Library website week Oct 20 -27th

As you may have noticed the library has recently launched a new website.

To showcase the new site and highlight some of the Library's new online resources we will host a website week from October 20th to 27th.
Some of website weeks attractions include; website of the day, daily spotlight on new online resources, student feedback opportunities and prizes.

Keep an eye on the blog and the library homepage for updates.

Class numbers

Books in DBS libraries are classified using the Dewey Decimal System. All books in the library have a number from 000-999, with each number representing a different topic. In the near future, a small list of Dewey numbers of interest to DBS students will be posted. The books that interest you will all have a Dewey class number, the Dewey number for that topic. In the advanced search section of the online library catalogue, you can choose to search by class (select ‘Class’ in the ‘Field’ drop down menu). Enter the Dewey number for your topic and press enter. For example, selecting class number “658.83” [Market Research] will return all books with this class number.

If you are looking for books on your reading list, but they are all out on loan, why not use the class number of the book to find alternatives? It would be very unusual for the books on your reading lists to be the only books ever published on that subject :-)

Reservations Policy

A new term has started and queries by e-mail have shot through the roof. A subset of e-mail traffic that we receive could be described as book reservation queries and go something like this:

"Hi,

I'd like to reserve the following books... I will collect them on... Ta!"

Sorry,we'd love to comply but we simply cannot do this. Books in DBS libraries can only be reserved if there are no standard loan copies available on the shelves. We understand that it may be frustrating for you if it's difficult to get to the library on a regular basis to access essential materia. However it would be equally frustrating for other students who are looking for the same material, but would be told "sorry, you can't have those books, we're keeping them for Jane Smith who's going to collect them on Friday".

Once you have a PIN, you can reserve book from the online library catalogue To do so:
Click on 'Enter online library'
Click on 'Login', and enter your student number and PIN in the appropriate boxes on the right of the screen.
Search for a book, and go into the detailed display. Click on the box labelled 'Reserve'. If standard loan copies are available (coloured in green), you will not be able to proceed with the reservation.

Federated searching in the library

According to the handbook for Library Trustees of New York State, federated searching is "ability to search several subscription databases simultaneously or to search a database, OPAC or the Web and some combination simultaneously". The library has recently purchased WebFeat, a federated search program that allows you to simultaneously search DBS and Portobello library catalogues and most of the subscribed electronic resources that we have. Thus for example, business students can search Emerald and EBSCO at the same time, while arts students can search Psycinfo and Psycarticles at the same time.

The WebFeat search portal also acts as a links page for nearly all of our subscribed resources. Note that off-campus, the usual usernames and passwords for electronic resources apply. Note also that Westlaw.ie does not yet work off-campus.

WebFeat can be accessed by clicking the "search all resources" link on the library home page. You will need a username and password (the same one as for logging into college PCs) to access WebFeat.

Due dates and reminder messages

Last year some students, usually in the process of paying a fine, asked if they could be reminded when the due date of their loans approached. At the time, the sheer logistics of the exercise prevented us from doing so. However, the implementation of DBS student e-mail means that we are now in a position to send gentle reminders to students whose loans are approaching their due date.

Starting very shortly we will be sending reminder e-mails to students whose books are due back in the library three days from the date the e-mail is sent. The reminder message will be sent to your DBS student e-mail address. If you would prefer the message to be sent to another e-mail address, please ask library staff.

Library PC access and printing

Over the summer changes have been made to the way students login in to PCs in the library and indeed the wider college campus. Instead of using "student" or "internet" to login, students should now use their student number and date of birth (in dd/mm/yyyy format). It should go without saying that you should log off after you finish your session. If you cannot login, (and are a DBS registered student for academic year 2008-2009) give your name, student number and date of birth to library staff. If you are not registered for 2008-2009, you should consider why you are in the library in the first instance. In time, the "student" and "internet" logins will be withdrawn.

We have changed, and hopefully substantially improved our print management system. We are now using a system named Papercut. You will be able to access your Papercut account once you have logged in with your user name and student number. All students have been given €2.00 free credit. You may now see the importance of logging off after you finish your computer session: if you don't log off, someone else will be able to print from your account. Top-up vouchers can be purchased at the library issue desk.

Searching the Library Catalogue

There are two new search options in the library catalogue.

In the advanced search option of the Library Catalogue, you can now narrow your search by site. In the drop down box under 'field', by selecting 'site', you can look for material located at either Dame St. or Aungier St. By typing "DAM" in the 'site' field, you can restrict your search to material held in the Dame St. library. By typing 'AUN' in the 'site' field, you can restrict your search to material held in the Aungier St. library. Note that if material is held in both libraries, this will appear in your searh results, even if you have searched one location.

In addition, 'dissertation' has been added as a media type. This means you can restrict your search to theses and dissertations held in DBS libraries. For example type 'depression' (all fields) and dissertation (medium) to find all theses relating to depression. By adding 'AUN' (site), you will find all depression related dissertations held in the Aungier St. library.

New library website

The library has a new and revamped website available. The link on the DBS website should now take you there. In addition to the content from the old site, there are now tutorials on a variety of library relevant subjects (such as how to search the catalogue) and audio tours of the two DBS libraries

Changes to OPAC

The format of the DBS OPAC (Online Library Catalogue) has changed. Though it works in exactly the same way as before, a guide to the new OPAC will appear on the new library website.

Update from the Library

Those of you who have dropped into this section lately will notice, posts have been a little sparse...

Through the summer DBS Library staff have been busy working on a number of projects aimed at improving our services.
Foremost among these is the creation of a NEW LIBRARY WEBSITE. The new site is due to launch shortly and will bring all the library's contact information, guides, services and products together in one easily accessible location. Among the features of the new site will be;

• An A-Z listing of all the library's subscribed journals (electronic & print) which will link directly to the online full text
• A federated search facility which will allow students to search all the library's electronic resources simultaneously (library catalogue, databases, ebooks, ejournals)
• Academic support tutorials including Podcasts and online guides

Keep an eye on the Library section in the student intranet or the Library blog for details of when the new site will launch.