Saturday, May 31, 2008

Interlibrary Loan Temporarily Unavailable

Patrons will not be able to make Interlibrary Loan requests from May 30th-June 1st due to upgrades in our library catalog. However, if you have books/articles that you would like to order, please email a detailed list to tc-library@smumn.edu and we'd be happy to order it for you on Monday when Interlibrary Loan will be available again. Feel free to call us at 612-728-5108 if you have any questions.

Thursday, May 29, 2008

Library Tip: Definitions

Ever find yourself reading something online and you come across a word whose meaning escapes you? That happened to me today, with the word elegiac. Not that you care about my vocabulary shortcomings, but there is a practical point to my anecdote: a quick, useful remedy for finding the definitions of unfamiliar words, courtesy of Google. It is their "define:" search parameter. Observe...
  • Look near the top right-hand corner of the Internet browser screen. Chances are you see something similar to the image below.
  • That is a Google search engine search box, built into your Internet browser.
  • In that box, type in define: then the word that you would like defined. See below.
  • Hit enter.
  • A Google search results page pops up with multiple definitions to choose from.
  • In about 30 seconds you've gone from staring blankly at a strange word to finding a suitable definition to understanding your new word in context. Brilliant!
Keep in mind, this isn't a scholarly search you've just performed (so you can't use this to define terms for your research papers!!!) but this is a very handy shortcut to help you out as you wade through every day readings online.
And in case you are curious.... Elegiac: expressing sorrow often for something past; "an elegiac lament for youthful ideals" (taken from wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn)

Thursday, May 22, 2008

Online Resources Unavailable

Our Web OPAC, known affectionately to you as our Library Catalog, is getting an upgrade at the end of May. Your use of online library resources will be affected by this upgrade from the evening of Thursday, May 29th through Sunday, June 1st.
  1. Patrons will not be able to create ILL requests through the Library catalog. However, you will still be able to search for books. Please manually keep a record of anything you'd like ordered, and email a list of those items to tc-library@smumn.edu
  1. Should you be working in a database looking for articles, the FindIt button will not function.

Thursday, May 15, 2008

Holiday Hours

The Library will be CLOSED Saturday, May 24-Monday, May 26 in observance of Memorial Day. We will resume normal hours on Tuesday, May 27.

Thursday, May 08, 2008

Library Tip: Assessment Test Reviews

Attention Psyc, MFT, and Ed.D students!! Do you ever borrow assessment tests from our collection and need to read reviews about them? Are you tired of thumbing through the thick print versions of Mental Measurements Yearbook (MMY) and Tests in Print, searching in vain for a test review? Next time you find yourself apprehensively staring at an MMY tome, remember this: The assessment test reviews are available online. This is handy to know for several reasons:
  1. You'll save yourself time.
  2. You'll save yourself money, not having to make copies out of the book (if you print at home). (Or work.) (Sneaky.)
  3. You can access the reviews anytime, anywhere.
  4. Risk of paper cut lowers 86%.
To access Mental Measurements Yearbook and Tests in Print online, follow these steps.
  1. Go to our home page, http://www.smumn.edu/tclibrary
  2. Click the link "search for articles"
  3. Browse through the databases listed under "Health & Social Sciences". You should see both Mental Measurements Yearbook and Tests in Print.
  4. Click!
  5. Remember if you're off campus, you'll need to log in with your Saint Mary's University username and password to access the databases.