This week, there is so much Library news, it’s almost madness! And not only that but some far out web-world news to boot! Can you stand it? [Yes, I just used the phrase "far out" ...believe it, it's true!] Now, on to the news…..
1) Library News
a) Heaps of more trial databases to try out! These databases are crammed full of magazine and journal articles as well as electronic books on a motherload of topics – from computers to business to health! Many of these are available for you to try out until December! Through a special arrangement by Knowledge Ontario, you’ll be seeing many of these added to the regular line up of Library @ Mohawk databases come January! Here’s a sampling of what you can try out:
CPI.Q (Canadian Periodical Index): contains a wealth of Canadian and international periodicals — including Canada’s national newspaper, The Globe and Mail; Maclean’s weekly magazine; Canadian News Facts; and encyclopedic reference materials, such as the Canadian Parliamentary Guide and Canadian Newsmakers.
Discovering Collection: comprises thousands of overview essays, critical analyses, biographies, timelines and multimedia elements.
Health and Wellness Resource Centre: includes loads of health-related resources for the everyday consumer. Includes a Drug & Herb Finder, Alternative Health Encyclopedia, Health Assessment Tools and more!
And there’s plenty more…be sure to stop by for a free sample!
b) New titles: Have you checked out the new titles list? Updated last month, it’s almost endless! Wowsers!
c) New Podcast: E-Books: What are they? Their secrets uncovered. Ever wondered what you could do with an electronic book? Well, it turns out there is a ton of things you can do with one – check out this week’s podcast when the Library’s Collection Management Librarian gives you the inside scoop on this oft misunderstood but extremely useful library resource.
Hey – did you know you don’t have to visit the BRAINcast web site every time you want to listen to a new episode of the Library’s podcast? If you use iTunes or Bloglines, just click on the iTunes or Bloglines button on the right hand side of the BRAINcast web site to subscribe to the feed. Once you do that, each time a new episode is published, you’ll get it delivered straight to your Bloglines or iTunes! Easy peasy!
d) New content this month in Facultyspace
We’ve added a whole new category of content to the facultyspace called “your research”! With the new focus on institutional research here at Mohawk, wouldn’t it be nice to keep up-to-date with the issues surrounding research and the sharing of scholarly information? Well, now you can! Go to the facultyspace, choose the Learning4You button on the top navigation bar and choose “your research” from the dropdown menu (or just type your research into the search box!) So far we have 3 top-notch sites all about the wonderful world of scholarly research and research dissemination.
2) Web-World News
a) RLG…RIP
A while back I wrote about RedLightGreen – a fantastic web site that listed books from loads of Libraries throughout the world and created bibliographies for you on the fly. Yes, it was dreamy as all get go but sadly…it is no more. But weep not dear readers as it has been replaced by a similar service: Worldcat.org. WorldCat.org, contains a list of resources from nearly 12,000 libraries worldwide! That’s a lot of books! At the moment it doesn’t have the handy bibliography-creating feature but they are working on it.
If you saved citations in RedLightGreen, you can retrieve yourcitation list from RedLightGreen until November 4th by following these steps:
- Connect to RedLightGreen. Use the Sign In link (if you aren’tautomatically signed in)
There are loads of video podcasts out there but how do you find them all? Check out the super site
- Click the Your List link in the upper right
- You can then select the E-Mail link to send your citations to your e-mail account, or get a printer-friendly view to print or download.
b) Search for Video Podcasts!
c) On the cusp…
Just wanted to share this tidbit of web world news to let you know what is coming down the pipes…this week Sun Microsystems announced that they will be launching a presence in the virtual world Second Life. They will actually feature a press conference within Second Life (first Fortune 500 company to do so!) and a tour of the Sun facility within Second Life.
What is Second Life? The Sun web site sums it up nicely: “Second Life is a 3D online world with a rapidly growing population of more than 700,000 residents from 100 countries around the globe. The residents themselves create and build the world, including homes, vehicles, nightclubs, stores, landscapes, clothing, and games.”
Why does this matter? Online worlds like Second Life show how the Internet is being transformed into a totally participatory medium – almost like a world unto itself – can you hear the Star Trek music in the background? Sun is the first but probably not the last Fortune 500 company involved in education to perk up and start paying attention to the possibilities. Something for us to keep an eye on for future ways of teaching and learning! For more on this, check out this presentation on the EDUCAUSE web site: Second Life: The Educational Possibilities of a Massively Multiplayer Virtual World (MMVW)
Beam me up, Scotty!
