Noise in the library

It's a very busy time of year right now, that means lots of people in the library, which can lead to more noise, and that in turn can make it hard for people to concentrate.

Please realize that the construction of this library is such that sound really echoes and carries a lot more than you might think it would. We do also ask now that you take cell phone conversations into the towers and other places away from other people.

Thank you for being so considerate of your fellow students!

Pictured here is the "Shushing Librarian" action figure, don't make us get her after you ;-)

Only two more weeks of classes?!

Hard to believe, but there are only two weeks of classes left in this semester! Remember, we have very extensive library hours, for example we're open Sunday thru Thursday until 1:45am.

There is a librarian and student assistant on duty at our reference desk on the main floor (to your right as you come in) most hours we are open. Please, you're not bothering us, we love to have people come up and ask us questions!

You can also call the reference desk at 395-2760, IM us at drakeref, or request a research consultation (there's a link on the main library web page over on the right.)

Good luck these next few weeks and please do let us know how we can help you.

More on the "Kindle" ebook

A rather tart review from the Times of London online; drop it in the bath?!

Another try at an ebook reader

One of our librarians mentioned today that Amazon.com is taking a stab at the ebook, with a new style reader and model of purchase and features (for example, you can receive the newspaper on it!)

This is the Amazon link to it, and many reviews are available online already, like this one at BrightHand.

The end of paper books? Not yet in this blogger's view. There are still many issues, from cost of the reader, to it's longevity as a platform, and the important issue of having an ebook format limited to a certain manufacturer - what if you want to have ebooks from other sources? An interesting try though!

Thanksgiving Holiday Hours

The library will close Wednesday 11/21 at 4:45pm, and reopen Sunday 11/25 at 12:30pm. Our building hours are also online. Please remember that our webpage, the catalog, article databases etc. are all open 24/7 year round!

Videos? Audio items, CDs etc?

Looking for videos on group counseling? Audio CDs for relaxation training? Other, "non-book" things? Go to our library catalog, Books & Media on our web page, click on Main Catalog, then Advanced Search. Put in your search words at the top, and then at the bottom of the page, where there is a drop down box for Collections, change that to Video, or Audio, whatever it is you are looking for.

Historical documents? Pictures?

Try the Library of Congress web site, a wonderful Internet resource for historic pictures, text and more. There are online exhibitions, and of course the famous American Memory site.

Pictured here? A charge of Ottoman cavalry in 1915, from a photo album of the American Colony In Jerusalem. The "Colony" was a Christian religious charitable commune, ca1880-1940.

Soil Surveys - more government info moves online

One of the government resources still used in print here is now becoming available online at: http://soils.usda.gov/survey/online_surveys/. Not all counties are available online - as they are redone the new surveys are posted.

We still have the print copies for many soil surveys in our government documents collection - for example do a "keyword" search in the catalog for monroe soil survey, or whatever the county name is.

College colors, coat of arms

Interesting display now in the library lobby of some proposed designs for a coat of arms for our college. We have our school colors of green and gold, but Brockport has never had an actual shield or coat of arms. (The school colors by the way were selected back in the WWI era, green for the grass and gold for the dandelions on the school's lawn!)

If you're curious about coats of arms, what the colors and different symbols mean, there is actually an American College of Heraldry, or you could visit the College of Arms of the United Kingdom to learn more, maybe even devise your own personal coat of arms!

Pictured here is my Lennon family coat of arms ;-)

Birds of North America now online!!!

Ornithology student? Environmentalist? Birder? Anyone interested in birds will appreciate knowing that we know have online access to Birds of North America, the famous information site from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Pictures, text, songs, its all there!


Just click on the link here, or go to B in the A-W list in our Articles/Databases page.