Please note that the Library will close at 11.00am on Thursday 23rd December, and reopen at 8.45am on Tuesday 4th January 2011.

Don't forget, you can still renew your books, use e-books and databases via the AECC portal.

We wish you all the compliments of the season!

EBSCO A-to-Z Unavailable: Tuesday 21st December 2010

The AECC A-Z list of E-journals will be unavailable (due to maintenance) from 13:00–14:30 on Tuesday 21st December 2010.


We apologise for the inconvenience this may cause.

Library loans service will be unavailable 12-2pm 21st December

Please note that there will be no library service between 12 noon and 2pm Tuesday, 21st December 2010.

The library will remain open for reference, but it will not be possible to take out books during this period.

Educational Research intranet page

The library has created a new Educational Research intranet page.

We hope the resources listed on this page will be helpful to members of Faculty engaged in educational research. If you have any questions about this page, or suggestions for resources to add, please contact us.

British National Formulary

British National Formulary: free online access

Free access to the complete text of the BNF is provided to all based in England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man.

Just visit the BNF website and register to access the content.

Social Media & Networks: How to survive online (or "your [next] employer is watching you!")

Have you considered how your use of Facebook and other Social Networking sites could potentially affect your future employment prospects?


David Hopkins (Learning Technologist at Bournemouth University) has, read more here: http://www.dontwasteyourtime.co.uk

New and updated Library Guides

We have updated all the library guides to make them easier to use, and to reflect changes in our library catalogue and the databases we use.

In addition we have added the following new guides:

* Project preparation: finding reliable, relevant information

* Information Source Evaluation Matrix

The guides can be found on the Library Guides Intranet page (login required).

If you have any feedback or suggestions for these, or future guides, please contact us.

New EndNote Web guide: Importing references from Google Scholar

We have written a guide that explains how import references from Google Scholar into EndNote Web.

This can also be found on the EndNote Web page on the Library Intranet. You will need to login to access these pages.

If you have any questions on any of this please contact us.

What's new on the Library Catalogue

Some of you may have noticed that our library catalogue (aka OPAC / Heritage) has been upgraded.

As well as the fact that you can now write book reviews (do keep them coming!), the following functions are now available:

* What's new - items added to the catalogue in the last 90 days

* See book covers for the most popular books and view a list of the current 100 most popular books

* Browse through the subject list

* View each day's issues and returns (on the current day)

* There are also links to our electronic journals intranet page, library guides and the blog from the main search page, we hope you'll find these additions useful.

If you have any suggestions for further developments, please email us.

20 things I learned about browsers and the web

The Google Chrome team have produced a new guide: '20 things I learned about browsers and the web' covering topics such as:

How do browsers and the web actually work?

What is HTML5, or HTML, for that matter?

What do terms like “cookies” or “cloud computing” even mean?

More practically, how can we keep ourselves safe from security threats like viruses when we’re online?

For things you’ve always wanted to know about the web and browsers but may have been afraid to ask, read on at http://www.20thingsilearned.com/

EndNote Web maintenance Sunday 21st November 2010

Thomson Reuters will be performing maintenance on EndNote Web on Sunday 21st November from 12 noon. EndNote Web will be unavailable during this time.


Thomson Reuters apologise for any inconvenience this might cause.

Book reviews and ratings

You can now write book reviews on the library catalogue (Heritage):

• Search the library catalogue for the book you wish to review
  
  
• Open the catalogue record
  
  
• Click on 'Create review'
  
  
• You will be prompted to login (use the 8 digit number on your ID card)
  
  
• Write your review, you can also give the book a rating (out of 5 stars)
  
  
• Submit the review
  
  
• Once the review has been moderated by library staff, it will be available for all to read
  
  
• You can remove the review by logging into your library account and clicking on 'Reviews', open the review, edit and delete it.

So why not recommend a book you've found really useful?

Import book references to EndNote Web

Our Library Management System now has the functionality to import book references into EndNote Web.

We have written a guide that explains how to do this. Please visit the library guides page for more guides, more will be added soon.

If you have any questions on any of this please contact us.

Topics in Integrative Health Care: new Open Access journal

Topics in Integrative Health Care: an International Journal (TIHC) is an open-access online journal.

"It is dedicated to advancing the integration of multiple disciplines, both complementary and mainstream, into diverse health care settings in order to provide optimal patient care. It presents themed issues on topics of current relevance to health care providers interested in integrative, conservative care, health promotion and disease prevention. It includes international, interdisciplinary Grand Rounds in order to facilitate communication and patient comanagement among various health professions, for the good of patients everywhere."

The journal can be accessed here: http://www.tihcij.com/

2010 Student Projects now online

2010 Student Projects are now available online via the Library Catalogue (login required). Use the Advanced search and select 'Project' as the Media type.

Springer Images now available off-campus

Off-campus access is now available for Springer Images. Just register for an account while on the AECC campus and use these details to login when you are off-campus.

If you have any queries about this, or you are a distance learner and need help setting up an account, please contact us.


Try a search below:

A-Z of E-journals maintenance Saturday 9th October 2010

AECC and Bournemouth University A-Z lists of E-journals will be unavailable (due to maintenance) from 11am - 4pm this Saturday 9th October, 2010.

We apologise for the inconvenience this may cause.

Welcome to the AECC and welcome back!

We have selected some books for you to welcome you to the AECC, if this is your first term and to welcome you back if you are returning after the vacation:

Writing and study skills

1. 'The smarter student: skills and strategies for success at university', Kathleen Mcmillan & Jonathan Weyers, Pearson Prentice Hall, 2006.

2. 'How to get a good degree: making the most of your time at university', Phil Race, OUP, 2007.

3. 'Understanding university: a guide to another planet', Christine Sinclair, OUP, 2006.

4.'Writing at university: a guide for students', Phyllis Creme & Mary R. Lea, OUP, 2003.

5. 'Successful scientific writing: a step-by-step guide for the biological and medical sciences', Janice Matthews & Robert Matthews, Cambridge University Press, 2008.

May be of interest to staff:

6. 'How to get a PhD: a handbook for students and their supervisors', Estelle M. Phillips & Derek S. Pugh, OUP, 2005.

7. 'Mastering your PhD: survival and success in the doctoral years and beyond', Patricia A. Gosling & Bart D. Noordam, Springer 2006.

8. 'Writing for academic journals', Rowena Murray, OUP, 2004.

For distance learners:

9. 'Studying at a distance: a guide for students', Christine J. Talbot, OUP, 2003.

All of the above books (apart from no. 5) are available as Electronic books via the Library Catalogue, if you are off campus you will need to login first. All books (but 7- 9) are held as print copies in the Library.

The library will be closed on Thursday 29th July, 2010

Please note that the Library will be closed all day on Thursday 29th July for stock taking (lucky us).

The Library will reopen on Friday 30th July at 8.45am.

Renew Long Loan books for the summer

Summer study:

All long loan books can be renewed until 22nd September from now on for all continuing students.

You can do this yourself online (if they have not been renewed 'unseen') see our guide 'How to renew your books online' if you are unsure how to do this: http://aeccweb.aecc.ac.uk/library/live/guides.htm (you will need to login to the portal to access this).

The loan period for short loan books remains the same and these books can also only be renewed once unseen.

Don't forget - the library is still open Monday - Friday, 9.00am - 5.00pm. If you need any help with e-journals / library queries in general, please contact us by email: library@aecc.ac.uk or telephone: +44(0) 1202 436306.

Vacation opening times

Please note that the Library vacation opening hours come into effect from Friday 9th July. The Library is not open at weekends during the summer, but is open Monday - Friday 8.45am - 5.00pm.

For more information on Library opening times please see: http://www.aecc.ac.uk/library/location-opening-hours.aspx

We hope those of you heading off for the summer holidays have a splendid time.

What is RSS? (man)

A very sweet (short) video on RSS (Really Simple Syndication) by 1938kids See our other blog posts on this too.

Evidence Based Medicine Resources

Where are all the Evidence Based Medicine Resources?!

We know many of you, particularly Year 3 Students, are looking for books on Evidence Based Medicine (EBM) for your exam. Here are a few resources which may help.

We have several books in the library on EBM and understanding clinical papers, just search the library catalogue for 'evidence based medicine' as a subject term or just click on this search we made earlier for you (you will need to login if off campus). If you have difficulty finding the books just ask at the library desk and we'll help.

If you can't get in to college, or prefer an electronic book, this search will take you to all our electronic books on EBM, you can access these off campus (you will be prompted to login).

Don't forget, we have resources on Evidence Based Medicine on our Intranet, there are several there to select from, one webpage we think may help is from 'An introduction to evidence based medicine' (University of North Carolina) called Evaluating the Evidence but do investigate the others too.

Best of luck!

Librarians Do Gaga

A fun video for the Bank Holiday weekend: Librarians Do Gaga


Students and faculty from the University of Washington's Information School produced this work of art, we couldn't help but share ... don't forget the databases!

New books

Where to find new books in the library

To promote new library books, we put them on the 'New Books' shelves, near the library counter. Have a look at our Facebook photo album, to see where this is.

They're ready to borrow, please take a look...don't leave them on the shelf!

Library closed on Monday 31st May: Bank Holiday

Library closure

Please note that the library will be closed on Monday 31st May as it is a Bank Holiday.

We are open on Saturday and Sunday as normal during term time.

Library Survey 2010

Thank you to everyone who took part in the recent library survey.




We have carefully considered your comments and requests and have emailed our responses to you. They are also available on the library homepage for a limited time, along with a summary of the survey (see '2010 Survey: Summary / Responses').

We would like to encourage you to book for a tutorial if you experience any problems accessing online journals. If you would like to book for a tutorial, please email us or come and see us in the library.

We have a follow-up question which we have emailed to you; it's on booking PCs, please check your emails for the link.

The lucky winners of the Spine Centre vouchers have also been announced - congratulations to you!

Here's a link to a 'Wordle image' of comments from the survey: Worlde.

Once again, thank you all for taking the time to complete the survey, your views are important to us.

Library closed on Monday 26th April: Bank Holiday

Library closure

Please note that the library will be closed on Monday 26th April as it is a Bank Holiday. We are open on Saturday and Sunday as normal during term time.

Let's hope the sun shines!

Current travel situation

We are aware that some of you are experiencing difficulties in returning to college, due to the current travel situation.

Overdue notices are sent automatically, but we will of course waive any fines relating to late returns due to this situation.

Please return your overdue books as soon as you are back in college, and we will sort it all out with you then.

Please note, you can also renew your books online via the library catalogue if you wish, just login to this AECC portal webpage and you will find a guide: 'How to renew your books online' which will explain how to do this if you are unsure.

We are still here, so if we can help you with anything, please contact us.

Opening hours 29 March - 16 April and vacation time

The Library will be closed from Friday 2nd April - Monday 5th April 2010.

Opening hours from Tuesday 6th April to Friday 16th April are Monday - Friday only 8.45 am - 5.00 pm.

Don't forget to email us if you need us.

Have a wonderful Easter break.

What's everyone Tweeting about?

If you haven't used Twitter before and would like to learn how to, then download a great free guide on the Lifelong Learning UK website.

The guide was created as part of a workshop given by Bryony Taylor, Policy Advisor for Technology Enhanced Learning at LLUK, and can also be found on slideshare.


...and don't forget to follow us for more updates once you get going: @aecclibrary or http://twitter.com/aecclibrary

Library Survey

We are running a Library Survey to find out what you think of the Library and how we can improve it for you.





There are prizes to be won!:

Prizes:

1 x £50.00 Spine Centre voucher
2 x £10.00 Spine Centre vouchers!


The survey should only take a few minutes of your time and we will email the link to the survey to you. You can also access the survey via the library intranet pages (you will be prompted to login).

The survey needs to be completed by midnight on Tuesday 23rd March.

We really appreciate your time and we will summarise the feedback for you once the data is collected.

Don’t forget that voucher could be yours!

Library book giveaway

Free Library book giveaway on Wednesday 10th March, 2010 in the Library:



* doors open at 8.45am

* limit of 4 books per student!

* see you then!

ISI Web of Knowledge (EndNote Web): Maintenance, Sunday February 21st 2010 14.00hrs

Thomson Reuters will be performing maintenance to EndNote Web this Sunday 21st February, starting at 14.00hours.

There will be a disruption of service to EndNote Web and Bournemouth University's ISI Web of Knowledge during this period. Thomson Reuters apologise for the inconvenience caused.

Renew & reserve books, access e-books & projects & check your library record online

Did you know the following functions are available to you off campus?


* Renew your books: as long as they are not overdue, or reserved by another reader, books can be renewed up until 12pm the evening before they are due back

* Search the library catalogue

* Place reservations for books on the library catalogue

* See which books you have out, when they are due back, and check the status of any reservations you have made

* Access a growing number of electronic books

* Access all Student Projects

* Request a book to be purchased for the library by sending us an email via the library catalogue

Login to the portal and visit the library catalogue; accessible on all of the library intranet pages.

We have produced guides on how to renew your library books and search the library catalogue. These are available on the Library Guides intranet page (you will be prompted to login to access these).

Access to 5,000+ medical journals

Did you know that we now have access to over 5,000 medical journals via our new A-Z list?

This is in addition to the journals from Bournemouth University (these are the ones you access with your Athens username / password).

If a username/password is required to access the journals on our new A-Z list, this will be stated under the journal title, and the passwords can be found by clicking the link to the right of the journal title where it states 'Passwords for Electronic Resources'. If you are off campus, you be prompted to login to the AECC portal to access the passwords.


We produced a guide to on 'How to find an article', this is a PDF and can be accessed via the portal here (you will need to login to see it).


If you have any questions on any of this please let us know.

















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Social Bookmarking: Diigo

Our previous blog post on Social Bookmarking (a way of saving, organising and sharing your favourite websites to access them wherever you are) showcased Delicious. There is another Social Bookmarking site with additional features you may find useful...

Diigo is proving to be a worthy contender in the Social Bookmarking arena. It has all the functionality of Delicious (tagging, organising, sharing websites) with added extras:

* Highlighting: Diigo has a highlighting tool, you can highlight parts of websites, so when you revisit them you can see at a glance what it was you were interested in

* Sticky notes: you can add sticky notes with your thoughts on the subject to a webpage, other Diigo users can add to this, creating a conversation

* Annotated links: you can send an annotated page to those not on Diigo, complete with highlighting and sticky notes

* Sharing links: you can add bookmarks to your blog, Facebook or Twitter easily

* Archive: with Diigo you can archive snapshots of webpages and whole webpages

* Free: best of all, you get all this for free!

We couldn't list everything Diigo does here, but watch the tour on the Diigo website and be impressed, we were!

Microblogging in HE, & other Web 2.0 tools

Are you thinking of using Web 2.0 tools for research, administration or teaching? Make a quick start with the web2practice user guides from JISC.


The web2practice guides explain how emergent web technologies like RSS, microblogging and social media can enhance your working (and learning) practice.

Each guide consists of a short animated video explaining the key concepts, supported by a more in-depth printable overview of the topic covering the potential uses, risks and how to get started.


The guides cover the following topics:

* Social Media

* RSS

* Collaborative Writing

* Poscasting

* Microblogging... with further topics planned.


The specific guides can be found via the above links and from the main JISC Web 2.0 webpage.


Do let us know what you think.

Health Information Standard is launched

The Information Standard...


A new certification scheme for health and social care information has been launched in England.


The quality mark provides an easy way to identify quality information which can be trusted. To find out more visit the Information Standard website.

New - SpringerImages

Images.md has changed and has become part of SpringerImages

This new database includes Images.md, images from SpringerLink and the 'Biology Image Library'. The new platform is 'significantly better with more functionality'.

SpringerImages can be accessed via our online databases Intranet page (you will need to login). If you would like to use SpringerImages off campus, you will need to register on campus first, at present.


We welcome your questions and feedback.

New Resource: MEDLINE - now with Full Text!

We have some good news for you - it's a new database and it isn't covered in snow!




The Library now subscribe to MEDLINE Full Text, the 'world's most comprehensive source of full text for medical journals'. This database holds full text articles for more than 1,450 journals and searchable citations from over 4,800 current biomedical journals indexed in MEDLINE.



MEDLINE can be accessed via our Databases Intranet page (you will need to login if off-campus) and the individual journals can also be accessed at title level via our A-Z list.



We hope you find this a useful addition to our collection. If you have any questions or comments please let us know, your feedback is invaluable.

RSS feeds & Feed scrapers

Happy New Year!

If you are enjoying using RSS feeds but are finding some websites you would like a feed for don't have any available, there is a solution for you - Feed scrapers!

Feed scrapers take the web address of a webpage without an RSS feed and will create a feed for you. This can then be collected by your feed reader, just copy and paste the shortcut into your feed reader as normal (see RSS feeds for more on feed readers).

There are a few feed scrapers around, you could try:

* Feedfire.com (you will need to register, this is free)

* Diffbot.com (no need to register, but this is in beta/testing)

Alternatively, you could use a page monitoring service such as:

* Watch that page.com


Email us with your questions & let us know how you get on with these.


With thanks to Patrick Maitland-Cullen & Jenny Harbour, NHS Scotland for these tips (Library & Information Update, September 2009).