A little color showing

Fall is in the air and the trees are beginning to turn just a bit. The color in autumn is so cheerful. It gives me a psychic lift just as we enter the cold and dark season. The "American household botany : a history of useful plants 1620-1900" [SB 108 .U5 585 2004] by Judith Sumner notes practical uses for plants.

The review from Booklist posted on Amazon

Sumner examines nearly two hundred years of American know-how, offering a captivating perspective on how plants have been used in the home. The foodstuffs of Native American agriculture and the gardens of European settlers are first studied, from the preparation of many kinds of grains to arrays of fruits, berries, and vegetables found in the kitchen gardens at Monticello. Early "herbals" and cookbooks provide background, which is supplemented by descriptions of botanical aspects such as toxic compounds or helpful medicinal properties..."

Ms. Sumner doesn't mention color as a useful feature of plants but I know the change of seasons helps this city person get through life!

The view changes a bit

North Metro will be joined by Chattahoochee Tech in Marietta to form the largest technical college in Georgia. Today the President of the new school was announced.

We'll have different resources to talk about!

Now this is a library!

Thanks to The Distant Librarian who thanked Darlene for this portrait of a spectacular personal library noted in Wired.com.

What an amazing space!

-kls

Pretty is, as pretty does

Shelving horticulture books is such a pleasure. The pictures are magnificent. I stand and flip through the pages all for the purpose of being able to tell students where the best books on horticulture may be found. At least that's what I tell myself.

Yet, sometimes one can't get to the shelves to peruse the pictures. Our netLibrary collection has 37 titles published by Timber Press. I found them by using the advanced search link in netLibrary and typing in Timber Press for the publisher. There are more books for gardeners in netLibrary just search by your favorite plant!

Hort folks know that Timber Press publishes some 'fine' books for gardeners!

You do need to create your 'free account' (your library card) in netLibrary either on campus or through GALILEO.

And where do you get the current password to use GALILEO? Yes, your Georgia librarian.


-kls

Online resources

There is a gas crunch in the Atlanta area. The lack of gas makes our online resources very attractive!

You may use the over 45,000 e-books in netLibrary (register for a netLibrary account at your Georgia library)) and the over 300 Reference books in Credo Reference, not to mention the over 2000 periodicals available through GALILEO(password from your Georgia librarian)!

We do offer a full service library online.

-kls

Registration

Four orientations today.
A full house at the first session.
Students coming to the library to register.
The Fall Quarter begins on Wednesday.

-kls

Calling all cars

In honor of Constitution Day- read the Preamble. This art piece was created by Mike Wilkins.

Please note the states are in alphabetical order! Mr. Wilkins must be a librarian at heart.


-kls

Shh, We're writing....

They wrote and wrote and wrote...fortunately the Library of Congress has collected and digitized some of the writings at the Documents from the Continental Congress and the Constitutional Convention.

The Continental Congress Broadside Collection (256 titles) and the Constitutional Convention Broadside Collection (21 titles) contain 277 documents relating to the work of Congress and the drafting and ratification of the Constitution. Items include extracts of the journals of Congress, resolutions, proclamations, committee reports, treaties, and early printed versions of the United States Constitution and the Declaration of Independence. Most broadsides are one page in length; others range from 1 to 28 pages. A number of these items contain manuscript annotations not recorded elsewhere that offer insight into the delicate process of creating consensus. In many cases, multiple copies bearing manuscript annotations are available to compare and contrast.

My title came from the book by Jean Fritz, "Shh! We're writing the Constitution".

Using GALILEO I found the title in Book Index with Reviews. The first time I searched in BIR, I had too many h's in the Shhhh. When I tried by author, the title came right up. Spelling does count.

I looked for the title in NoveList and couldn't find it by author or by title.I was surprised it's not listed in NoveList. I really was looking for extenders for the classroom. I noticed the NoveList K-8 as I was scrolling through the GALILEO list - so I thought- well, maybe it's in that database - nope - not there either.

All three databases are published by EBSCO. Interesting. You get the password to use GALILEO at home from your Georgia librarian.


-kls

Reference Wiki

Greetings.

One resource that we would like to make you aware of is our reference wiki North Metro Tech Reference Wiki.

First, what is a reference wiki? A reference wiki is a tool that is being increasingly used by libraries and librarians. The purpose of a reference wiki is to allow library staff, and in some cases library users, to create editable information about the library and its resources.

There are several reasons for creating this wiki:

The wiki provides alternate routes to valuable library resources in case that the other routes are disabled.

The wiki provides basic information about the library and its resources.

Librarians post received or asked questions to the wiki. This allows librarians to share with other librarians their past experiences in helping a patron. It also allows a librarian to remember how they did something in the past.

The wiki is easily editable in case resources become out of date or there is a better way of helping a patron with a particular issue.

The format we chose to use for the reference wiki is Wetpaint. We felt that this was the format that was capable of being edited the easiest. There have been some complaints about Wetpaint being too commercial. However, you can request Wetpain remove any ads from your wiki if you declare yourself to be an educational wiki.

JWF

violating copyright

I went looking for YouTube videos about the Preamble of the US Constitution. Someone has uploaded the School House Rocks version- which is very clever, easy to sing and probably violates copyright- but it is Constitution week- you may be tested on your knowledge of the Preamble and this is an easy way to learn it!

We the People

We the People of the United States,
.....(that’s all of us- you and me)

in Order to form a more perfect Union,
.....(better than the old country)

establish Justice,
.....(everyone is equal under the law)

insure domestic Tranquility,
.....(my neighborhood should be safe and so should your neighborhood)

provide for the common defense,
.....(we’ll fight together against attackers)

promote the general Welfare,
.....(we’ll look out for each other)

and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity,
.....(we’ll be free people and so will our children and grandchildren)

do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

Read All About it

Just in from Karen Minton at GALILEO:

The Digital Library of Georgia is pleased to announce the availability of a new online resource:

The Macon Telegraph Archive (1826-1908).

The Macon Telegraph Archive provides online access to early issues of the Macon Telegraph ranging from its inception as a weekly newspaper in 1826, through the daily issues of the early twentieth century. Consisting of over 50,000 newspaper pages, the archive provides historical images that are both full-text searchable and can be browsed by date.

Launched just three years after the city of Macon was incorporated, the Macon Telegraph provides an inside view into the initial years of the city’s growth. Macon’s central location within the state provided the paper with a unique perspective of the news through a period when middle Georgia was both geographically and politically a focal point of the state. During the early publication of the newspaper, Macon and its surrounding areas were guided politically, economically, and racially by the growth of cotton. Through that lens the paper provides historical insight into the development of the state during the sectionalism of the antebellum period, the devastation of the Civil War, and the rise of the “New South” in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

The Macon Telegraph Archive is a project of the Digital Library of Georgia as part of the Georgia HomePLACE initiative. The project is supported with federal LSTA funds administered by the Institute of Museum and Library Services through the Georgia Public Library Service, a unit of the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia.

-kls

The sky turned green

News from the Digital Library of Georgia:

Explore the dramatic story of “The 1936 Gainesville Tornado: Disaster and Recovery” at the Digital Library of Georgia (DLG) – now substantially expanded and enhanced through completion of the second phase of a collaborative digitization project with the Hall County Library System and the Walter J. Brown Media Archives and Peabody Awards Collection, as part of Georgia HomePLACE.

The initial phase, completed last year, provided online access to a digitized version of original historical film depicting extensive storm damage in Gainesville from the severe 1936 multi-funnel tornado strike, generally regarded as the fifth deadliest in U.S. history. An interactive map provided geographically-based access to selected film clips for which shooting locations have been identified.

The recently completed second phase adds a multi-media online exhibit to tell a more complete story covering both the tornado strike as well as the extensive recovery effort afterwards (including the important role of President Franklin D. Roosevelt). Website visitors can follow the exhibit narrative sequentially through chronological stages (tornado outbreak, damage and destruction, relief and rescue, rebuilding) or alternatively drill down to specific information about any particular aspect of the disaster or recovery. The exhibit integrates selected clips from the film footage, related still images (photographs and
postcards) from the Hall County Library Historic Photograph Collection and the Vanishing Georgia collection, and dramatic quotes from eye witnesses.

To accommodate the more complex selection and presentation of digitized historical materials, DLG also redesigned and enlarged the project website, which now includes separate tabbed sections for the exhibit, primary sources, the interactive map, and additional resources (archival, reading, related links). The project is supported with federal LSTA funds administered by the Institute of Museum and Library Services through the Georgia Public Library Service, a unit of the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia.

-kls

Career Advice for Those Who Don't Like to Read Books

Okay, let's admit it, not everyone likes to read books. There are a lot of reasons for this, which we shall not digress into at this juncture.

The growth of graphic novels, books that present their content in a format similar to comic books, is in part due to the preferences of some to not read traditional books. Even so, those who choose not to read or are uncomfortable doing so may find that they still need the advice and help that is available through books. This may be especially true of many of our students, who often seek guidance as to their future and their future career.

A solution has presented itself. The library has a copy of the book 'the Adventures of Johnny Bunko: the Last Career Guide You'll Ever Need.' This book is a career/work/life guide, but one that is presented in the format of a graphic novel. The book may be a career guide solution for those of you who don't want to read through a 'normal' book about careers or work choices. The book's website claims that you should be able to read the book within an hour. The graphic style of the book is manga, a Japanese format that is quite popular with younger readers in the United States. The website has other information about the book, including a brief trailer for the book, done in the anime style (which is animated manga). The book may offer some brief tips about career paths and choices while holding your attention with its unusual style.

JWF

Ping, whoosh, shush, ping, whoosh

What is that sound?
Did it come from the left front, the right front, the back left, the back right, under the hood.....
Is it rhythmic or sporadic?
Can the car make that sound for anyone but me?

When the automobile works, it works very well.
When it doesn't - oh my!

Fortunately most automobiles work very well with just the minimum of maintenance. What do you need to do to keep your vehicle running well? If you purchased a new car, the owners manual gives hints and tips. If you purchased from a large dealer they may send letters or e-mails reminding you when routine service needs to be done. What if you didn't buy a new car? How do you keep up with those oil changes, etc?

We purchased Auto Upkeep : Basic Car Care, Maintenance, and Repair 2nd edition [TL 152 .G6387 2007]by Michael E. Gray and Linda E. Gray. The Preface notes:

Auto Upkeep : Basic Car Care, Maintenance, and Repair is an introductory book that is intended to provide individuals with the knowledge to make economical decisions and take preventative measures to enhance the overall satisfaction of being an automotive consumer

Auto Upkeep is used by some as a textbook. The Gray's provide links both in the text and online to resources pertaining to each chapter (manufacturers, oil companies, etc).

Don't forget that Auto Repair Reference Center in GALILEO has the Chilton manuals for most vehicles. You remember how to get the password to use GALILEO at home?

Prevent odd and unusual noises from emanating from your vehicle by keeping up with the routine maintenance and care! We have print and online resources to keep you moving.

-kls

And their job was?

Labor Day always reminds me of the hymn "Come Labor On". I think about all the people who've worked to make our lives better. I started wondering how I could find statistics about how many people did a certain job at a certain time.

I played with Ancestry.com (Library edition) in GALILEO. It's not able to sort by job but then I got distracted. You know how it is to get distracted while online.

I typed in Scott Joplin as a person to search for- I'm not sure why I thought of Scott Joplin but there you go. He shows up in the 1880 Texas census as Going to School, in the 1900 Missouri census as Musician, and then in the 1910 NY census as a Musician Composer! This little be of searching helped flesh out what I "know" about Scott Joplin.

You may only access Ancestry.com through GALILEO on campus but it is a very intriguing primary source for any content area not just for your own personal genealogy.

-kls

Another Neat Election Resource

One interesting resource related to the Presidential election is 270toWin.com. This website has a wide variety of maps, polls, and historical data that allows you to look at past elections. The website does a good job of explaining the complicated electoral college system and what it takes to become the President. One of the neatest features offered by the website is a simulation of the upcoming election, which is generated by polling data collected by the website. If you don't like the way the simulation turned out, then you can run it again and get a different result.

You may examine an individual state's page on the site. This will give you a current graphic barometer of polling data in the state. It will also show you how the state has voted in recent Presidential elections, as well as the number of electoral votes the state has had historically.

The site is very current with RSS feeds available, and there is a blog maintained by the website. There is a small section on the 2008 Senate races, and there is an interactive Senate map that allows you to pick the winners of these races. You can tell that the website has done their homework because they are aware that both Wyoming and Mississippi have two Senate seats up for grabs this year. You have the ability to pick one of each party as the winner in each of these states or each for the same party.

Perhaps the most interesting feature of the website, to me at least, is the answers section. You can find this under the 'more' tab. This section allows you, among other things, to find out when the last time the Democrats/Republicans won the election while losing both 'state x' and 'state y.' Doing this, you learn that no Republican has ever won the White House while losing Maryland and Massachusetts and Kansas. You can also learn that Minnesota has not voted Republican since 1972 (making it the only state Ronald Reagan never won an election in.)

This section is also a good tool for teaching Boolean Logic. Connecting two or three states using an 'and' or 'or' is a simple way to demonstrate to students just what Boolean logic is. The fact that the Boolean is represented graphically may also help visual learners.

Highest possible personal recommendation on this website.

JWF

Interesting Election Resource

This resource may be of interest if you are a political junkie. The American Past allows you to look back upon past Presidential elections and related data. You can use the maps on the site to examine previous margins of victory, among other data, on a county by county level.

The neatest feature of this site is the interactive movies section. One interactive movie will take you through every Presidential election since 1840 and show you the results on a county by county basis. It takes about three to four minutes to watch the film. It is interesting to note how the north and south have flip-flopped over the last 150 years on supporting the Democrats and Republicans.

The website has been created by the Digital Scholarship Lab at the University of Richmond.

JWF

Bidenmania

Unless you've been living under a media and/or digital rock, you should know that Senator Joe Biden, Democrat from Delaware, has been tapped to be the Vice-Presidential nominee of Barack Obama. Some of you may have even received a text message at 3:30 am Saturday morning informing you of Biden's nod.

Who is Biden? The USA Today for today described him as Pennsylvania's Third Senator (perhaps due to the proximity of Delaware to Pennsylvania and the fact he was born in the Keystone State). Many talking heads on the television have noted Biden's tendency to talk and talk and talk and talk . . . Well, you get the idea.

One place to find information about Biden is his official US Senate website, which you can access here. Understand that is this is an official Senate website maintained by Biden and his staff, it is not the best place to look for hard-hitting, critical analysis of Biden or his record. You can learn that by looking in the biography section that he won election to the US Senate at the age of 29. Under the terms of the Constitution, this would make him too young to serve as a US Senator. However, Biden did turn 30 by the time he took office in 1973. Also, you can sign up to receive the aptly named 'Biden Bulletin' which is an email newsletter.

One source of information about Biden is our old friend Galileo. From Browse by Subject, you can go to Social Sciences and select Political Science. Once there, you can do a search for 'Joe Biden' in the first search bar. The third result you get is actually a piece from USA Today that Biden wrote about Afghanistan.

Notice though, that when you change the search to 'Joe' in the first search bar and 'Biden' in the second search bar, the results are slightly different. This is also true when you change Joe to Joseph. A search for 'Joseph Biden' in the search bar gives us a set of results where the third result in Academic Search Complete is an an article relating to the future possible makeup of the Obama cabinet.

Another possibility is to go to Galileo and click on the 'Search' tab. At this point, you have the ability to search many databases by clicking on the show more databases link and selecting each database you want to search in. A search for 'Biden' and 'plagiarism' in Academic Search Complete and Research Library gives us a handful of results related to some incidents involving Senator Biden and accusations of plagiarism from his first presidential campaign in 1988.

Get ready for an information glut on Biden over the next week, just as you will get one when John McCain announces his VP pick on Friday (probably).

JWF

It begins tonight

The political junkies are salivating as the Democratic convention coverage begins tonight. Where can one read about the conventions - past and present?

Current information can be gathered with a Google search, a scan of CNN or Fox. What if you'd like to read about the last convention or even the 1980 Democratic Convention. You know I'm going to send you to GALILEO!

I selected Browse by Type because I knew I wanted newspaper articles. The Newspaper link opens with a list of newspaper sources. I can't search through them the way I can search when I use the Browse by Subjects tab. I tried the New York Times links (both current and Archive) only to discover they end up being "I pay" sites.

What can I access as part of GALILEO? ProQuest offers The New York Times and the Los Angeles Times, (plus the Christian Science Monitor, Washington Post and Wall Street Journal through the Newspapers database.

ProQuest is easy to use. The Advanced tab allowed me to limit my search by year. I wanted to check out the 1980 convention - there are 69 articles from 1 Jan 1980 to 31 Dec 1980 about the Democratic Convention! The drawback is I found nothing for the 1976 or earlier conventions.

Now what? I went to Browse by Subject, selected Social Science, selected Political Science and Administration - limited my search for Democratic convention (no quotes) to 1976 and several articles came up through Academic Search Complete. There were even a few with a search limited to 1972.

For the confirmed political junkie, GALILEO offers access to resources to feed your addiction for information about the political process!

Your Georgia librarian has the password to use GALILEO at home! Watch the coverage and read the articles!


-kls