The Information Point

at 1:37 PM

A student came in on the first day of classes with a hand-out (presumably from her instructor) that listed resources, and under Library West it said that we had a transparency copier for $.15 a page.

I've checked with the Reference Desk and with Colleen and I can't find any information about any equipment that would allow printing onto transparencies (for use on an overhead projector) if that is what is meant by "transparency copier." Our Xerox printers and copiers don't allow alternate paper sources, no bypass trays, so they can't just insert printable transparencies either.

If anyone knows differently, please share! In the meantime, if you get this question on the desk, try to get the instructor and course number and I'll try to clarify this with the instructor.

at 3:58 PM

You'll notice the Spring Schedule and The Weekly Schedule are now linked up and all set to go. Welcome to Suzanne Brown, our newest Information Specialist! and Welcome Back to Cathy Martyniak!

See you all on the desk next week!

With only one new person starting on the desk this semester I hesitate to offer the plethora of training opportunities we've had in past semesters. If anyone thinks a refresher training would be helpful though please let me know and I'm happy to set it up!

Right now there is one training coming up soon that would be great for us to attend. It's the staff ILLiad training and it's set for Wednesday, January 23rd in West 211. There are two sessions available to choose from: 11-12pm and 3-4pm. I hope to make it there myself!

at 3:35 PM

If the website goes down while you're on the desk, Rich Bennett sent a handy link that will help out.

Direct Link to the Catalog - Use this link when the Smathers website is down to access the catalog. If you click on "FCLA" in the grey bar (footer) you will find links to the Library Catalog, Research Gateway, E-Journal Locator, Course Reserve, ILLiad, etc. It also has direct links to ALL databases included on the "Databases A-Z" page normally available on the Smathers "Find Databases" page.

You might want to bookmark that link now, just in case.

at 10:06 AM

Starting with the Spring semester we'll use the same statistics sheets as the other public service desks. There are only two categories of questions: Reference Questions and Other Questions.

Reference Questions are those that require you to use resources to find the answer. I would include questions that require the catalog, databases, an internet search, etc.

Other Questions are things that are informational, easy to find, or directional. Things like where a call number is located, who is librarian for a particular subject, when we close, how to get a job at the library, etc. would be Other. I would include policy questions here too.

If you relate these two new categories with our old stats sheets, anything that you used to put under Reference is a Reference Question. Anything you put under Directional, Policy, Equipment, Referred, or Other is probably an Other Question.

What about all those Circulation transactions though? Well if you are doing something in Aleph, you do NOT have to count it at all. These transactions will be tracked in Aleph. This includes checking things out, returning things, and activating cards. BUT for those questions that require you to USE Aleph but aren't really transactions, would still count as Other Questions- I'm thinking of questions like: How many books do I have checked out? How much was I fined? When is my book due? etc. Those would all be more informational kinds of questions and would count as "Other" on our new stats sheets.

Hopefully that helps explain the difference. If you have questions you can call me, or ask one of the folks on the circ desk. These are the same sheets they've been filling out since July so they'll have a good idea of what kinds of questions count as each type.

The other important change is that we'll all share the same stats sheet now. Each week there will be a new sheet on a clipboard at the Information Point. There is a pen chained to the clipboard too. This sheet will be used by everyone who sits at the information point for that entire week. (Think of all the trees we'll be saving!)

The reason behind this switch is that our stats have been really consistent for the last year in showing the ratio of question types that we answer. We still have to track total questions for ARL stats and administration, but if we do need more information on types of questions we can run a sample for a week or two instead of doing the more complex stats sheets all the time.

Please ask if you have questions. And I'll see you on the desk!

at 9:49 AM

Just to follow up on a few items from our meeting:

I talked with the circulation folks about possibly extending our hours of coverage on the desk during the extended hours at the end of the semester. They thought that would be great! So at our mid-semester meeting we'll know when the Spring extended hours will be and I'll recruit volunteers to work extra shifts on the desk that week or two.

Circ staff also expressed how happy they are to have our help at the beginning of Summer B and Fall when so many brand new students will be coming in too. So we'll endeavor to extend our coverage of the desk during those few weeks too.

About the sign for the Information Point: while there are no plans for permanent signage there, I did get permission to recreate the paper sign for the plastic holder. The old sign must have gone missing at some point, so I'll make a new one and have it up in time for Spring.

On the silver boxes, I brought up all the points we discussed and the Access Services managers are compiling a proposal on what we'd like to have at the desk. The proposal should be going to the directors in January. Hopefully we'll have those silver boxes gone sometime in Spring!

I'm working this week on the Spring schedule. So far I've added Cathy Martyniak back in the schedule - welcome back Cathy! I've had a few other nibbles but nothing concrete yet. If you know of anyone interested in spending one hour on the Infopoint a week, send them my way!

Have a safe and happy holiday everyone!

at 11:45 AM

We held our December Team Meeting on Tuesday, Dec 4th. Here's a synopsis of the meeting:

Scheduling
We will staff the Infopoint up through Thursday, Dec 13th. That will take us up through the end of finals. We'll start back on the Infopoint on 1/7/08, the first day of Spring classes. We'll only staff the Infopoint 11-3pm M-F in the Spring, but for Summer B and Fall semester we'll arrange 8am-8pm triage coverage for the first few weeks. An interesting suggestion was that we offer to provide extra hours at the end of the semester instead of only at the start. I'll bring this up with Access Services. It sounds like a good idea- it's been really busy this past week!

Spring Schedule Changes
So far it looks like most everyone is willing to stay on the Information Point for Spring. I do have one empty spot (we'll miss you Angie!) and we have four people who have 2 hour shifts now. I'll be sending out a call for volunteers to fill the 1-5 hours we could fill with new volunteers soon. If anyone would like to change their shift for Spring please let me know.

Moving to the other end of the desk?
We talked about the possibility of moving to the other end of the desk (near the lost and found, reserves, holds and keys) but the unanimous decision was to stay where we are (closer to the entrance, ILL items, and laptops). Looks like we'll stay put!

Silver Boxes
You know there was a lot to say about these! We considered ways to hide the wires (cable tunnels), the desensitizer (bookmark/brochure holder), and whether we needed the dual monitors (they're not used as intended because of privacy issues, so what about getting a large overhead monitor like Marston?) I've passed our suggestions on to the Access Services Managers and they're sending the proposals up to the directors. Let's hope we lose the big silver boxes soon!

Other stuff
Naomi had an issue come up when she called our desk to be transferred to the reference desk and instead was transferred to Paul M's voicemail. I doublechecked the numbers posted at the desk and they're typed correctly, but lucky Paul has a number really close to the ref desk number:
Paul M- 3-2655
Ref desk- 3-2665

I think that about covers the meeting. If you have any questions let me know.

at 11:39 AM

I know I've had many patrons come by checking out or returning GRE Test Prep books. Well I just found out that we have GRE Test Prep materials available online! Refer patrons to the Testing and Education Reference Center by Gale.

Ben Walker suggests this as the easiest way to access it: go to Databases, search by title, select "t" from the alphabetical list, and find Testing and Education Reference Center.

It looks like they can take the practice tests and look at the online test prep books for the following tests:
GRE
MCAT
LSAT
GMAT
MAT and more

I'm impressed!

at 11:36 AM

Ares (course reserves) training is available next week. Sign up online here.

This training will provide tips on how to better serve the patron when they come to the desk with Ares questions.

Training Dates, locations, and times:
Library West Room 211 (3:00-4:00PM)
December 12th and 19th

If you have questions please contact the Reserves staff at or call 273-2520.

at 2:10 PM

There is a library event this Thursday on the 3rd floor. It looks like all patrons and staff are welcome to attend.

Guitar Hero this Thursday, December 6, from 2-4pm on the third floor of Library West in the InfoCommons presentation area.

Please contact: Stacey Ewing, Laura Jordan, or Laurie Taylor with any questions.

It sounds like fun!

at 9:57 AM

Our end of semester meeting is next week on Dec. 4th at 2:30 in West 253.

Topics for discussion include:

The upcoming Spring semester
How did it go having the triage for the first 3 weeks, should we do that for Spring?
Spring Schedule changes?
Discuss possibility of changing the location to the other end of the desk.

The big silver boxes
We have been asked for proposals on how to replace the big silver boxes. Our proposals are due on 12/5 so bring your ideas!

Wrap up the fall semester
Looking at the Fall Statistics
Your feedback from the desk

at 4:17 PM

The ILLiad system will be down this Friday (Nov. 16^th) from 8:00am-noon for a server switch. During this time, no one will have access to ILLiad.

at 3:20 PM

If you would like to get an automatic email whenever there is a new post on this blog follow these instructions:

1. In the new box over to the right of this screen, enter your email address and click the subscribe button.

2. A pop-up window will come up. Enter the letters you see there and click "complete subscription request." (This is a word verification tool that assures the computer that you're either a human, a clever robot, or a erudite monkey, all of which are welcome to subscribe to this blog.)

3. Check your email (whatever one you entered in the box). There should be a message there from "confirmations@emailenfuego.net" with a link to click. Click this link to verify that the email you entered is a live address.

4. That's it. Now you should get an email every time there is an update on this blog. You should ONLY get an email from this service if there is a new post on this blog.

Since folks can choose to sign up for these automatic emails I'll stop emailing you myself when I update the blog. This new feature is new for me, so if you notice anything strange going on with it please let me know. I've subscribed myself so that I can test it also.

at 9:58 AM

The course reserve unit is offering training once again on our new electronic system Ares. It has been about five months since they’ve implemented the system. It is markedly different from our old system and additional training sessions are available this fall. Many of you who have used the system will have questions after using the system on the desk.

Please mark your calendar to attend one of the Ares hands-on training session.
No sign-up is necessary.

Training Dates:
Library West Room 211
3:00-4:00PM
Wednesday, December 12th or 19th

If you have questions please contact the Reserves staff at eres@uflib.ufl.edu or call 273-2520

at 9:07 AM

Colleen commented on the monologue post below, and I wanted to make sure her comment was seen. This is great!

"The monologue books, also books on dialogs and play scenes, are generally shelved in the PN 2080's. We no longer have any of these books in the Reference collection. However, we do have a handy book in ready reference behind the desk, The ultimate scene and monologue sourcebook : an actor's guide to over 1,000 monologues and scenes from more than 300 contemporary plays (PN2080 .H661 1994)."

Thanks Colleen!

at 12:53 PM

When the gate alarm goes off, please make an effort to call the person who set it off back through the gate. There are a few common reasons the alarms go off:

1. The public library has switched over to RFID and isn't desensitizing their tattle-taped books anymore. So they might have a public library book setting off the alarm.

2. I've noticed that bookstore purchases sometimes need to be desensitized.

3. Blockbuster DVDs and videos might be the culprit, and we shouldn't desensitize those.

What I'll usually do is call over the patron and offer to help them figure out what keeps setting off the alarm. I'll ask if they have any new textbooks or videos at which point they'll start looking through their backpack. I'll desensitize books that are not library books and let them try to go through again. If they think it might be their IPod, blockbuster video or laptop I'll hold that at the desk and let them go through without it to see if that fixes it.

I approach the whole thing as I'm helping them figure out why the alarms going off so that we can fix it and save them the embarrassment of setting off alarms all over the place. They usually seem happy that I'm taking the time to help them. In my own experience it's been a purchased textbook that is setting off the alarm in all the cases I can recall. (Well, except for the poor patrons whose books I checked out myself and forgot to desensitize!)

Circulation will usually be the ones to handle the alarms, but if they're swamped and we can help that would be wonderful. And we definitely want to give every patron the impression that we consistently check all people setting off the alarm.

at 10:36 AM

We have a page in the circulation manual now that shows names, photos (if we have them) and descriptions of people trespassed from Library West or under observation. I've linked this on the Useful Links page on the Information Point website as well. You can find the page here: http://web.uflib.ufl.edu/ps/Circ/CircMan/trespassinformation.html

If you notice one of the trespassed people in the library, please call UPD at 2-1111 and alert the circulation staff person on the desk.

at 4:51 PM

Meeting Minutes

Several things came up in our October Team Meeting on Tuesday. I ran them all by the Access Services managers on Wednesday, and have compiled a list here to bring everyone up to speed. Please email any questions or comments, or you can add a comment here on the blog.

Meetings - We decided to reduce the frequency of meetings from monthly to twice per semester. We'll meet once before each semester and once mid-semester. Our next meeting will be held in December before the break.

Veteran's Day - While the library will be open, most of us will have the day off and the library will be staffed by the folks who usually work on Sunday. Therefore the Information Point will be technically closed. Enjoy your three day weekend!

Laptops - We discussed the difficulties that are coming up with the heavy use of the laptops. This is an issue for all of the circulation folks, so I brought this up at the Access Services meeting also. There is no waiting list procedure that seems feasible, so the suggestions for everyone at the circulation desk are:
** Never "promise" that the next laptop will be for a certain patron.
** If you do have someone waiting for a laptop they'll need to be right in front of the desk waiting for someone to return a laptop. We can't promise to call them over when one comes in.
** Anyone who has a patron waiting for a laptop should be sure to communicate that to everyone else on the desk so that they know too.

Keyboard - Jody brought up that one of the feet that tilts the keyboard has been broken for a while. I've reported it to our system liaison and it should be replaced soon.

Emails and the Blog - you've undoubtedly noticed that this semester hasn't been nearly as busy with new blog posts. Before it seemed there were several updates to the blog each week, but now we might go a week or more between updates. It was suggested that I email a short message to everyone when the blog has been updated. Feel free to delete these messages if you're already checking the blog or have subscribed to an RSS feed reader. (I know there must be a way to allow folks to subscribe to a blog to be emailed updates, so I'll also look into that for a long term solution.)

Spring triage? - We talked about the possibility of trying the triage model for the first weeks of the spring semester like we did for fall. I'll be looking at the building and Infopoint statistics for spring last year to see if we can identify days/times where triage would be appropriate. The additional complication that was brought up was that ALA midwinter is going on the second week of the spring semester. That might complicate a search for volunteers to staff the desk for additional triage hours. More info on what we'll do will be forthcoming and we'll talk more at our December meeting too.

Outlook at the desk - If you haven't already set up Outlook to work on the Information Point computer, I'm putting together instructions on how to set up your email out there. It was pointed out that there are some things you can do in Outlook that aren't workable in Webmail, such as being able to view the calendars for the two instruction rooms (West 211 & 212). If you'd like me to email you these instructions just let me know. I'm hesitant to link them on the web in case the server information compromises server security.

How to know when Lisa or I are out - We talked about the possiblity of emailing all the Information Specialists when Lisa and I are out of the office. I usually try to email everyone when I'm out, but we thought it might be difficult to get eveyrone in Access Services to remember to email us when Lisa is out. Rather than try to do that, the Access Services managers suggested that if someone needs to talk with Lisa we can call the main library number (3-2525). We have a student receptionist who will know if Lisa is available that day. They'll also be able to tell you if I'm in or out that day in case I forget to tell everyone too.

The Big Ugly Silver Boxes (BUSBs- Pronounced BUS Bees)- Once again these were brought up in our meeting. (And I was encouraged to add in the word 'ugly' which makes a nice acronym I think.) I know we're all frustrated by these boxes, and I do make an effort to bring them up at every possible opportunity with the folks in charge. As of the meeting I hadn't heard anything more about the future of the BUSBs, but at the managers meeting I was informed that an all new incarnation of the future is on display at the other end of the circulation desk. Please stop by the desk and take a look at the new model. I would appreciate if you could all be sure to express your opinions about the new model to the appropriate folks. I don't know yet if they have a contact set up for this, but you may email me or Lori Driscoll. We'll compile all the comments (anonymously if you'd like) and send them up the chain. Please do continue to speak up about the BUSBs at every opportunity you have.

And More: Additional Notes from the Access Services managers meeting:

Faculty Laptops - Soon we will have 4 laptops available for UF faculty to check out. They will be stored in the same cart as the other laptops, but the batteries are NOT interchangeable. They'll just have to recharge in the laptop cart. You'll be able to tell they're the faculty laptops because they look different and we're planning to label them differently in some way. They'll still be 2 hour checkout, but they'll only be for faculty (this includes library faculty also). This is a good option for faculty who come to put something on reserve but need to enter the information into Ares since it's all done online now. (Faculty are unable to check out the student laptops.)

Ares Bookmarks - We've got bookmarks at every circ computer that tell students where and how to find their course reserves materials online. These bookmarks are to help students remember to bring the title and call number of the item when asking for course reserves in order to speed up their transactions. Hopefully handing these out with all course reserves items will help educate our students on using the Ares system and "help us help them" faster. I've just ordered another 2000 bookmarks, so we should have plenty to give out.

Headsets - You've probably noticed the signs above the BUSBs indicating that we're soon going to be out of headsets to lend. This is very true. The headsets are breaking at record rates and we don't have the money to replace them. Please point this out to everyone checking out headsets. We want them to get in the habit of bringing in their own as soon as possible. The headsets that are out there now are the only ones that will be available. Once they're gone, they're gone.

I think that wraps up the majority of the updates. Whew! Remember, I'll be out all next week and possibly the week after. If any concerns arise during that time please email or call Lori Driscoll or another of the Access Services managers.

at 4:29 PM

The Graduate Carrels (and other desks around the building) have ports that look like you could connect to the internet. But these ports are not active. Likely they will never be active because the libraries have to pay a fee for every active port. Please let folks looking for Internet access know they can access the internet via the wireless access in the building. If they don't have a wireless capability on their laptop they can borrow a laptop from Circulation or they can log in to one of the library computers.

at 10:58 AM

Every once in a while on the desk I get requests from journalism students, reporters from the Alligator, and other people looking for an interview with/about the libraries. I used to refer them to Carol Turner, but I just received an email directing us to refer any questions like these to Barbara Hood. She can be reached at the number for Administration: 3-2505.

at 9:38 AM

There are a couple of parts for the library video under production now that still need actors. Therefore, Paul Victor and his team are holding a casting call on Thurs., Sept. 27 & Fri., Sept. 28 from 10-12pm. It will be in Library West, room 212. Paul Victor will be down there early to post signs and get the room open/set-up. But he wanted us to be aware of it in case we get questions.

at 12:57 PM

For a while folks were told that there were monologues up on the 3rd floor at the Reference Desk, but I just received a call from them that they do not have them up there. They said to do a catalog search for "monologue" and send the patron into the stacks with a few call numbers. If anyone has more information on a good way (or location) to find monologues, please leave a comment here or email the list. We seem to have a lot of students asking for them.

Thanks!

at 11:55 AM

If you have faculty or graduate students looking for their assigned study carrel keys please refer them to Circulation.

at 11:47 AM

Today we start our shortened schedule on the Information Point. Please continue taking statistics as you have.

Thank you to everyone who helped fill out the schedule for the first three weeks of the Fall semester. I'm working on the statistics for August now, and it looks like we had a lot of questions during those first three weeks! We'll be able to see how the traffic this year compares to last year (when we'd just opened) soon.

I don't know yet if we will follow this same model during the first three weeks of spring, but keep your eyes open for a recruitment email sometime in December if we do!

at 9:54 AM

The Computer Assistance Desk is open and ready for business!

The desk is located on the west side of the 3rd floor of Library West (across from the Orange printer and next to room 317, which is the Information Technology Services Office).

This desk will be staffed full time by highly knowledgeable students and staff. The desk will be open from 10am until 5pm Monday through Friday.

Any and all technology related questions may be directed to the friendly staff at the Library West Computer Assistance Desk. They will be able to field questions ranging from frozen computers to activating Gator 1 cards and everything in between.

This desk is not only for our patrons but our faculty and staff as well! You can also give them a call with your questions at 273-2668.

at 9:22 AM

Additional training for Ares will be held on Tuesday, September 4th at 8:30am in MSL L107.

This training is specifically designed for desk staff who have to help patrons find their course reserve items in Ares. I know I've been getting a LOT of these questions on the desk since fall started.

at 9:09 AM

At the moment in Endeca there are error messages associated with Storage items with a ‘request*’ link (notice the lowercase r and the asterisk).

When you try to request these items, you may encounter an error message that says ‘Patron does not have permission to place a hold request for this item’.

(You can all see for yourself with 843.91 K66r 1953).

FCLA is aware of this issue, and are trying to fix it. In the meantime when you encounter this error, please direct the patrons to use the alternate request form at: http://www.uflib.ufl.edu/Storage/StorageRequest.asp which they can access via the Retrieval Help link at the top of the page.

Please note: in Endeca clicking the Retrieval Help link will not open a separate window. You may want to force it to open in a new tab or window so that you can easily cut and paste information into the form.

Regular items with the normal ‘Request’ link should not be affected by this problem. (Note the capital R and there is no asterisk.)

at 10:11 AM

With the Endeca implementation this week I thought many folks would appreciate some sort of help getting used to this new system.

Matthew provided this link to the Endeca online tutorial. Please go through the tutorial on your own, and then try to use Endeca as much as possible in your normal daily work.

As you notice issues or run into questions please email them to me (with as much detail as possible) and I will compile all our questions and concerns to the appropriate folks for answers.

Also there is an online help guide accessed by clicking “help” next to the Endeca search bar.

One very important caveat though: when looking up items that are on course reserves check the Aleph OPAC instead. Endeca isn't showing the current status of these course reserves items "live." Instead it is updated once or twice a week (we're not sure of the exact schedule). So while you can trust the Available vs. Checked out status, you can't be sure about whether the item is on reserve yet or not based on Endeca's information.

at 1:38 PM

It's that time of the semester again. Orientations are available online at: http://www.uflib.ufl.edu/instruct3/orientation.html where they can find the listed times for the in-person sessions and the link to the online orientations.

For tours of the building you can refer them to the lovely map brochures to go on a self-guided tour. Or they can attend one of the orientations- I'm told they might do a tour if time allows at the end.

No reservations are needed for the orientations.

at 9:12 AM

If you have a patron returning a key for their study carrel (the ones that are assigned to Graduate or Faculty for the year) please refer this to circulation staff. The keys are overdue and their is a block that must be manually removed when the key is returned.

By the way, the Carrel Application website is active again. It came up by yesterday before noon.

at 9:24 AM

We've officially switched over to the Endeca interface to the catalog. I anticipate that many folks might be interested in a hands on training, so I'll be working on setting something up soon.

An important piece of information in the notice is: If you are ever using the Endeca OPAC and need/want to go to the Aleph OPAC for any reason, there is a link in the lower left of every Endeca OPAC screen to "Previous Library Catalog".

I know that in the Endeca interface you can't search by call number, so you'll want to switch over to Aleph for that. (I know I end up doing a lot of those kinds of searches on the desk.)

Happy Monday everyone!

at 11:04 AM

Now you can check the weekly calendar online as well. This is the place where all trades are recorded. I think I've also put in all the holidays we'll be closed for too. But if you notice one I missed let me know.

Right now I have the reduced Fall schedule as continuing till Winter Break, but we may end up closing the desk after Finals. We'll look at that later in the semester.

See you Monday!

at 11:36 AM

So many folks were able to stay on for the first three weeks of Fall! Thank you all for volunteering! The Fall Triage Schedule is up, and we'll start Monday. Keep in mind that Monday-Wednesday next week we'll only be open until 6pm though since it's still technically intercession.

We'll continue with the full schedule until September 10th when we'll switch to the reduced Fall Schedule. Again though, so many folks were willing to take shifts during these busy times. Thank you all!

Those who were unable to fit the Info point into your schedule with the reduced time coverage, we'll miss you. Hopefully we'll see you again in the Spring. My guess right now is that we'll do the three weeks of Triage again in the Spring, but we'll see what happens.

I'm trying to keep up with the Email Distribution List, but if you find you're still on the list and you should be removed, please let me know. I'm also trying to keep our page of Information Specialists up to date as well.

See you on the desk!

at 12:47 PM

It's that time of year again. Time for Graduate and Faculty to apply for their study carrels.

Applications are being accepted until August 31st. Applicants use the online form at http://www.uflib.ufl.edu/cars/.

Assignments will not be made until the first week in September. Then all applicants will be notified via email to check their online account at the same URL.

The application form allows room for special notes or requests, so please ask patrons to enter those there rather than contacting Lori Driscoll directly. She's happy to answer any policy questions, but here are links to them as well:

Online Policies for:
Graduate Students
Faculty

-------------------

I just had a question from a student about what classification number they should choose (e.g. 7ED, 8EG, 9EN etc.) I found the information below to be very helpful. It's from the online Graduate Student Catalog.

Classification of Students

6 - Postbaccalaureate students: degree-holding students admitted to postbaccalaureate credits.

7 - Graduate students seeking a first master’s degree.

8 - Graduate students who have earned a master’s degree, or who have earned 36 or more credits while seeking a graduate degree, but who have not been admitted to doctoral candidacy.

9 - Graduate students admitted to doctoral candidacy.

at 2:40 PM

The July statistics are up. But I know what we're all really waiting for are the stats for the first month of fall!

at 12:34 PM

Today we officially start intercession and the Information Point will be closed until Monday 8/20. I have only a few people to hear from on the schedule and then I'll be sending around the fall triage schedule and the regular fall schedule via email.

at 9:43 AM

The switch to Endeca is coming up sometime this month. Possibly even as early as next week. There are two classes coming up this week and I recommend everyone try to attend one if possible. Hope to see you there!

Tuesday, August 7, from 1:00-3:00 in Library West 419
Friday, August 10, from 1:00-3:00 in the MSL L107

Class objectives:
-You will leave the class with a general understanding of the web pages your patrons will encounter.
-Review common search strategies
-Highlight Endeca’s unique query capabilities.

at 12:16 PM

If you have a patron who want workstation access and they can't use their Gator1 Card for some reason (they don't have one or theirs cannot be activated) please refer them to the circulation staff. The circ staff do have workstation ID cards they can give patrons, but there is an entire procedure to set them up in the system that they'll need to follow and the patron will need a photo ID to show the circ staff member as well.

at 11:20 AM

Due to a problem with the server for the Alternative Form, any items requested from storage over the weekend (From Friday 1pm on) may not be able to be delivered any earlier than Tuesday (tomorrow). Check with circ staff for the most recent information.

at 10:44 AM

The Aleph v18 Upgrade seems to have gone rather smoothly. Be sure that you're opening v18 when on the desk. If you can't remember how to navigate in the new version, feel free to ask any of the circ folks for help, or you can call me at 3-2523 and I'll try to walk you through it.

There has been a problem this weekend and today with the Verify Patron server. This is the server that controls patrons ability to log in to the workstations and ID checker. Systems is working on it now and expect it to be working around noon today.

at 4:28 PM

Happy Monday!

It’s time to talk about Fall. We talked about these items during our Summer B Team meeting, and as promised here is the email follow-up. I’ll also post this to the blog.

Hellos & Goodbyes:
Summer B is coming to a close, but I wanted to recognize the folks who came on board for Summer B and those who have had to leave as well. Michelle Foss and Matthew Loving joined the Information Point schedule in July. Sonia Tergas, Enrico Gumbayan and Margeaux Johnson have had to leave us. They will be missed.

Scheduling:
With the hiring freeze I know every unit is feeling stretched right now. With this in mind we’re trying something a little different this Fall. What we propose is from Monday, 8/20 – Friday, 9/7 we’d like to fully staff the desk with as many of our current Information Specialists as possible during these first three weeks of Fall.

After the third week of classes, starting Monday 9/10, we will change up the schedule and only staff the desk between the hours of 11am-3pm. Historically these are the busiest hours on the desk and the Circulation staff is spread thinly at this time due to lunches and meetings. This will cut our total Information Point coverage to only 20 hours a week. I’m hopeful that even though many of our Information Specialists are pressed for time having to take on additional duties due to the hiring freeze and other circumstances, we will be able to fully staff the desk during these peak hours.

So to this end, please contact me with two pieces of information:

1. Let me know whether you can maintain your current Information Point schedule through Friday, 9/7. If you need to change your schedule during these first three weeks, let me know and I’ll do my best to move shifts around to accommodate all requests. (The desk schedule for Summer will end on 8/9/07 for intercession.)

2. Let me know what days/times will work for you best between 11am-3pm for the remainder of the Fall semester. If you’re already scheduled during that time period and prefer to keep your timeslot unchanged, please let me know and you will have priority in that time slot. If you will be unable to continue volunteering on the desk after 9/7, please let me know that as well.

Training:
The folks at the meeting this week agreed that while the trainings are very useful and pertinent, we probably don’t need them offered for fall. There are only a few folks who haven’t yet been able to attend the trainings, and I was able to meet with each of them one on one to go over all the training objectives individually. We’ll revisit training for Spring. If you feel you need more practice with Ares, check out the tutorials online at: https://ares.uflib.ufl.edu/videos.html. They are very helpful. Also I’m happy to come out and spend a shift or two with you to provide any training you think you might need.

Survey:
We discussed the results of the General Satisfaction survey. The results are available online here and are overall very positive. Thank you to everyone who participated!

Statistics:
We took a look at the Summer A statistics. The number of questions was drastically lower than it had been during Fall and Spring, but the ratio between types of questions was consistent with the rest of the year. Current statistics are available online here.

Thank you to all of the Information Specialists for sticking with the desk this summer. While the traffic wasn’t nearly as high as the rest of the year, we did help nearly 3,000 patrons in May and June alone. We are making a difference out there!

The Big Silver Boxes:
This came up after our meeting, but I wanted to let everyone know that the new prototype for a replacement for our big silver boxes is up on display near the Information Point. Please come take a look at the prototype (note the information about how the real one will look- with etched glass, not clear) and express your opinions about it. If you’d like your comments to be anonymous, feel free to email them to me and I will compile them into a document for Carol and Lori.

at 1:10 PM

We had some confusion about printing from the circulating laptops. To revisit this issue I spoke with Amy Polk and confirmed that yes, patrons can print from the circulating laptops just like they can from any other library computer that prints. When they click print, they'll be prompted to enter a "print release key" which is basically a code-word they will use at the print release station to identify their print job. It can be anything they can easily remember.

Amy will work on getting some printing information/instruction up on the library website. I'll link to it from our Useful Links page as soon as it is up.

To recap on what computers are available with what capabilities:

We have 110 computers available in the General Computing Area (which includes everything on the 3rd floor except the 18 dual-monitor computers on the east side of the building).

These computers, the 2nd floor standing computers, and the laptops students can checkout will print to either the Blue or Orange printers. Both printers are on the 3rd floor. Orange is on the west side of the building, blue is on the east side next to the copier machine. A colored sticker on the monitor will indicate which printer they should go to. All the circulation laptops print to Orange, computers on the 2nd floor print to Orange, computers on the west side of the 3rd floor print to Orange and computers in the middle of the 3rd floor print to Blue.

Patrons' personal laptops can NOT print in the library at all.

The "Digital Media Center" has 18 dual-monitor computers with web design and image editing software. These 18 computers do NOT print.

There are 2 computers on the north side of the stacks on the 1st, 2nd and 3rd floors. These may not have applications like MS office on them, but they do have internet access. These six computers do NOT print.

at 5:45 PM

When a patron turns in a video or DVD to you, please make sure to discharge it in Aleph before setting it on the back table. Or, if you aren't comfortable discharging in Aleph yet, you can also give them to one of the circulation students or staff to discharge. Circ will take care of putting them in the security cases and everything, but they will assume that any media on the back table have already been returned in Aleph.

at 1:29 PM

You've probably seen the email invitation already, but I thought I'd include it here as well. We'll be meeting Tuesday, July 24th from 10-11am for our Summer B Team Meeting in Room 253 (the conference room in Access Services. I'll meet folks outside the door to let everyone into the area. Hope to see you there!

Our tentative agenda includes:
Hellos & Goodbyes

Upcoming Fall semester:
-Recruitment
-Training: Any changes?
-Schedule: Any changes?

Results from the General Satisfaction Survey
Next Survey projected

Statistics from Summer A

at 2:32 PM

This came up today in Access Services, and while many folks may already know about this form, a few might not have had this come up yet...

If a patron comes to you and can't find an item on the shelves (book or video/DVD) go ahead and check the availability in the catalog (even if they say they already did) and if it should be on the shelf please have them fill out the "Not On Shelf" form. These aren't online, they're on the table behind the circulation desk. If the catalog record looks funny and you're not sure if the item is on the shelf or not, you can refer them to the circulation staff member also. I'll be the first to admit I don't know what all the item status codes mean.

While there are a few times I've gone into the stacks myself to help a patron find a book, you're not required to do so, especially if the desk is busy. Depending on how busy the desk is, a circulation staff member might send a circ student with the patron as well. Feel free to refer them to circ.

at 4:57 PM

Thank you all for your participation in the Information Point's first General Satisfaction Survey. We had 24 responders out of a total of 50, so about a 50% response rate. This included all past and current Information Specialists, so I think that's a pretty good turn out.

The survey results are in and up on the web for you to see. I added them to the statistics page (now the aptly named Statistics and Surveys page).

Please take a look. I think by and large most folks are happy with what we're doing. Let's talk about these results in more detail though at our Summer B Team Meeting. I'll be setting a date for it soon. Watch this space. :)

at 4:16 PM

Well Summer B is off to to a great start. Already folks are noticing a huge increase in questions at the desk.

To answer questions about the statistics, yes we are still using our old forms that we've been using. These forms give us a great breakdown of what kinds of questions we field at the information point. (But I am also reporting these statistics weekly, along with all the Access Services statistics, to Amanda up in administration, so they are getting counted in with the daily stats we're all doing.)

------------------------------

We have a few changes in the schedule for summer B:

Sonia has given us her all since the Information Point started. She finished her last shift in June, and we'll miss her!

Matthew Loving will be joining us on the desk as of this Friday. Thank you for volunteering Matthew!

at 1:09 PM

Tuesday July 3rd we'll close at 6pm and Wednesday July 4th we will be closed.

at 1:08 PM

You can find the dates and times for General Orientations here. No registration is required, students can just come.

at 11:13 AM

Throughout the next two months there are faculty trainings for Ares (the new course reserves system) every Monday and Wednesday. Please be advised that half of these trainings are at Marston and the other half are at West. Faculty members may come to the circulation desk at Library West in error, please direct them to the Marston Science Library as necessary.

The training dates and locations are as follows:

Marston Science Library Room 308 (10AM-11AM)

June: 27th
July: 2nd, 9th, 11th, 16th, 18th, 23rd, 25th, 30th

Library West Room 211 (10AM-11AM)

August: 1st, 6th, 8th, 13th, 15th, 20th, 22nd, 27th, 29th

at 10:24 AM

We'll close the Information Point during Intercession. We'll be back to staff the desk during normal hours starting July 2nd.

at 5:21 PM

Friday June 22nd Ares will go live. All Summer A, B & C classes that were already up in the old system have been set up in Ares and should be ready for viewing.

If you haven't had an opportunity to attend one of the Ares training sessions there is one more left on Tuesday, June 26th, 10-11am in Library West Room 419.

at 4:10 PM

Ares trainings are still available. If you're planning to come to the one tonight at 5:30 the location has changed and is going to be in West Room 211.

Tuesday, June 5th, 10-11am in Library West Room 419
Sunday, June 10th, 3-4pm in Library West Room 211
Tuesday, June 12th, 10-11am in Library West Room 419
Thursday, June 14th, 5:30pm-6:30pm in Library West Room 211
Tuesday, June 19th, 10-11am in Library West Room 419
Tuesday, June 26th, 10-11am in Library West Room 419

at 11:16 AM

The long awaited General Satisfaction survey is up and ready. I've emailed all the current and former Information Specialists the link (the survey is hosted by Survey Monkey) and I do hope you'll take the few minutes to answer the 16 questions. The survey is completely anonymous and I'll tabulate all the responses to share at our TBA Summer B Team Meeting.

Thank you for participating!

at 10:34 AM

At our meeting Friday we discussed the following:

New staff joining us on the desk
Starting in Summer A: Chris Templeton, Melissa Ware, Kenny Herniman, Todd Chisholm, and Janice Kahler.

Starting in Summer B: Michelle Foss and Matt Loving

Statistics
We looked at the new statistics from May.

Also we talked about how in July everyone will be taking daily statistics individually throughout the libraries, but we will continue to take our Information Point stats like we have been. I'll be reporting these to administration for the Information Point, so the stats you take on the Infopoint should not be included in your individual statistics that you report with your department.

Trainings
The Aleph v18 Circulation trainings are finished. The associated PowerPoint slides have been put up on the website. They're in the Circulation Manual so you probably will have to be at a staff computer to be able to view them.

Ares trainings are this month. Be sure to attend one. They're to be hands-on and Ares is very different from ERes. Bring any general questions you have about course reserves too!

Trades
ALA is coming up. If you need coverage please ask now.
Be sure to let me know when you arrange a trade so that I can mark it on the calendar.

We discussed Jana's using a wiki for the Ask A Librarian trade calendar. A few folks are familiar with it, and we talked about the possibility of using that model for Infopoint trades. No change will be made right now, but if folks have a chance to look into that, we might want to explore it in the future.

We talked about what to do if you need last minute coverage in an emergency. Call Angela first, but if you can't reach her call the main Access Services number 273-2525 and let someone there know. Even if you have to leave a message on that line there is now a receptionist who will pick up the message quickly and let circulation know that you can't make your shift. This will be especially important when the traffic picks up in Summer B and Fall.

Survey
The survey we talked about last Spring has turned into two separate surveys.

A General Satisfaction Survey will come out soon and be emailed to you as a Survey Monkey survey.

Later in the summer, before Fall trainings begin, an anonymous self-assessment survey (also on Survey Monkey) will help us set up the training sessions needed.

Additional notes:
Circulation staff will put a desk schedule on the big silver box so that you can see the names of the folks working the desk.

at 10:11 AM

The online videos (about one minute each) are now available to work in both IE and Firefox. To get to the videos go to: https://ufl.ares.atlas-sys.com/videos.html

The most important ones for us to watch are:
How to Create your account (under Student and Faculty Videos)
How to search for and add your class (under Student Videos)
How to view items for your class (under Student Videos)

To watch them in Firefox, be sure to click on the Quicktime version.

at 11:51 AM

Matthew has linked up the PowerPoints for the Aleph v.18 Circ Module trainings. I've added them to the Infopoint website on the training page. Being that they're "in" the circ manual you may only be able to actually connect to them while on campus.

at 9:20 AM

A Sunday training session has been added to the mix. So to update, these are the Ares trainings coming up:

~~Tuesday, June 5th, 10-11am in Library West Room 419~~
Sunday, June 10th, 3-4pm in Library West Room 211
Tuesday, June 12th, 10-11am in Library West Room 419
Thursday, June 14th, 5:30pm-6:30pm in Library West Room 419
Tuesday, June 19th, 10-11am in Library West Room 419
Tuesday, June 26th, 10-11am in Library West Room 419

at 10:22 AM

We found out today that room 401 (a two person room) does not have a dry erase board in it. To our knowledge all the other rooms have one though.

If a patron asks, we do have dry erase markers in the drawer right next to the Information Point. They don't checkout, just ask that they return it with the key when they're finished. Many of the rooms will have dry erase markers left in there as well (from when they forget to return them) and they should all have erasers.

Also in that drawer you'll see these little foil packets with phone cleaning wipes in them. You can use these on the keyboard, the phone if you feel the need, but also you can give one to patrons who want to clean off the headphones when they borrow them.

at 9:22 AM

Ares is set to go up on June 22nd during the Summer intercession. I've taken a peek at it, and it is completely different than ERes. If you haven't had the opportunity to attend a training yet, please come to one of the following sessions. Natalie is planning on it being a hands-on training this time, so even if you were able to attend one of the earlier overview sessions you might want to come to this as well.

A few of the differences I've personally noticed so far:

* Every student will have to create an Ares account before they can use the system.
* Each student will have to add their classes to their account before they can view the reserve items for their classes.
* If we want to be able to search for a reserve item, to find a call number for example, we'll have to create an Ares account (or use the sample account set up) and add the student's class to our own account.

It sounds like we'll be doing a lot of instruction with students and possibly faculty to help them start using the new system.

The available training sessions are:

Tuesday, June 5th, 10-11am in Library West Room 419
Tuesday, June 12th, 10-11am in Library West Room 419
Thursday, June 14th, 5:30pm-6:30pm in Library West Room 419
Tuesday, June 19th, 10-11am in Library West Room 419
Tuesday, June 26th, 10-11am in Library West Room 419

Hope to see you there!

at 1:12 PM

Applications are now being accepted for the Fall 2007 - Summer 2008 school year. See the page online here for the answers to most questions.

To access the online application, patrons go to the main library page and click "Online Requests" at the very top of the screen. From there they can scroll down to "Library Study Rooms."

at 4:07 PM

We will be closing the Information Point during the week of Intercession from June 25th to June 29th. I know it seems far away, but folks have already been looking at making trades for that week.

We'll look into whether we'll close for Summer/Fall Intercession later in the summer.

at 9:51 AM

The Course Reserves system (ERes) is down. Docutek is working on the problem now and they hope to have it working by lunchtime today.

In the meantime, if a student needs an item from Hard Copy Reserves, you can find it either by course number and professor name if it is owned by the instructor, or if it is a library owned item and they know the title, you can look it up in the catalog and then find it on the shelf by call number.

If you need help, you can ask the circulation folks on the desk to see if they can assist as well.

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UPDATE 10:40am

Course Reserves is back up and working. Thank you for your patience!

at 9:49 AM

If a student is not enrolled during the summer we refer requests for library access (e.g. card activations) to the circulation staff. But I thought it would be helpful for us to know the policies the circulation staff are following with regards to these patrons.

Click here for Graduate Students.

Click here for Undergraduate Students.

at 12:11 PM

You'll notice when you come to the Information Point that the table behind the circulation desk looks a LOT different! We've purchased headphones for the patrons to use, and (for the moment at least) they are housed on that back table.

The things that were displaced from the table (the stack of black boxes for example) are now back in the reserves area (near the 24 hour hold shelf).

If the arrangement changes I'll let you know here.

But the cool thing is that we have a lot more headphones to lend out to patrons now!

at 10:23 AM

In case you missed the email from Carol:

For the summer, we are permitting snack foods such as granola bars, chips, crackers, cookies, candy, nuts, and small fruits and vegetables throughout Library West along with covered drinks. Other foods must still be consumed in the study area across from Starbucks or outside. Staff who observe inappropriate foods (hot entrees, salad, pizza, soup, and anything hot, messy, or odorous) should ask the patron to take the food to the area across from Starbucks or outside the building.

Several things are being done to advertise the project. There will be posters at the entrance, a notice on the web page, and a press release. A survey will be distributed to gather user reaction to the pilot project. Copies of the survey will be available at the entrance, the circulation desk, and the research assistance desk. Please encourage library users to complete the survey. Surveys will be returned to the Circulation Desk and the Research Assistance Desk. Amanda Humphries will gather the surveys each day during the lunch hour.

Also, Barbara Hood has designed some new heavy paper coasters as a way to keep our table surfaces neater. These will be distributed throughout the building, and they are certain to be popular.

Here is some of the project publicity.

The surveys are at the desk (there is a stack right at the Infopoint) and if you have someone turn one in to you, there is an orange folder on the table behind the circ desk (in the black stacked boxes where you put the ILL orange slips).

at 9:39 AM

Public printing will be unavailable intermittently from 5:00 pm until 9:00 pm on Friday, May 18th. Systems will be working with Xerox and Equitrac to install updates to their server.

Remember that students can go to any of the Circa labs to print, or to the Reitz Union for free printing.

at 5:43 PM

If a faculty member or TA wants to place items on Reserves, here are the steps as outlined by the Course Reserves staff:

To place items on Course Reserve there are 4 easy steps:

1. Go to the Course Reserves online form: http://www.uflib.ufl.edu/ereserves where you log in using your GatorID and password.

2. Fill out appropriate form. If you have a book, click on “Book” and fill out the citation information. Do the same if you have a “journal” or “multimedia” item. If you have a personal item, a call number will be automatically generated. If this is a roll-over class, click the corresponding radio button and fill out the class roll-over information. Quick Tip: copy & paste the citation from your syllabus as it will save you time. A full citation is required.

3. Be sure to fill out the Copyright form, if necessary. You can fax it to us at 392-6540.

4. Once the form is completed, hit the “submit” button. You will be given a confirmation number. Please print for your records and/or save the e-mail for future reference if you call us during the semester. You will need to include this confirmation number on any personal items that you bring in to the library circulation desk for Reserves processing.

For us on the desk, the key words here are: "You will need to include this confirmation number on any personal items that you bring in to the library circulation desk for Reserves processing." We need to make sure that we don't accept materials that do not have a confirmation number. If you have any questions or the faculty member has a question, please call back to the Course Reserves staff at 273-2520.

Once the faculty member has the confirmation number and the materials together, they can be placed on the shelf in the back. The shelf is labeled, and it's the one right next to the 24 hour hold shelf (between the Reserves shelves and the Hold shelves). There is a log there as well where you can log in the materials received.

at 5:21 PM

The folks at ALF are starting a new reclass project where items that are requested from storage will be reclassed from Dewey to LC and then put on the shelves at West. To this end, items requested from storage will have a circ note added to them by the folks at ALF so that they will be sent for reclass when they are returned by the patron.

Basically, this means that when you check out an item to a patron that was in storage it will pop up with a circ note that will say "Return to Cataloging for LC Reclass." You can totally ignore this message, click "OK" and continue checking the materials out as normal. This message is simply there to notify the folks checking in the books to send them for reclass instead of returning them to ALF.

If you have any questions though, please ask one of the circulation staff.

at 3:31 PM

If you have patrons who are not enrolled in Summer classes who want/need library privileges, please refer them to the Circulation staff. They have specific policies and procedures to follow in who gets this kind of access and how they go about setting it up in Aleph.

We can activate cards for students who are enrolled in classes, like we have been doing all along. But if anything seems unusual about their Aleph account (the expiration date has passed, their 8 digit UFID isn't in the system, etc.) please refer them to Circ for help.

at 5:06 PM

We just received an email from Emily Madden with the Price Library. While some select reference materials can be checked out from the 3rd floor (with permission) we are not to EVER check out Judaica Reference items. This might change later on when the new librarian comes on board, but for now, any questions about this policy can be directed to Emily Madden at: 273-2791.

at 9:59 AM

Well, we've trimmed back the summer training sessions. For our new folks on the desk, I'll spend your first shift on the desk with you to answer questions and provide some 1:1 training. For everyone though, the three more important training sessions to attend are:

Interlibrary Loan (new interface) - Wednesday, May 8th 11-12pm in West 419

Course Reserves (new Ares system) - These were last week, but I can ask if one more session could be offered if there is interest. Please let me know soon if you were unable to attend one of the trainings.

Aleph v18 training sessions (4 sessions) - Right now 3 of the 4 classes have been scheduled. You will be able to sign up using the new training database at this site soon.

Introduction to v.18 Circulation Client: in West 419
* Monday, May 14th 9-10am
* Tuesday, May 15th 4-5pm
* Wednesday, May 16th 10-11am
* Thursday, May 17th 3-4pm

Borrowers: in West 419
* Monday, May 21st 10-11am
* Tuesday, May 22nd 4-5pm
* Wednesday, May 23rd 9-10am
* Thursday, May 24th 3-4pm

Loans and Returns: in West 419
* Tuesday, May 29th 10-11am
* Tuesday, May 29th 4-5pm
* Thursday, May 31st 9-10am

at 2:34 PM

The statistics for April are in. This was the first full month after we'd shortened our hours to 10am-8pm. What will really be interesting is seeing what our first real summer in the new building brings. Enjoy Intercession! See you on the desk starting May 14th!

at 11:22 AM

Well, Trainings are to start next week. The most important sessions for everyone to attend are:

Interlibrary Loan Information
Date: Wednesday, May 9th 11:00 - 12:00 pm in West 419
Trainer: Michelle Foss
Trainees will be able to:
* Direct a patron to ILL/Illiad appropriately.
* Demonstrate using the new Illiad interface.
* Explain basic Interlibrary Loan policies.
* Locate and Checkout ILL items
* Accept ILL Returns appropriately

New Course Reserves Information
Dates: Monday- Friday, April 30th - May 4th 10:00 – 11:00 am in West 211
Wednesday & Thursday, May 2nd & 3rd 7:00 – 8:00 pm in West 211
Trainer: Michelle Foss
Trainees will be able to:
* Direct a patron to Ares as appropriate.
* Identify items in the UF catalog as being on reserve and explain basic course reserve policies.
* Demonstrate finding course reserves materials online in Ares.
* Locate and Checkout Reserve Items.
* Return Reserves Items appropriately.

Aleph v.18 Training
Dates: TBA
Trainers: TBA
With the upgrade to Aleph 18 coming up there will be several trainings coming up that will apply to all of us on the Information Point. So rather than have Matthew hold his usual Circulation Basics training session, I’ll email you with the dates and times for the Aleph v.18 sessions relevant to the Information Point as they are announced. It looks like there will be at least 3 of these sessions that will be important for us to attend, possibly 4.

I haven't had much response on any of the other trainings (the same ones we've offered each semester). We have 5 new volunteers joining us on the desk, so if no one else is interested in attending these trainings, we might cancel those and I can train our new teammates individually on the desk. I'll let you know via email if we do cancel any sessions.

at 12:38 PM

I just found this today, and I know it's new as of last week when I was on the desk.

On the UF homepage, when you click "Libraries" it used to take you right to the uflib.ufl.edu page. But now it takes you to a page about all the UF libraries (which I can see does make sense). It just adds an extra step when showing patrons how to get to the library homepage, but I can see it really throwing someone for a loop the first time it happened.

So now you click "Libraries" and then on the left side of this new page you click "George A Smathers Libraries" to get to our homepage.

at 1:44 PM

Just to confirm what is below in the meeting minutes from our April meeting, the logbook for Xerox problems is actually a clipboard. It's located on the table behind the circulation desk. If you have any problems with the Xerox copiers or card dispensers reported, please follow the procedures outlined below and on the flowchart here.

-------------------

Illiad is having some authentication problems. So someone trying to use ILL, even if they've been in the system for years, might be getting errors when they try to login to Illiad. If you have a patron with this problem, call Michelle Foss at 3-2541, or if she is not available call the main ILL line at 3-2535 for help.

at 3:25 PM

But you knew that right.

I found out today that items from the Gov Docs collection cannot be returned to other libraries, they must return them to the Gov Docs department. This doesn't seem to come up much, but we did have one item end up here at West today.

at 9:59 AM

This came up last week. A professor came up to the Information Point and told us that library staff sent some of his students to the wrong library - they were asking for the PK Yonge Library of Florida History, which is housed in Special Collections in Library East, but were accidentally sent to the PK Yonge School. That's an awfully long walk to end up at the wrong owning location.

So, now we know there is a PK Yonge Library of Florida History in Library East. I learn something new everyday!

---------------

Another topic that will be coming up more and more now that Summer is nearly here:
Question: If a student is graduating this Spring and starting Grad school at UF in the summer, will they have library privileges over the summer?

Answer: if they are here during spring, and enrolled for Fall, then the student can have library privileges during the summer. Usually their card access will expire in mid to late May, but if they bring it to the Circulation desk, Circ staff can give them access for the rest of the summer.

at 2:06 PM

Minutes from today's meeting:

Statistics- We looked at the February and March statistics (which are available online).
-----------------------
Schedule- We discussed the Summer schedule and a few folks have moved around. If anyone would like to move to a different time slot, or split their shift please just let me know. I'm sure we can find a schedule that works for everyone. There are several slots available since we have had a few folks who needed to drop off the schedule for the summer. (Although several are returning in the fall.)
-----------------------
Reports- We discussed a few issues:

Reporting Problems with the Copiers, Printers, or Copy Card Dispensers:
Carol shared that it is very important that all service desks consistently report any and all problems we're having with the Xerox equipment. Even if it seems to be a minor issue we need to document it. A procedure has been put into place as of today.

When staff at the desk or within any branch location become aware of a failed Copier, Card dispenser or printer:

1.) Notify your Systems Liaison. (This is Scott Fagen for the Infopoint.)

2.) If the Systems Liaison is unavailable for immediate assistance:

a. Call Xerox at 366-4407 – if they don’t answer, leave a message.

b. Document the problem in the Xerox log book at the desk (It will be on the back table behind the desk)

c. Email the Liaison (Scott Fagen) of the steps you have taken.

3.) The Liaison will always submit a SysHelp.

So basically the end result will always be Scott putting in a Syshelp for us. That way they'll have consistent documentation gathered of all problems. If you have any questions about a copier/card dispenser/printer issue, you can ask one of the circulation staff members or contact Scott (or Angela of course). No problem is too small to report.

Phone calls:
It has come up a few times that a patron wants to either know where the closest pay phones are, or wants to use the Circ phone. After speaking to the Access Services folks I've gotten the following information.

Guidelines for patrons using the Circ phones: The circulation staff really don't let patrons use the phone unless it is a very unusual circumstance (the example was someone whose wallet was stolen and they were calling UPD). So if you have a patron who is adamant about using the phone and you're not sure it's permissible refer them to the pay phones, campus phones or to circulation staff.

Pay phones are located: Across the street in front of Target Copy

Working Campus phones are located: In Bryan Hall (east of us, past Anderson and Matherly halls) and in Criser Hall. The one that is outside of Library West does not work.

VHS vs DVD:
A few patrons have had this same issue where they are looking for a DVD but are searching in the VHS section or vice versa. To some patrons the word "video" is interchangeable with "DVD" and this can cause confusion. Just something to be aware of when an item isn't being found.

Also though, it is possible that an item is actually mislabeled or mis-shelved. If you find an item is mislabeled, Naomi requests that you send an email to the Cataloging Problems email address so that it can be fixed. If an item is mis-shelved or not found in the proper location, you can fill out an "Item Is Not On Shelf" form (on the back table) so that Access Services can initiate a search.

Fire Drill/Alarm Procedures:
The procedures for us to follow anytime the fire alarms go off are simply to lock your workstation and exit the building. However be aware that patrons with physical disabilities may not be able to leave the building via the stairs. You are not to wait with the person, but instead take their name and location (they may have an orange card with this information to give you) and report it to the first uniformed person you find outside the building.
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Training:
I've confirmed with the trainers that they are available and ready to hold training sessions during the week of May 7th-11th. I'll be sending out invitations to the sessions soon. If you haven't attended any one of these sessions before they are highly recommended. I've gotten excellent feedback on all of them. Folks have reported that they are highly relevant and useful when on the desk. Everyone is encouraged to attend each training at least once, although feel free to come for a refresher if you've attended before!
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Call for Volunteers:
The call went out via email yesterday. Please share with your colleagues how you've enjoyed working on the Information Point and encourage everyone to join us. The more the merrier! The only requirements are that they be a TEAMS or USPS position and that they have their supervisor's approval.

at 3:24 PM

Fines going UP

Fines are increasing starting with Summer A/C this year. We have little information cards at the desk that can be handed out to patrons, and there is information online as well.

Semester winding DOWN:

The Spring semester is drawing to a close. The last day to staff the Information Point is Friday, April 27th.

Gearing UP for Summer:

It's time to think about the Summer!

Have you enjoyed working on the Information Point? Let me know if you're willing to volunteer again for the Summer!

Have you been looking for the opportunity to switch up your schedule a bit? Let me know if you'd like to change to a different shift!

Do you have some fellow officemates who have been jealous all Spring about all the fun you're having on the Information Point? Time to send them my way so that we can add them to our schedule!

Getting DOWN to business:

Finals Week is almost here. The Student Government is looking to offer free coffee and donuts in the 1st floor cafe area on April 26th. We don't have a lot of details at the moment, but more information should be forthcoming.

Training coming UP:

With Endeca on the way, a recently updated ILL interface, and now an upcoming new Electronic Reserves system coming this summer, we'll have lots of new training opportunities coming up as well. Watch this space for training dates! Well, I'll email you too. ;)

at 3:41 PM

The HUB is now open for students to use. There is an article on the Office of Academic Technology's website that details some of the features of the new space. There is also a link to their hours which are: Mon-Thurs 8am-10pm, Friday8am-5pm, and Saturday & Sunday closed.

The site says they have videoconferencing suites and workgroup spaces supported with multimedia and videoconferencing. I'm not sure how analogous those are to our group study rooms though. They have wireless access and walk-up internet access but don't say how many computers they have available. The reference to "laptop appointments" refers to their being able to help folks figure out issues with their personal laptops.

If anyone goes by there we'd love to hear more about how the new space looks!

at 9:28 AM

Both events are open to the public. If you're not on the desk at these times stop by! The events have been great!

Wednesday, April 4th: 3–5 PM in East 100

Jennifer Hu Corriggio, Visiting Assistant Professor of Law, Florida Coastal School of Law, Jacksonville, FL: “The Spanish Roma: Gitano Cultural Identity, Flamenco and Legal Governance” (Lecture with a slide show)

Thursday, April 5th: 2–5 PM in East 100

Dr. Geoffrey Giles, Associate Professor of History, Department of History, UF: “Gypsies and the Holocaust” (Lecture and screening of Porraimos: Europe’s Gypsies in the Holocaust – a documentary film, 2002)

------------------------------

Also, on a separate note, please push the Read-a-thon as much as you can this week. It's next week and we still have lots of reading slots available. We'd love staff, faculty and students to read and also come to listen and enjoy free 5Star pizza on the plaza! If you can sign up for a slot that would be great!

The website to sign up for a slot is linked on the library homepage under the announcements section on the right side. There should be handouts at the desk as well. Feel free to place one in any books you check-out or hand to anyone coming to the desk!

at 11:13 AM

The Electronic Resources in Japanese Studies Workshop is being held today. There are three associated events to be aware of:

2pm in West 212: Global Interlibrary Loan

3pm in West 211: Digital Resources

4pm in East 100: Keynote Lecture and Reception to follow

at 12:30 PM

Now that we no longer have the 8-10am shift folks doing this, it will fall to the 10-12 shift folks to change the dates on the date-stamps in the morning. Until we're all used to the change, it would be a good idea to double check the dates before you check out the first items of the day.

Also, if you have questions about the circulation of reference items the Circ folks should have the answers for you. I do know that the test prep books (GRE, CLAST, LSAT, etc.) can be checked out. But we recently found out that the Judaica Reference books do not circulate at all. The 3rd floor reference books can circulate only if they have a notice with them from the reference desk giving permission.

Can you tell it's been a slow week for updates? If you have anything come up that you think the Infopoint folks should be aware of, please email Angela to have it added to the blog. I'm always on the lookout for blog topics!

at 9:47 AM

This came up in a meeting last week. Sometimes when you're on the Information Point Aleph can go down. It happened to me about a week ago.

When this happens, the circulation staff member will set up two terminals (probably not the InfoPoint one) for Offline Circulation. One line will be for short term loan items (laptops, keys, course reserves, basically anything with a loan period of less than one day) and the other will be for regular loans. During this time, we'll still be able to answer questions and retrieve ILL materials for patrons, but we'll have to refer anything that requires the staff side of Aleph to the two working terminals.

The good news is that Aleph is usually not down for very long.

at 3:48 PM

The celebration yesterday was very well attended, and I hope everyone enjoyed the food and recognition. Click here to see the great photos that Barbara took. I thoroughly enjoyed throwing you a party, and I can't wait to do another one! Everyone has been a lot of fun to work with and has really made a difference to the Information Point, the library and the patrons. I sent certificates back with folks for the folks who couldn't attend so hopefully you've gotten them by now. Just a little something to add to your collections of accomplishments. ;)

Now for the news you've all been waiting for! I was able to meet with Carol this week and we've gotten the go-ahead to continue the Information Point for the foreseeable future. That means we'll even staff it over the summer. There was one change that is to be implemented immediately following Spring Break and that is to change the hours of coverage. We will be staffing the desk from 10-8pm, and eliminating the 8-10am shift. This is all based on statistical data we've gathered. (You guys have been doing great in gathering data! Thank you!)

I very much value everyone's contribution to the Information Point though, and so I've been trying to fit everyone into the existing schedule by seeing what hours the former morning folks are available and who would be willing to give up half of their shift. So far I've been able to place most of the morning folks who need coverage, but I do have two more to hear from. I should have the new schedule finalized by Monday and if your regular shift is changing at all it will only be with your knowledge and consent. If you have any questions, please give me (Angela) a call. I appreciate everyone being flexible while we figure out how to keep all our volunteers on the desk.

at 4:02 PM

Neflin has free full color help guides on over 60 computer programs that we can get for free. Here is a link to a list of available guides.

Do you get questions about using any particular programs (Windows, Word, Excel,PowerPoint, etc.) Would these quick reference guides be useful on the Information Point?

I personally haven't been getting these kinds of questions, but I thought I'd check with you all before saying we don't need them. You can email Angela or leave a comment here with your feedback.

Thank you!

at 10:30 AM

I have great news! The Employee Recognition Committee has approved a request for Discretionary Recognition Funds to be used to upgrade our March Meeting into a celebration! So come and join us for a celebration to recognize all the Information Specialists who have volunteered on the Information Point. Food and drinks will be provided. Please notice the time has been changed to a more food-friendly time. See you there!

Date: Wednesday, March 14th
Time: 12:00-1:00pm
Place: Access Services Conf Room 253

at 3:39 PM

Everyone enjoy your spring break! We won't staff the Infopoint next week. But do remember to come to our Team Meeting on Wednesday the 14th! The Employee Recognition Committee has given us some $ to turn this into a real celebration, so there will be food! Watch for a new and improved invitation to come to you soon!

at 12:30 PM

This came up yesterday. If a person is IN a group study room with a group they can't get on the waiting list until they've turned the key back in. If you have any questions about these kinds of questions, check with the Circ staff out at the desk. Sometimes patrons ask the darnedest things. :)

at 11:43 AM

Today from 3:30pm-7:00pm Illiad will be undergoing the major upgrade we heard about in the recent ILL presentation. During this time no one will be able to log into Illiad.

After the upgrade, the user interface will look completely different, so I encourage you to explore it when you have the chance. From the presentation it looks like it will be much more user-friendly and easy to navigate, but it is substantially different than the old Illiad. ILL staff are available for questions about the new interface at their main number 273-2535.

at 3:52 PM

Rooms 335 & 336 are the two rooms with ADA/Media equipment. These are available by reservation for up to 4 people. The people reserving the rooms must also be using the equipment.

If you go to the main library page there is a link to the Information Commons page. From there you can click Accessibility and Media Production Studios and that page will show you the equipment, peripherals and software available in those rooms. From there you can click on the highlighted word reserve to see what the reservation policies are. There is an online reservation form, or the patron can go up to the third floor reference desk to reserve a room in person. For more information you can call your fellow Information Specialist Marilyn Ochoa.

Starting Monday, February 19th room 229 will be undergoing an upgrade. This room will be getting specialized equipment to allow it to be used for teleconferencing. This room will no longer be checked out by the Circulation desk, instead it will be reserved and checked out at the third floor reference desk. I do not know how long the installation of the equipment will actually take, but I have been told it will no longer be checked out by the Circulation folks as of February 19th.

Also, just a reminder that folks can also reserve the Group Presentation area (the area near the bean bags with the giant monitor) at the reference desk as well. That information is also linked on the Information Commons page.

at 11:31 AM

I just attended the Fire Safety class today and then went on a fire extinguisher hunt. I thought I'd share my findings with you.

Fire extinguishers are all over the place. I found that if I went to a spot where two corridors converged I could see an extinguisher box.

The closest fire extinguishers to the circulation desk are located on either side of the circulation desk on the walls with the long benches towards the north end of the bench (in the halls heading back to the 2nd floor stacks).

There are pull stations (for setting off the fire alarm) at each the door leading into the stairwells on the 2nd and 1st floors, and at the emergency exit doors leading outside from the stairwells on the first floor. Apparently they are placed so that you can pull them on your way OUT of the building.

at 11:28 AM

Just a reminder, Group Study Rooms and Laptops should never be checked out to library staff members. If they need a meeting space you can refer them to the various training rooms and conference rooms in the libraries. If they do need a laptop for any reason, please refer them to systems. I'm told systems has loaner laptops for staff use. If you think the staff member might have an extenuating circumstance, please refer them to one of the Access Services managers.

at 3:48 PM

We've had a few folks looking for Tax forms (like the 1040EZ) to file their returns. These can be found in Government Documents on the first floor of the Marston Science Library.

at 3:27 PM

Just a fun fact:

When the Gator Wait pagers are running low on battery power they will start letting out an occasional beep (not the full out lighting up buzzing - just a beep). The pager will still work for the patron, but when it comes back it's a good idea to place it down on the bottom of the stack so that it won't be given out for a while.

at 12:16 PM

We've had a recent increase in the number of patrons having issues with connecting to the wireless network using their laptops. If you have a patron complaint different from the one below, please report it to me so we can see if there are additional issues.

The patron comes to the desk and says they can't log into the wireless network. I was able to get the patron to show me the error he was getting. This was the error:

This was a new laptop and it has Microsoft Vista on it rather than Microsoft Windows XP. Vista has some increased security options that are turned on by default. This page is basically saying "the page you're trying to view is possibly a dangerous page, do you REALLY want to go there?"

All the patron has to do is click the option with the scary red X that says "continue to this website (not recommended)."

I can imagine we'll be getting more inquiries about this as folks get their new laptops with Vista.

--------------------- edited to add--------------
The image above is the error they'll get in Internet Explorer. If they are using Firefox as their browser they might see this error:

------You may have seen this commercial about the security in Vista:------

at 2:38 PM

We have January statistics available now. I think we can all see a clear pattern here.

The circulation folks are gathering stats for us this week. I'll compile those and compare them with our stats from this week and see what shows. Then I'll hopefully be able to set up a meeting with the powers that be and get a decision on the future of the Information Point. If you have ideas about what you'd like to see us continue to do or what you like for the future, chime in on the discussion (or start a new one) on the Information Point Forum we have on the Library BBS.

at 4:32 PM

We had a patron earlier having a problem with the copiers. He tried all three floors, but found that his copies kept coming out lighter and lighter. We called Xerox and they came out to look to see if the copiers were running low on toner. They weren't. But I got a great tip to share with patrons who have this problem!

If you do not close the top of the copier down over whatever you're copying, the light from the room goes through the glass and compromises the quality of the copy. Use the top of the copier to shield the glass from the light of the room as much as possible to get the best copy quality. I think this mostly will come into play when folks are trying to copy pages from a text (like a reserve item). They tend to use both hands to push the book down and hold it still and do not close the lid. I know it takes extra time to close and open the lid for each copy, but it really does work!

I thought this tip was worth passing along!

at 9:51 AM

We met yesterday and went over the November and December statistics. They're now linked online as well. I think it's fairly obvious that we're primarily doing circulation transactions at this point.

When asked how they feel about this the consensus was that no one was surprised about this. Discussion ensued about how different the Information Point really is from the other circulation desk service points. Are we providing any different kinds of service? It was suggested we keep statistics at the other circulation points to see if the stats show we are answering the same types of questions as the circulation staff. I spoke with the Access Services managers later yesterday and have their approval to design a statistics form for the other circulation desk service points. They will keep statistics (just like we do-with the same categories) for one week between Monday and Friday next week. I'll compile the data and we can see what it shows.

Another topic, and one that has consistently come up in our team meetings is everyone's desire to hear from the circulation staff. To this end we will have a joint meeting at our February Team meeting we will invite all of the circulation staff and have an opportunity to meet everyone and have an open discussion about working the desk together. I spoke with the Access Services managers on this as well, and while they're not sure what kind of feedback is being sought they are open to attending our meeting. They didn't think the student staff would be able to attend in any great number, but we should be able to get the majority of the circulation staff to attend if we time it between 3:30-4:30pm sometime midweek and have enough lead time for schedules to be adjusted. I'll be looking at everyone's February schedules and try to pick a time when most everyone is showing as available. Several of the circulation folks will be coming in early to make the meeting and hopefully anyone who normally leaves early will be able to adjust their schedule to stay a later for the meeting.

Other things that came up in the meeting yesterday:

People ARE reading the blog

I will conduct a survey for the Information Specialists in March

The TV/VCR/DVD players ARE installed in the 6 round booths on the 2nd floor. There are remotes at the circ desk that we can use to help the patron, but we can NOT check them out or give them to the patrons for use.

The late evening volunteers are worried about making trades when they have to miss a shift. They often volunteer to take daytime shifts, not necessarily as a trade, but just to help out and they hope folks will be willing to cover for them occasionally.

It came up and I later confirmed that we WILL be closing the Information Point over Spring Break. Enjoy your Spring Break week!

Suggestions for me to bring up to the Library West Building Group:

More demarkation showing that the Information Point is different than a regular circulation Point.

Having a triage point on the first floor between the escalators during the first few weeks of school. (But not specifically staffed by Information Specialists exclusively)

Possibly using the Information Station on the first floor inside or outside the library.

Creating and having something in-house to help students who are just looking for "novels" or "something to read." Perhaps a list of suggested call number ranges to search for different kinds of books (poetry, novels, etc.)

Later in my meeting with Access Services we were discussing the possibility of establishing a staff presence on the first floor stacks-side. A discussion of this possibility has begun in the Information Point Forum on the Library BBS. Come give your opinion.

If I've left out anything from the meeting, please add your comments below. We talked about a lot of things and my minutes are only as good as my notes!

Monday, January 07, 2008

Thursday, January 03, 2008

Monday, December 17, 2007

Friday, December 07, 2007

Tuesday, December 04, 2007

Wednesday, November 28, 2007

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

Friday, November 09, 2007

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

Monday, October 29, 2007

Thursday, October 11, 2007

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

Wednesday, October 03, 2007

Monday, October 01, 2007

Thursday, September 27, 2007

Tuesday, September 11, 2007

Monday, September 10, 2007

Friday, August 31, 2007

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Thursday, August 23, 2007

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

Monday, August 20, 2007

Friday, August 17, 2007

Thursday, August 16, 2007

Wednesday, August 15, 2007

Friday, August 10, 2007

Tuesday, August 07, 2007

Monday, July 30, 2007

Friday, July 27, 2007

Thursday, July 19, 2007

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

Wednesday, July 11, 2007

Tuesday, July 10, 2007

Wednesday, June 27, 2007

Monday, June 25, 2007

Friday, June 22, 2007

Wednesday, June 20, 2007

Thursday, June 14, 2007

Wednesday, June 13, 2007

Monday, June 11, 2007

Friday, June 08, 2007

Thursday, June 07, 2007

Wednesday, June 06, 2007

Tuesday, June 05, 2007

Wednesday, May 30, 2007

Tuesday, May 29, 2007

Wednesday, May 23, 2007

Monday, May 21, 2007

Friday, May 18, 2007

Wednesday, May 16, 2007

Wednesday, May 09, 2007

Tuesday, May 08, 2007

Friday, May 04, 2007

Thursday, May 03, 2007

Monday, April 30, 2007

Friday, April 27, 2007

Thursday, April 26, 2007

Wednesday, April 25, 2007

Friday, April 20, 2007

Thursday, April 12, 2007

Tuesday, April 03, 2007

Monday, April 02, 2007

Monday, March 26, 2007

Monday, March 19, 2007