Access to today's New York Times

We do have access to the full content of the New York Times, back to 1857 when it began.

It does take a few steps to be able to view the content of just today's paper with our subscription, but it can be done. What we do not have is a graphical version that allows the user to turn the pages. The NYT does have a public site, but it has limited full content viewing (after 10 articles you will not see the complete content), and for today's paper, it does not let you electronically turn pages either, as some electronic journals or magazines do.

Steps to see the content for today's NYT:

• from the library home page, type new york times in the Google Custom Search box on the top right
• click on the 4th result in the list
• then click on the blue title, New York Times
• change the Date Range from all dates to today's month, day, and year
• click Search
• change the Sort Results By from Relevance to Publication Date (most recent first)

Now you will see a list of all of the content from today's paper, listed in section order, beginning with A1.

If someone wants to compare that with the public NYT site that includes photos and graphics, they can open two tabs, one with the search above, and the other with the public site.

Library power outages and losing documents

Just a reminder that students (and all patrons) should be encouraged to save their documents often and in the ways recommended below. Even a brief power outage can results in lost documents. Recommendations and warnings from IT are listed below.

Safest ways to save:

• Flash drive/memory stick
• Google Docs (does auto-save frequently)
• CD
• Email it to yourself

Unsafe:

• Saving to desktop only (can be lost in an outage)
• Documents folder only

Theater Arts 61A "Ancient & Medieval Drama" assignment

Here are a few Cruzcat subject headings for an assignment for Theater Arts 61A "Ancient & Medieval Drama". They have to find a medieval play (500-1500) and then a modern production of it. It would probably be helpful for them to have some context for the medieval version.

• Drama, Medieval
• Theater--History--Medieval, 500-1500
• Theater--England--History--Medieval, 500-1500
• English drama--to 1500 (there is one subheading for "modernized versions"
• Christian drama, Latin (Medieval and Modern)
• Theater and society--England--to 1500

Reference material:

A companion to the medieval theatre
McH Ref PN2152.C66 1989

McHenry Roving Information Student schedule: FALL 2012

McHenry Library Roving Information Student schedule through Friday, December 7th
(also posted behind the Circ Desk and included online in the Library Ref Desk calendar):

Monday:
5-7pm Alejandra
7-9pm Brandon

Tuesday:
6-8pm Pati
8-10pm Brandon

Wednesday:
4-6pm Alejandra
7-9pm Brandon

Thursday:
6-7pm Pati
7-8pm Alejandra

Friday:
4-5pm Pati & Alejandra
5-6pm Pati
6-8pm Brandon

Sunday:
3-5pm Brandon

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Thanks,
Laura

Netflix "watch instantly" issue using Firefox on Macs

From Fish Phipps, IT:

For those who may not be aware, 'watch instantly' on Netflix does not work well in Firefox on the iMacs. This is an issue that can generate a lot of patron complaints so here's the 411:

Short version: If Netflix doesn't work on the Macs you have two options: Reboot and/or use Safari.

Long version: Netflix uses MS Silverlight for it's DRM and it seems that when parental controls are enabled on the macs (we use parental controls to control patron access to applications) that Silverlight and Firefox do not play well together. What usually happens is that when we are creating a new master image for all the machines we make sure that all the plugins are working but there are almost always issues with Firefox and Silverlight that, sooner or later, requires a reboot. Add the fact that after some random number of days/weeks later watching Netflix becomes totally broken in Firefox. This is due to changes made by either Netflix or MS on the server end as nothing has been changed on the machines. I am running some updates on a master image right now for the media center and it looks like I can't get Netflix to work at all in the latest version of Ffirefox. Point people to Safari if they wish to watch Netflix.

"Recently Returned" status in Cruzcat

Here are the definitions of "Recently Returned" status in the Cruzcat catalog:

McHenry Reserves: 45 minutes
S&E Reserves: 15 minutes
S&E laptops: 15 minutes
everything else: 24 hours

Quick guide to finding film reviews

This post is not an exhaustive guide, but provides a couple of tips and quick strategies to get you out of a jam with a question.

Search tips:  

• A "contemporary" film review is one that was published around the film's release date.
• If you don't know a film's release date, Wikipedia is quick and handy for this task.
• Always put the title of your film in quotes to keep the words together.
• If the film title was also a book, add the word "film" or your keyword search.

Here are two quick strategies using the film "American Graffiti" (released: August 1973) as an example:

Academic Search Complete:

• in the top search box type: "american graffiti"
• in the 2nd search box type: review
• leave it on "Select a field" for largest search
• limit the published date from "1973" to "1974"
• results: 13 
• click on UC-eLinks if no PDF or full text link is present (click here for how-to guide)

Cruzcat, for reviews in print:

• do a title search for "Film Review" (McH Stacks PN1993.F624)
• we have volumes for 1944-1992, so this is good for older films
• look up the title of the film in the index
• patron can photocopy or scan pages

For more film review sources, go to the Film & Digital Media Research Guide, and click on the articles tab, and use the search tips above.

How to use the photocopiers

• Copiers are on the south end of the 2nd floor of McHenry, inside half-wall area
• Color copying is available on 3rd and 4th floor machines for 25 cents per page
• Students pay 8 cents per page for black and white
• Guests pay 15 per page for black and white
• Everyone pays 25 cents per page for color

Student photocopying:

1. Students charging their account pay 8 cents per page for black and white (and 25 cents per page for color, only on 3rd and 4th floors)
2. Touch the screen on the copier (no need to use the kiosk)
3. Username = their CruzID (first part of email address)
4. Password = last 4 digits of their University ID (in the middle between the dashes)
5. Hit OK
6. Click on "charging student account"
7. Hit the "Copy" button to the left of the touchscreen
8. Now patron has access to the control panel
9. When finished, press the "Other Function" button on the left of the touchscreen, then "logout on the touchscreen
10. Important: if student does not logout, someone else can make copies charged to them

Faculty and staff photocopying (or see guest also):

1. Same steps as above but a FOAPAL must be entered to charge
2. Otherwise, use the Guests pass kiosk

Guests/visitors/community/any student not wishing to charge their account (though it will cost students 7 cents more per page this way):

1. Guests pay 15 cents per page for black and white (and 25 cents per page for color, only on 3rd and 4th floors)
2. Follow the instructions on the kiosk to obtain a passcode; only accepts bills, no coins, no charge cards
3. Once code is obtained, touch the copier screen
4. Hit the "Copy" button to the left of the touchscreen
5. Now patron has access to the control panel
6. When finished, press the "Other functions" button on the left of the touchscreen, then "logout on the touchscreen
7. Important: if patron does not logout, someone else can make copies charged to their code

Theater Arts: Finding play production reviews

An assignment this quarter for a Theater Arts class dealt with searching for production reviews and for a modern production of an ancient play (for example, "Medea"). Here are some strategies for dealing with this question (and more comments are welcome!):

• The best thing to show them is the Theater Arts Research Guide (home page > research guides > arts > theater arts)
• On that guide direct them to the International Index to the Performing Arts database. It's right on the front of the guide.
• Once in that database, they can try searching for the name of the play and "production review" and perhaps a geographic location if there were many places the play was produced. This should give them some full-text results they can look through.
• The other thing they may ask for is "Theatre World." Look that up as a title in Cruzcat, choose the first record in the results, and you see that the current volume is in Ref and the previous volumes are upstairs on 4th in the PNs. They'll determine which volume could help them by the year of the production of their play. 
• There are other resources they can try on the Theater Arts Research Guide as well.

Refilling paper in public copiers

The paper is refilled in all of the public copiers (2nd, 3rd, and 4th floors) by our IT staff and students, not the Campus Copier Program. Report copier service problems to the Campus Copier Program by calling 459-5799.

Laptops and iPads update

McHenry laptops are now stored are now stored in the same way as the S&E laptops: each bag contains a laptop and charger of the same number, and can be found in the green cabinet behind the Circ Desk.  The new bags only zip across the top.  We will no longer recharge laptops, but they do come with a charger (that has its own barcode and is checked out also).   iPads are also in the same green cabinet, and will be charged (you'll see a powerstrip next to them inside the cabinet).

Tally of Education/Math/HAVC/classrooms directions 9/28-10/9

We have been asked to keep a tally of directions we give to Education, Mathematics, HAVC, and related classrooms from Friday, September 28th through Tuesday, October 9th to assess the effectiveness of new signage. I have placed the tally sheet on a clipboard that will be stowed under the desk on the right-hand side. I will give the stat sheet to Sarah after the 9th. Let me know if you have any questions.

Thanks,
Laura

IT Help Desk schedule 9/27-10/8

The interim IT Help Desk schedule (while they are hiring) is posted at the desk in the same spot as the Ref Desk printed schedule. You'll find the schedules in an organizer on top of the righthand file cabinet (as well as the library phone list, campus phone book, last printed general catalog, etc.).

The coverage until October 8th at McHenry is as follows:

Monday 12pm-4pm, 7pm-midnight
Tuesday 3pm-midnight
Wednesday 12pm-midnight
Thursday 3pm-10pm
Friday 4pm-8pm

So the times we are on the desk and they are not are:

Monday 4-5pm
Tuesday 1-3pm
Thursday 1-3pm
Friday 1-4pm

Call 9-2486 for questions during those times. Sometimes the S&E student can help too.

No bikes in the library

Please do not let people bring their bikes into the library, even though it may be for a brief period of time.

The campus-wide bicycle parking policy is here: 

http://taps.ucsc.edu/bicycleparking.html

It says that people need to park their bikes in bike racks and nowhere else.

Writing tutoring for students

Learning Support Services in the ARCenter building offers writing tutoring for UCSC students (not the general public):

http://www2.ucsc.edu/lss/tutorial_services.shtml

New link for ProQuest Digital Library for Alumni and Friends

New link for ProQuest Alumni and Friends Digital Library:

http://search.proquest.com/barcode?accountid=32964&groupid=75657

More information:
http://library.ucsc.edu/giving/proquest-digital-library

2012-2013 General Catalog

The UCSC General Catalog is no longer printed. We have the 2010-2012 (through Spring 2012) at the desk, and previous catalogs in the Ref Desk stacks to the right of the desk as you face it (call# LD781.S5 U56a). You can access the current catalog here:

http://registrar.ucsc.edu/catalog/

It has linked PDFs for each department.

Calculators on Reserve

Scientific calculators are on Reserve at both libraries and have a 4-hour checkout time.
At McHenry, they are located in a little box at the beginning of the Reserves shelves, and the barcode is on the back.

-Laura

campus fax service

In addition to the Copy Center's ongoing service (listed on their site under "Fliers, Forms, and Other Copy Jobs"), the Baytree Bookstore now offers its own facsimile service at the following rates (as of 6th March 2012):

To domestic numbers
$2 for the first page
$1 per additional page

To numbers outside the US
$3 for the first page
$2 per additional page
50¢ per minute transmittal time

(updated LM 11/30/12)

Santa Cruz newspaper indexing

While McHenry holds indices for various area newspapers from 1856-1956—and the Santa Cruz Public Library additionally has a 1957-8 volume—there are obviously many gaps in indexing not covered by bound volumes, the Sentinel's Web site, or SCPL's Newspaper Clipping File.

None other than Stan Stevens suggests contacting the Genealogical Society of Santa Cruz County (publishers of the existing indices) for those years not obviously indexed, as they continue their work of indexing local newspapers.