Faculty/Staff Library Newsletter

In this issue:

Library Renovation Updates  

 Big news -- the 1st Floor Stacks are open!

Here you will find new study carrels, USB ports along the walls, and fresh carpeting and lighting throughout. Plus you once again have full access to all of the 1st floor stacks books (B-H open stacks and Oversized)!

New Shades
New to both the 1st and 2nd floor stacks are window shades. If you have ever studied here in the morning sun, you will be very glad of these!

 Quiet Study for Finals    

The reopening of the 1st floor stacks means additional study seating as students head into finals. The stacks study carrels are especially good for private quiet study, but we hope you will consider ALL areas of the library as quiet study areas coming into crunch time. The large reference room can continue be used for small group collaboration and tutoring, but even here please try to keep noise down so that others can do their work. With more doors open into the stacks, noise can travel even further than before.

What to Expect Next Semester 

The next phase of library construction will begin over Christmas break. When you return in January you will find:

• The new staircase off the library lobby will be open! This will provide a much better connection between the main level and the new lower-level library spaces.
• The large reference room will be completely closed for renovation. Reference books will be relocated to the new reference room on the lower level.
• More of the “request-only collections” will be available for use again, including print journals, local history, and storage books (now called Special Collections). These items have returned from off-site storage and can again be requested at the main desk starting in late January.
• The Earhart collection remains unavailable for spring, although some items are on display in the lower level.

Stockings for Veterans  

This year’s Stockings for Veterans drive has been another successful one and is just about to wrap up! Friday December 3rd is the deadline if you have any stockings left to fill and return or if you have any loose donations you wish to contribute. Filled stockings should be turned in at the main desk in Buhl Library, and loose items can be donated at the drop boxes in STU, SHAL, and STEM.

The final numbers are not yet in, but over 150 stockings have been requested by individuals and groups, and many more will be filled based on the loose donations. From Buhl Library and GCC Mortarboard, thank you for your help supporting the region’s homeless veterans!

New Fiction and Poetry Titles

Check out these new literature titles, just in time for some holiday pleasure reading!

2022 Publications are already here!

What year is it, anyway? It’s easy to be confused when you can already find books published in 2022 on the library shelves!

Printing books with a publication or copyright date of next year in them is often a marketing tactic by publishers to keep a title looking fresh and new longer, increasing its shelf life. Publishers have been doing this for quite a while, but libraries are noticing that “next year’s books” have been turning up earlier and earlier in the calendar year. Buhl Library already has over a dozen 2022 books in the collection, and the earliest one arrived back in April! So go ahead and get started on next year's reading now--2021 is practically a thing of the past.

Christmas Reading

Enjoy these Christmas-themed books and eBooks, including some old holiday favorites!

If you’re looking for something to read over break, don’t forget about eBooks! Buhl Library’s digital collection gives you access to over 300,000 licensed titles, and we can also point you to some free sources. Whether you like classic literature or academic monographs, get ready to read on your favorite device!

Finding eBooks
For our licensed eBooks, search by author or title in Discovery or browse through our various eBook pages (try the A-Z list of eBook products or browse packages by subject area). Our licensed packages primarily consist of academic and research materials, but some fiction can be found in EBSCO eBooks.

For other eBooks, check out our list of free sites. At these sites you may find fiction, older non-fiction, and some current open access academic works. I especially like Project Gutenberg for its large collection of classic literature titles that are out of copyright. Here you can read The Scarlet Letter, Pride and Prejudice, A Christmas Carol, or my favorite. Lorna Doone.

Using eBooks
Most eBooks can be easily read online. For our licensed titles, you will need to be on the Global Network VPN in order for the site to recognize you as an authorized user.

Some providers allow downloads of chapters or entire works for offline reading. You may find download files in the form of PDFs, EPUB, or HTML, and most often these files are yours to keep. EBSCO eBook downloads, however, are a little different. Most of these titles are only available as a temporary download and require special software. Click here for more on using EBSCO eBooks.

Featured Database: Nexis Uni

Nexis Uni is a database worth knowing. It offers a strong collection of news, business, and legal sources that will be useful if you are doing legal research, seeking company or country information, or if you want to search across a wide range of newspapers and magazines. Here you will find: 

• Print and online journals, television and radio broadcasts, newswires, and blogs
• Local, regional, national, and international newspapers
• Extensive legal sources for federal and state cases and statutes, including U.S. Supreme Court decisions since 1790
• Business information on U.S. and international companies and executives
• Shepard's Citations Service

That’s a lot of content! Nexis Uni offers a simple search interface but also has many specialized features for powerful advanced searches and results management. If this is a database that you will use often in your field of study, you may wish to build your skills here. If so, check out the publisher’s series of “10 minute tips”. These are short videos on topics like searching cases by party name, searching SEC filings, and searching analyst reports.

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