Thanksgiving Break hours

Turkey time is upon us and we hope that you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving. The Nash Library staff will take a well-deserved break for the holiday. The library will close at 5pm on Tuesday, November 21 and will reopen on Sunday, November 26 at 4pm. Remember that we’re always open at http://www.usao.edu/library.

Banned Books Week

 

Commit a random act of free thinking and read a “banned” book!! Come see the library display about banned books and try to figure out why “To Kill A Mockingbird”, “Of Mice and Men”, and many more books have been challenged. What’s the difference between “banned” and “challenged”, you ask? Read what the coolest folks in the world (the American Library Association) say about it:

 

Each year, the American Library Association (ALA) is asked why the week is called “Banned Books Week” instead of “Challenged Books Week,” since the majority of the books featured during the week are not banned, but “merely” challenged. There are two reasons. One, ALA does not “own” the name Banned Books Week, but is just one of several cosponsors of BBW; therefore, ALA cannot change the name without all the cosponsors agreeing to a change. Two, none want to do so, primarily because a challenge is an attempt to ban or restrict materials, based upon the objections of a person or group. A successful challenge would result in materials being banned or restricted.

So come on in to Nash Library, read the list of the ten most frequently challenged books, and pick up your free “Banned Books Week” bookmark. And, if you’re feeling really fired up and radical, READ A BANNED BOOK!!!

Hello, Hola, Bonjour, Salama

Hello USAO Class of 2010! The Nash Library staff sends you greetings in four languages. That’s a few shy of the number of languages included on the Golden Record carried on board the Voyager spaceship which left Earth’s orbit in 1977. That record included greetings in 55 different languages as well as Earth sounds created by wind, thunder, birds, and whales, to name but a few.

Sometimes the language of libraries may seem unfamiliar to you. Don’t worry…just ask and we’ll translate it for you! We’re good earthlings and we’re here to help you with this journey called college.

There’s a rooster in the hen house

The very astute visitor to Nash Library has surely noticed that there is a rooster in the hen house. Jason Sherman, USAO Class of 2006, was recently appointed as the Library Systems Specialist. Jason was previously employed in the library as a work study. His responsibilities include designing and running the library’s web presence which includes our online catalog, the website, and MUCH more.

Who moved the copier?

We moved the copier to room 201, also known as the browsing room. While we were at it, we moved new books to a different area. Be sure to check it out on your next visit.

Remote access no longer requires multiple username/password combinations

Remember the big handout you got at the library session in Freshman Orientation? You know, the one that listed every database along with the username and password required to access it from off-campus. Well, you can recycle that handout now because the library has a new proxy server. If you are off-campus and attempt to access one of the databases, you will be asked for your username and password only once per session, regardless of how many resources you use. Your username and password are exactly the same as your USAO e-mail and password. For instructions on your e-mail username and password, see http://www.usao.edu/studentservices/USAOEmail.htm.

New features added to online catalog

Have you looked for a journal title in the library catalog lately? If so, then you might have noticed two changes.

First, holdings records have been added to journal titles. This means that it will be much easier for you to determine if the library has a particular volume and issue of a journal and exactly where to find it. This information has always been available but it hasn't always been easy to decipher.

The second change involves the addition of links to full text sources of a given journal title. If you see the icon, then you know that full text of the journal is available. Clicking on the icon will take you to the full text. If a record has multiple icons, then multiple full text options are available. These options reflect different dates of coverage offered by different full text sources. If multiple sources are available and you don't know which one to choose, simply click for a complete description of the full text links.

Library gets new look

Thanks to the generosity of the McCasland Foundation, Nash Library has a new interior look. The old study tables and chairs were replaced with 26 new tables and 104 new chairs. New computer tables and chairs allowed us to add seven additional workstation spaces.

As mentioned, funding for the new furniture came from a $50,000 grant from the McCasland Foundation in Duncan, OK. The grant also funds the purchase of a book analysis software system that will allow us to evaluate the library's collection of books. This system will compare the library's books against a recommended core collection of books. Once this comparison is made, we will purchase many of the recommended titles that are not currently owned by the library.