DCCC Library Books and Bytes

DCCC ID cards for new students who are beginning Fall 2010 will be issued at all campuses starting Monday, August 16.  If you have previously been a student, please bring your ID and a copy of your class schedule to get your ID validated with a new sticker.  Stickers are available at all campuses beginning Monday, August 16th.  The first DCCC ID is free; the replacement charge for lost IDs is $5.

New IDs and validations of old IDs for Summer II will begin on Monday,  June 28th.  Please bring your old  ID for validation or another photo ID if you need a new one,  AND a copy of your Summer II course schedule to the Library or any of the Learning Resource Centers at the satellite campuses.  The first ID is free; replacements cost $5.

Congratulations on finishing the semester! The library will be open day hours only from 8:00am to 4:00 pm on Tuesday May 18th and Wednesday May 19th. The library will be closed from Thursday May 20th (graduation day) through Sunday May 23rd. Regular summer hours (Mon-Thurs from 8:00 am through 10:00 pm) begin Monday May 24th. The library will be closed on Monday May 31st for Memorial Day.
Have a safe and happy summer.
(mg)

We see students racing into the library to print out a document they created at home. Often this race occurs 5 minutes before class or even 5 minutes after class has begun. Imagine how frustrating it is to have to wait for a computer when the workstations are already in use by students who are settled in to do coursework and research. Today we added a QUICK PRINT station to alleviate the wait. It is next to the printer at the Reference area. Bring your flash drive or open up your email with your document attached, print, and be on your way. Of course, the station is not intended for research; it is just for printing documents that you already have created and saved. (mag)

Don’t forget that the Library is the place to obtain or update your DCCC ID card. Also – the Library has many current textbooks on reserve and older textbooks that can be borrowed. You will need a current DCCC ID to borrow a textbook or other library materials. If you need assistance with finding a textbook for a class do not hesitate to contact a Reference Librarian at 610-359-5146. (esd)

Librarian  Joanna Tillson has begun her position of Extension Services/Distance Services Librarian at DCCC and now supplements the videoconferencing, email, and IM reference services that are already in place, with in person visits to the students and faculty at Downingtown, Exton, Southeast Center and Pennock’s Bridge campuses.

Joanna moved to the Philadelphia area from Seattle, WA, so if you see her, you can ask her about the cultural changes between west and east coast living. She has also recently spent a summer in Cameroon, so travel is definitely one of her hobbies. Her DCCC travelling schedule for Spring semester is:

Mondays: Downingtown mornings and Exton afternoons

Tuesdays: Exton mornings and Downingtown afternoons

Wednesdays: Southeast Center mornings and main campus afternoons

Thursdays: Southeast Center between 11:30 am and 7 pm every other week (2/5.2/19,3/5, 3/26, 4/9, 4/23 and 5/7)

Thursdays: Pennock’s Bridge between 10 am and 5 pm on 2/26, 4/2 and 4/30.

Joanna is available to teach research skills to classes at off campuses and will also be in the Learning Centers to help students individually whenever she is not teaching. She can be reached at jtillson@dccc.edu Welcome Joanna!   (mg)                                                                      

The library has 30 new laptops for lending which brings the total number to approximately 60. Students need their DCCC college ID and need to be in good standing to check out a laptop. Borrowing period is for one day. Laptops are due back by noon on the day after borrowing for day students and by 6:30 pm on the evening after borrowing for night students. Late fines are steep for this privilege! Fine is $20 per day if laptop is not returned by due date and time. (For weekends, you can borrow on Friday and bring it back Monday at noon for day students and Monday at 6:30 pm for evening students.) Questions about laptop borrowing procedures can be handled at the library circulation desk 610-359-5326. Technical questions about laptops including internet accessibility can be handled at the Academic Computing helpdesk at 610-359-5211 or room 4274.(mg)

There are four ways that you can talk to a librarian:

Our live chat IM service “Ask Here PA” will connect you 24/7 to a live reference librarian who can help you to find articles, web sites and more.

Our email service “Ask a Librarian” will get you a response from a DCCC Librarian the same day except for when the library is closed, for example Sundays, holidays and in between semesters.

The number at the reference desk is 610-359-5146. You can call the DCCC librarian on duty for a verbal ” walk through” of your research process.

Finally, you can visit the librarian on duty at the reference desk for a face to face consultation about your research. (No appointment necessary!)

The latest in assistive technology for DCCC’s special needs students is available in the library. Zoomtext enlarges any document, a book page and even an object onto the monitor, and a new audio software, named Kurzeil, can actually “read” back a scanned document or book page to the user! In addition, special needs students can borrow an adaptive laptop that can be brought to class in order to reflect what the instructor writes on the class whiteboard onto the laptop monitor.