Talking in the Library

How do you like to find stuff?

A few summers ago, I was on a task force investigating different forms of integrated library systems. That's the thing we use to organize stuff and make them available to you. Essentially, the library catalog, the only part that probably matters to non-library folks. The Chronicle published an article called After Losing Users in Catalogs, Libraries Find Better Search Software which talks about trends in the library catalog software.

My question to you is, how do you like to find stuff?

Citing Lexiles in APA style--help answer our stumper

I learned a new word yesterday: Lexiles.  Lexiles, I've learned, involve assessing a student's reading level and assigning it a numeric value and assessing a book's reading level and assigning it a value.  Then, like Garanimals*, teachers can match the student to a book.

I had to learn about Lexiles on the fast-track yesterday because I was answering a question about them over IM. The question was how to include a book's Lexile in the APA citation.  That stumped me, it stumped my APA style guide, it stumped our Education librarian, Marcia Stockham.  It's what we in the library biz call, yes, a stumper. 

Marcia wondered if perhaps it wasn't in the citation that the Lexile needed to be provided, but in an annotation to the citation.  But we're not sure.  If you know the answer to this, could you please share with one and all via our comments below?  Many thanks and good things showered down upon you.

A follow-up question wasn't a stumper, but I wasn't able to learn the answer before the person asking the question signed-off: how to find a book's Lexile.  Marcia directed me to the database: Children's Literature Comprehensive Database.  You can search by a variety of reading metrics, including Lexile, or search for a book and, in many cases, find its Lexile number.  You can also do this search from the Lexile web site. 

*Second thing I learned, how to spell Garanimals!  Grranimals is wrong.  I blame this prior ignorance on the fact that my parents did not love me enough to clothe me in Garanimals and instead forced me to match my own clothes.  It was a hard-knock life.

Mutton chops are more than sideburns

An inquiring mind recently wrote a question on the white board in Hale 123.

Do lamb chops really come from lambs or do they say lamb chops instead of sheep chops because it sounds better?  French Revolution

Here's my quick answer:

Lamb chops are from lambs.  Sheep chops are actually called mutton chops.  Check out the Boston Cooking-School Cook Book for more information on these cuts of meat.  (We have a number of editions of this book as part of our cookery collection, too.)

Fun fact about the words we use to describe our meat: in English, we tend to use words derived from Anglo-Saxon to describe an animal: cow, pig, sheep; but we use words derived from French to describe them as food: beef, pork, mutton.  We can thank the Norman Conquest for this added flair to our language.

With the number of animal science and food science people on this campus, perhaps someone more intimately involved in this field can provide more information in the comments.

You Asked, We Answer: Slamming Door in Hale's Great Room

We received the following comment via our Contact Us link on our web site:

I am a student who consistently, throughout the year, studies in the great room and this is why I feel an issue needs to be addressed. Towards the end of the semester students feel that if I study hard now I can pull up my grade and see the Great Room as the place to do it. Don't get me wrong I agree that they need to study, however, they don't realize the sound that they cause when the door slams shut behind the. This is the reason that I'm writing, I feel that there needs to be something done with the closer on the door. If the person entering the room does not catch it behind them it consistently disturbs the rest of the room when it lets out its loud bang. If you do want to see for yourself walk into the great room and let both doors, mainly the East door, close and you will see what I'm talking about. In addition, if you want to see how nice it would be when it gets fixed walk into the Great Room from the Juvenile Literature area and let that one close behind you, it doesn't really make a sound.

Here's what we did . . .

Comment/Suggestion Box: Assigned Students Only?

A recent question from our Comments Box:

Q:
"This doesn't seem fair! What is the deal with the private study area on the fourth floor that has the 'I Have a Dream Mural'? We can see the pop machines and sofas in there. Who gets to study in there?"

A:
There are actually two separate areas surrounding the "I Have A Dream" (Mural) room. On one side is the Academic Learning Center, which is a part of the Lockett-up Foundation learning space. During the day and evenings, the student-athletes enrolled with the center are given one-on-one or group tutoring, and/or study space as needed in this area. They use the "Mural" room as needed when they have large numbers and those are the students that you see studying in the center area. The other side is the staff lounge for library staff. This is where you see the soft seating and the vending machines. This room is available only to library staff for breaks and lunches and staff meetings. It is not accessible from the other side, so the only students you might see in that area are library student employees. Library staff also use the "Mural" room for meetings and gatherings requiring a larger space.

Thanks for the question! Keep the suggestions and questions coming! We love to help!

You Asked - We Respond - Restrooms

Recently, we had two comments submitted, both regarding the restrooms at Hale Library. The questions and our responses:

Q: Please put shelves for books/coats in the restrooms. That would be very helpful.

A: We are looking into this. There are several issues, but we're trying to work them out to provide at least some space for things.  We'll continue to explore options, and hopefully you'll see something before fall.

Q: I frequently use the library on Sunday evenings and the women's restroom on the 2nd floor always seems to be out of toilet paper.

A: We've passed this comment on to the custodial staff.  The library has hired additional custodial staff for help during the extended hours of the library, and they are trying to keep things well supplied.  This is a heavily used set of restrooms, and Sundays are one of our busiest days, so we do try to focus on this area.  Let us know if the situation doesn't improve.

Thanks for the comments - and keep them coming!

You Ask - We Respond!

Another edition of "You Ask, We Respond!" brought to you by The Comments Box.

We received the following comment from an undergraduate who uses the library weekly:

A Newspaper Recycle Bin inside would be great. Maybe people wouldn't be so lazy!   

Our response:

We recycle newspapers and have 21 pickup points in the library.  The only major area where we don't have a bin is the 24 hour study area, so I'm guessing that's the area you mean.  If not, please let us know where you think an additional recycle point might be beneficial.   The 24-hour study area has not been a place where the need for this has been expressed before.  We can certainly try a pilot project there and see if it warrants the time necessary to keep up with the pickups.

Have a comment or suggestion of your own? Drop it in The Comments Box located at The Reception Desk!   

Hale Library Help Desk - Moved!?

The Hale Library Help Desk has recently moved - come in and see!

In response, the following comment was received in our Comments Box (located at the Reception Desk):

"The new Library Help Desk location is bad. It needed to be off by itself so students could focus on getting help or asking questions. The new location is in the middle of a busy area, it is no longer an oasis of calm. The desks do not match the decor. The staff who sit at these desks must hate being in the middle like that. Put the desk back!!"

Comments left by our patrons are very important to us and we appreciate all the ones we receive, especially when we are able to respond. The Head of General Information Services, Laurel Littrell, provided the following response to the above comment:

"Thank you very much for the comment made about the library help desk. We appreciate that you care about these things and give some thought to our library environment! That is helpful and important to us.

The reason we moved the Help Desk is primarily because that 'oasis of calm' was bypassed by many patrons who didn't know we were there! We have traded off the quietness of that corner for greater visibility. As we pondered this decision, we visited a number of newly or re-designed libraries in the area to study their entry way layouts, and all the libraries except one had a help desk directly in front of the main entrance, not off to the side as ours was. The one library that didn't have this layout expressed similar difficulties that we were facing and is considering a similar change.

This move is an experiment, and one step in what we hope is a greater re-design project for the library entry way. We are also a work in progress, and have ideas to spiff up the area with some additional decorations to improve the appearance.

As we live with this for a while and make other changes, please continue to offer feedback! If you are interested, we would love to talk with you more about your ideas about the library and suggestions for changes. We definitely want your input to keep coming!"

Remember everyone, we love to have your feedback so keep those comments coming!

Comfortable Chairs in 304

You comment, we answer:

Comment: (from an undergraduate who visits the library daily)
the great reading room on the third floor could really use some couches or comfortable chairs in addition to the tables

Answer:
We appreciate the suggestion.  The Great Room is the only area currently designated for complete quiet study.  The atmosphere we have tried to create is a place separate from the noise and congestion of the public spaces on the other floors.  While we acknowledge that study can occur in soft seating as well as the traditional tables and chairs, our experience is that lounging is more often how that seating is utilized.  In order to maintain the study atmosphere, we've decided not to include softer seating in this area at this time.  We re-evaluate the use of all the spaces in the building and, if it seems appropriate in the future, we may change the seating and arrangements in the Great/Reading Room.
--Roberta Johnson

BTW: Roberta answered this comment weeks ago, it was my delay in posting it.

Does Ask Dave know a question when he sees it?

Apparently not.  We recently received a comment regarding an Ask Dave column in our Short Cuts newsletter:

"I just had a quick comment about the ask dave portion on the library
short cuts flyer. The "question" reads, "I'm a senior and have totally
never been to the library." In all reality, that is not a question that
is a statement. I understand where you are going with the answer, but
maybe you should word it as, "I'm a senior and have totally never been
to the library is it too late for me?"
Just a thought. :D"

You're right.  That was obviously a statement and not a question.  For penance, Ask Dave (who I'll refer to Ninja Ask Dave) has been relegated to a local high school where he must teach teens to sing.  Our current Ask Dave (who I'll refer to as Pirate Ask Dave--because it makes sense to me) has a much better handle on the niceties of the English language and I'm sure he'll learn from Ninja Ask Dave's transgression.

Thanks!