Newsletter of the Tisch Library of Tufts University
Winter 2004 No. 39
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In This Issue:
Level G Update
New Electronic Resources
New Microforms List
Print to Electronic Journal Transition
Printable Version
Off-Site Reference Service
New Millennium
LibQual + Survey
Lincoln Exhibition Plans
New PCs for Tisch
Students, instructor Dale Peterson, and librarian Regina Raboin
make use of a new computer in the Electronic Resource
Center
The Tisch Library is currently in the midst of
replacing all existing public access computers with new, state-of-the-art,
Dell SX-270 models. Although the existing machines are only three years
old or less, the new computers, equipped with Pentium 4 3.06 Ghz processors
and 512Mb RAM, will offer significantly improved performance. The new CPUs,
small enough to be mounted under the table, along with new 17" flat panel displays, will also offer a substantial increase in usable
desk space, always at a premium.
make use of a new computer in the Electronic Resource Center
The machines will be using Microsoft Windows
XP Professional as the operating system, which includes support for
USB devices, including the increasingly popular USB memory keys. These
have much higher capacity than floppy disks, thus increasing flexibility
by providing a fully satisfactory alternative to printing or emailing
downloaded information. The new monitors have USB connections built
directly into the side of them, and because flat panel display measurements
are actual sizes, offer an increase of more than 20 percent in image
size while using almost half the energy and producing significantly
less heat, which will also serve to cut down on the air conditioning
load in the library. The Library expects to complete the PC replacement
by the end of spring 2004.
The Library also recently replaced the computers in the Electronic
Resource Center with similar machines mounted on the back of the monitors,
significantly improving the sight lines in the room. Each list provides a title's subject heading, the series name when
applicable, the call number, the call number of any accompanying guide,
and the cabinet number in the microforms collection where the item is
located. Additionally, each title is linked to the library catalog so you
can check to see the extent of our holdings. In FY03, the Tisch bibliographers started a dialogue with academic
departments about transitioning from print to electronic journals with the
goal of canceling some print journal subscriptions for FY04.
Bibliographers approached science and engineering departments in which the
majority of the journal literature is available electronically. Scientists
and engineers were early adopters of electronic journals, and 24/7
electronic journal access has become central to scientific research. Four
departments agreed to make the transition from print to electronic only in
FY04 for the majority of their journals. Several other departments agreed
to pursue this issue further with the goal of transitioning in FY05. The
discussion will continue with all departments, including the social
sciences and humanities, as more electronic journals become available and
familiarity with them increases.
Because commercial publishers are protecting their revenue stream by
setting electronic journal costs at the same level as their print
counterparts (although it is estimated that it costs only about 30% of
print costs to publish electronically!), the Tisch Library will save only
the access fee that publishers currently charge when a library subscribes
to both the print and electronic versions of a journal. While the savings
appear to be small, they will cover the gap between the 7% FY04 budget
increase and the 9% predicted inflation rate. In addition, the transition
will result in other savings, including space and binding costs.
The Tisch Library will cancel print only after thorough consultation
with academic departments and an assurance from the publisher that the
library will have perpetual access to the electronic editions of the
journals it has purchased. Beginning in mid-October, Wayne Powell, the engineering specialist on
Tisch's reference staff, has been spending two hours a week (currently
Tuesdays, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.) at the Engineering Project Development Center
to answer questions and assist students with any problems they may be
having in library research.
Although the service got off to a relatively quiet start, several
students have already stopped by with questions. Other institutions have
found that offering off-site service has proven popular. For Tisch this is
still an experimental program, and the times and amount of service may
change depending upon patron response.
Reference service is not a new thing in Anderson. Until 1996, the space
occupied by the EPDC was the site of the Lufkin Engineering Library, which
was absorbed that year into the new Tisch Library building.
Level G Update
New Electronic Resources
This database of genealogical
information, drawn from census materials, social security records, Civil
and Revolutionary War records and slave narratives, offers the perfect
starting point for tracing family history. A quick search for lines of
descent may turn into a not-so-quick engagement with the fascinations of
genealogy. If so, the database offers helpful directions for continuing
that investigation beyond the information readily at hand within it.
Results of polls conducted by
the Gallup Corporation back to the 1930s are accessible here. Find out the
answers to as many of the 125,000 questions asked in this period as you
please! From the home page of this database, it is easy to review the
latest polling surveys from Gallup, as well as to sample a Timeline of key
polls within the eight decades (e.g. 2000s: corporate corruption, 9/11
attacks, and 2000 election controversy). You can also do a Quick Search
there for the subject of any poll that would interest you (e.g.,
affirmative action, school prayer).
Long-recognized as a
premier contemporary literary review, the Times Literary
Supplement is now searchable from 1902-1994 in this full-text
resource that provides a "mirror to the cultural history of our century."
As a bonus, the names of contributors, anonymous through 1974, have been
restored wherever possible.
This
bibliography, compiled by the International Medieval Institute at the
University of Leeds, is now available on the web. Searchable within it are
over 270,000 entries on topics covering the full range of medieval
studies. The entries are drawn from over 5000 miscellany volumes and over
4000 periodicals in thirty languages. The source is updated yearly.
The complete back runs of thirty-two journals
devoted to research and theory in music, including journals published in
the Netherlands, Croatia, Hungary, Germany, and France, have recently been
added to the JSTOR e-journal collection. Addressing topics within a
wide range of musical genres, this new JSTOR subset includes
articles published as early as 1844 along with articles on musicology in
contemporary times. Manuscript studies and criticism and book reviews from
distinguished scholars, musicians, and composers will also be found here.
For access, select JSTOR from the Databases and Articles list,
choose Browse, and link to Music. The information page for each journal
describes its content.
Experienced database users
know the value of looking periodically at the "What's New" (or similarly
named) page of their favorite database. For example, that page of the
e-journal collection Project Muse currently identifies over
twenty new journals it has launched in 2003.
Need to find one more source
for that paper? A new service allows you to search the library's complete
microform collection by title or subject. Accessible from Other Services
on the Tisch website, the Microforms &
Current Periodicals page provides a listing of the entire microform
collection in alphabetical order, or you can choose a general subject
heading to get a list of subject-related titles.
The cost of
academic journals continues to inflate at a higher rate than other
commodities, putting a tremendous burden on library budgets. Between 1986
and 2001, journal costs increased by 215% compared to just a 41% increase
in the Consumer Price Increase. Academic libraries worldwide, including
the Tisch Library, have joined together to exert pressure on commercial
publishers to contain costs. In the past two fiscal years, journal
inflation has been contained in the 10% range, and publishers have begun
to allow libraries to cancel print subscriptions in favor of
electronic-only access.
Off-Site Reference Service
Bringing library reference service back to Anderson
Hall is the first of what may be several outreach projects designed by
Tisch librarians to provide library services to students and faculty where
they are, rather than having them come to the library. Over the past
several years the increase in electronically available services and
materials has meant that it is no longer necessary to visit Tisch as often
in person to do research. One downside to this trend is that people who
may not know how best to use the many services that are offered don't have
a chance to speak with a librarian or ask for help.
Stephanie Upson finds reference help at hand
Coming in Summer 2004. a new Millennium
Tufts Libraries' new system will enable our users to link directly into
full-text sources from the online catalog and search across multiple
databases simultaneously. In future releases users will link to particular
electronic journal issues directly from the web catalog. The new system
begins to fully integrate our access to traditional and electronic
collections, making the catalog a one-stop source for the Libraries'
myriad of information resources.
LibQual + Survey
In the spring of 2003, the Tisch Library, along with 308 other academic libraries, took part in the LibQUAL+ survey of user satisfaction. The survey, administered over the web, was filled out by over 125,000 respondents in all, with 513 Tufts undergraduates, 175 Tufts graduate students and 71 Tufts faculty members participating. Participating in LibQUAL+ has allowed us to supplement our decade-long history of local user satisfaction survey data with comparative data across a wide range of institutions, including libraries from peer universities.
The survey measured user satisfaction utilizing three scales: minimum, desired, and perceived levels of service quality. Comparisons among these three scales allow us to quantify user group zones of tolerance and identify gaps in our service levels. Where the perceived level of service exceeds the desired level, there is a positive service score; when the perceived level fails to rise to the minimum level of service, there is a negative service adequacy score. There were twenty-five questions in all.
Undergraduates were the most satisfied with Tisch and consistently gave the library scores within the level of tolerance. Graduate students and faculty members did express dissatisfaction with access to printed materials and print and electronic journal collections (re: 2 of the 25 questions). These are results which we anticipated, and which the library will aim to improve. Our peer institutions received dissatisfied scores in these areas as well as in others.
Overall, LibQUAL+ has added to the store of self-knowledge that Tisch
will use in striving for ongoing improvement in meeting the needs of its
patrons.
Lincoln Exhibition Update
BiblioTech Connections is published three times a year: in the fall, winter, and spring. It is made available in print form as well as via the Web.
- Contributors to this issue:
- Richard Heckbert
- Paul Stanton
- Beverly Gobiel
- Laura Walters
- Wayne Powell
- Charlotte Keys
- Edward Oberholtzer
- Stephanie St. Laurence
- Photographer: J.D. Sloan (1st photograph)
- Photographer: Richard Fleischer (2nd and 3rd photographs)
- Paul Stanton
- Editor: Margaret Gooch
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