Mina Rees Library Staff

In order to ensure that all your questions, requests and/or problems related to Aleph, SFX and the proxy server get addressed, from now on please call or email them to the Help Desk (212-541-0981/ 0982 or help.desk@mail.cuny.edu). The request/problem will not only be reviewed by more than one person, it will also be entered into the problem tracking system that keeps it active — and periodically resends it to the staff here — until it is resolved/closed. When communicating with the Help Desk, either by phone or email, please mention the module involved, for example:
aleph - acquisitions or aleph- - privileges or aleph - bib load request. From Pat Young’s email 8/15/07

Roland Samieske will beon vacation from Monday, 8/20/07 through Friday, 8/31/07. Please contact the IT help desk at (212) 541-0981 for technical support as noted above. From Roland’s email 8/16/07

ACRL has posted a number of presentations, papers and handouts from the Baltimore conference to a “virtual conference” site. Since you can’t access the site unless you are registered, I’ve downloaded some of them  for your reading pleasure. They are posted at:

http://library.gc.cuny.edu/ACRL/acrl.asp

ACRL keeps updating what is posted. If anything is added that looks worthwhile, I’ll let everyone know.

If you receive questions from students attempting to sign-up for access refworks off-campus there are two things you should be aware of.

1. If people are looking at where to start with refworks, please direct them to: http://library.gc.cuny.edu/research/refworks.asp, I’ve put up some brief instructions about how to sign up for refworks, and if off-campus users start here they will be forced to use the proxy server to access refworks. This allows refworks to know the user is part of the GC user base, otherwise a user will be forced to supply our campus “Group Code” for refworks before signing up.

2. If someone has already started to sign up for refworks and does get prompted for the our “Group Code” feel free to pass it on to them. The code is located in the passwords database should you need to look it up. See a reference librarian if you can’t locate the database.

The new library copy service – provided by Konica-Minolta – is almost ready to open for business. The card vending machines will be located on the 1^st and 2^nd floors of the library once they are installed. There are 4 copiers on the first floor and 4 on the second floor. Two new Konica-Minolta reader/printers are also located on the second floor, one on each side of the library next to the microfilm and microfiche collections.

Copy cards may be purchased for $1; value can be added after the card purchase. Copies cost $.10/copy.

Continental copiers will temporarily remain available for use by those who have value remaining on Continental Copy cards.

Refunds will be given to Continental Copy card holders:

1. after the old copiers are all removed or are no longer in operational
2. if the card value can be verified by Circulation staff, and
3. only until 5 pm, February 28, 2007.

To request a refund, patrons must complete a Continental Copy refund request form at the Circulation Desk, have it signed by one of the supervisors listed on the form. Cash refunds will be provided at the Bursar’s Office upon presentation of a signed Continental copy refund request form.

No refunds will be distributed after 5 pm February 28, 2007.

This information will be posted to the Library Blog and distributed via email as soon as the installation of the card dispensers has been completed.

Thanks to everyone for their good will and patience during our transtion to the new service.

Mark Zubarev, a student working on his MLS at the Pratt Institute, will be starting an internship here tomorrow (Wednesday) to gain experience in academic library work. He will be here on Wednesdays and Thursdays from 9 to 2 for the next 16 weeks. Mark has a CUNY background, with an M.A. and a B.A. in History from Brooklyn College as well as experience as a high-school teacher and in computer technology. He will be working on several projects in reference and ILL, but he is also eager to gain experience in other areas of the library. if you have any projects that you can use some help with, just drop Scott a note at sjohnston@gc.cuny.edu. 

Three new library adjuncts have been hired to fill in for library faculty who are taking research time this year. Please join me in welcoming Kathleen Collins, Tom Baione, and Louis Antonietti.

Kathleen will begin work on Tuesday, January 9 and will work Tuesday 3 - 8 pm and Friday 10 am - 6 pm. Kathleen has three masters degrees, including a brand-new M.L.S., has interned at City College and is employed as an adjunct instructor at NYU’s Bobst Library.

Louis Antonietti is a retired high school English teach with two masters degrees and is employed as an adjunct at Manhattanville College Library. Beginning Wednesday, January 10, he will be working Wednesday, 2:30 - 8 pm and Thursday, 2 - 8 pm.

Tom Baione has almost 15 years of library experience at institutions such as the Brooklyn Historical Society, The New York Historical Society, NYPL, and at his current full-time position at The American Museum of Natural History. Beginning Tuesday, January 16, Tom will be working Monday and Tuesday, 5 - 8 pm.

They will spend most of their scheduled hours providing reference service, but will also provide assistance to other library service activities.

As of January 1, 2007, the limit for ILL requests will be increased from 10 to 15 items. Students who use ILLiad through the Graduate Center’s Mina Rees Library will be able to have up to 15 items in process at once, including those currently checked out.

Contintenal Copy will cease providing public copier service in the library in January 2007. 8 Konica Minolta copiers are scheduled for delivery during the week of January 8th, 2007. Installation should occur within a week thereafter.

There will be a transition period where (we hope) that Continental and KM equipment will both be available.

I have recently been informed of of one major transition isssue. The copy cards currently provided by Continental will NOT be usable with the new equipment, i.e. they cannot be re-valued in card vend machines and cannot be used to pay for copies in the Konica Minolta copiers. I am working with the business office to determine how we can best accommodate patrons with cards that still have value on them. More details will follow on this once I get confirmation from the business office. It is probable, however, that students will have approximately one month after the new equipment is installed to either use the cards or get a refund (preferably the former)

In anticipation of the changeover, signs will be placed on the current Continental equipment warning patrons not to put excessive value on the cards.

To all Library Staff,

Please join your friends and co-workers for some food, drink and celebration at the Library’s Holiday Party

Time:Wednesday, December 20th from noon - 2 pm.

Location: Room 2313 (Technical Services Office)

Please refer users with questions about using interlibrary loan services to the ILLiad homepage, at http://mina.gc.cuny.edu/ILLiad/logon.html.  ILLiad is our online service that allows users to request journal articles and books items from Non-CUNY libraries.  If the user wants a book from another CUNY library, they should be advised to use the CLICS intra-CUNY book delivery service.