documents heading on the Library’s home page.
  • Make sure ‘All UB Libraries’ is selected and click Connect.
  • Enter the title in the search box and click on Title Keyword and then Search.
  • Your screen should show a list of the UW campus libraries and the search results. Click on the link to ‘Show’ result list.
  • Find a copy of the book that you’d like to request and click on the title. Make sure the status says Not Checked Out.
  • At top of the record, where you see the details of the book, click on the ‘Request’ button.
  • Log into your account with your UW-W ID number and your last name (all lowercase).
  • Click OK on the next screen, re-enter your UW-W ID number and click on Submit. Your request will then be processed. You’ll receive an e-mail to your campus address when the book is ready to be picked up at the Library.
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