Library News

Snell is proud to welcome four new co-op students this semester. Manuel Simone, William Jackson, Michelle Espinosa, and Jennie Robbiano are already wonderful additions to the library staff.   Manuel Simone- DMC Studios Co-op Manuel (or Manny) is a Music Industry student going into his 4th year at NEU and originally from Montclair, New Jersey. He has been writing raps since he was 10, and learned how to produce/record since he was about 14. Recently, Manny released his first self-produced album after several albums with help from other producers. Other than music, Manny very much enjoys watching comedy and action TV shows and movies, reading a good fantasy novel or biography, and playing and watching sports.       Will Jackson-Co-op Web Applications Developer Will is a senior pursuing a dual major in Information Science and Business Management. This is his third and final co-op. Will is currently working on a NEH funded project to add Fedora Repository support to the Tapas Project. In his free time, Will enjoys writing and  playing video games. He also enjoys reading and listening to music. He says he is “okay” at both of those things.             Michelle Espinosa- Graphic Design Co-op Michelle is a fourth year aspiring Graphic Design major and a business management minor. She is from the small, but beautiful country of Honduras. Michelle has been a competitive horseback rider since she was nine, mainly show jumping and dressage. Her other hobbies include playing the flute, singing, and mountain biking.               Jennie Robbiano- Marketing and Events Co-op Jennie is a fourth year International Affairs and Religious Studies major. She is also the co-director of Strong Women, Strong Girls at Northeastern. In her spare time, (what little she has) Jennie enjoys sewing, vegan baking, and Sci-Fi TV shows.               Welcome to all of you, we are looking forward to a great semester!    

Update, 6/10/2014: The new version is up and running.  As of Monday June 9, you should see these changes in Scholar OneSearch. The latest version of Scholar OneSearch will be released in early June. We’ve made several enhancements to help make it easier for you to find what you’re looking for. Here’s a taste of what we’ve been working on. Permalinks. Each resource now includes a permalink under the ‘actions’ drop down menu. These are handy for adding persistent links to library resources in syllabi and course sites on Blackboard.

  A date slider has replaced the date facets.  The slider gives you more control when narrowing down the publication dates of materials you seek.

More visible call numbers and a ‘find it’ feature linking to Snell Library floor maps help simplify the task of locating items in the library.

Last but not least, check out our new virtual browse!  It’s the next best thing to browsing through the library stacks.

  Look for these features and more in next week’s release. What features would you like to see in future releases of Scholar OneSearch? Let us know!  

Many thanks to all of you who answered the library survey earlier this year! Have you been wondering about the results? Here are some highlights: Who responded? The survey was carried out at the end of the fall 2013 semester and the demographics were:

• 601 respondents
• 90% undergraduates
• Largest percentage by college: Engineering, 22% (By the way, this corresponds almost exactly to attendance numbers. According to the card swipes, 25% of those entering the Snell Library are from College of Engineering, more than from any other college!)

Why the library? One of the questions we were most interested in was What are you looking for when you come to the library? The top 5 answers: (respondents could choose more than one)

• 82.9% Printers
• 74.8% A quiet space free from distractions
• 72.2% Tables to spread out
• 71.8% Power outlets
• 71.1% Open 24/7 hours

While “quiet” is high on the list, that doesn’t always mean solitude. 53% want “group rooms I can reserve in advance“, 45%  want “a place where everyone else is working, which motivates me“, and 34% want “a place to work and connect with others.” 21% want “plug in monitors for my group to look on together.” Other things you are looking for when you come to the library: software, research and technical support, and of course, books and journals. Click on the chart at left for details. Here, in order of preference, are the floors respondents like to use at Snell Library:

• First place: Level 3
• Second place: Level 2
• Third place: Level 4
• Fourth place: Level 1

Why is Level 3 the winner?  You told us: “Quiet but not too quiet,” “Quiet but not intimidating,” and “It is still OK to eat and whisper/talk quietly if you have to ask someone a question.”  One person hedged, “prefer 3rd but I need the computers from 2nd. PLEASE add computers to 3rd floor.” We’ve heard this suggestion before, but wiring would be needed for us to move workstations to level 3, so in the meantime, you can borrow a laptop from the Help & Information Desk on the first floor and take it to your favorite location. We also asked what type of seating arrangement you prefer.  See the chart at left: the individual desk and carrel slightly edged out group tables as the preferred piece of furniture. Either way, respondents disliked lounge-style seating most. 31% of you said, by the way, that when you come to the library you stay for four hours or more. So that explains a lot, because when you’re really hunkering down for long periods, you need comfortable furniture!       What equipment do you use?

• We were also curious about what equipment you are using when you come to the library and how often. We learned that an astonishing 71% of respondents said they use their own personal laptop to the library twice a week or more. As far as other equipment goes, not surprisingly the print stations were next, with 65% using them twice a week or more, followed by the Infocommons desktops (22%), followed by personal tablets (18%).

Your suggestions and comments The survey asked for open-ended comments and suggestions, too. It turns out we can never have enough outlets. And some of you would like more books and longer hours for Argo tea. But the main emphasis of your comments was on space and furniture, especially tables to work and study. This word cloud tells the story: The laws of physics make it hard for us to create more space–and that’s a problem campus-wide!  But we hope to answer your expectations with the space we do have: to organize Snell Library in practical ways that maximize the inspirational atmosphere, and help you flourish at Northeastern.

This week a few sections of Snell Library’s 4th floor will get new tables, carpeting and electrical outlets, all to be complete by Friday, May 9th. Work will be done between 6AM and 4PM. There will be no construction activities on May 1st and 2nd.