September 17, 2009

Five Major American Universities Commit to Support OA Journals

From Open Access News...

A Compact for Open-Access Publication, press release, September 14, 2009.

Five of the nation's premier institutions of higher learning—Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, the Massachusetts Institute of Technoology, and the University of California, Berkeley—today announced their joint commitment to a compact for open-access publication. ...

Since open-access journals do not charge subscription or other access fees, they must cover their operating expenses through other sources, including subventions, in-kind support, or, in a sizable minority of cases, processing fees paid by or on behalf of authors for submission to or publication in the journal. While academic research institutions support traditional journals by paying their subscription fees, no analogous means of support has existed to underwrite the growing roster of fee-based open-access journals.

Stuart Shieber, Harvard's James O. Welch, Jr. and Virginia B. Welch Professor of Computer Science and Director of the University's Office for Scholarly Communication, is the author of the five-member compact. According to Shieber, "Universities and funding agencies ought to provide equitable support for open-access publishing by subsidizing the processing fees that faculty incur when contributing to open-access publications. Right now, these fees are relatively rare. But if the research community supports open-access publishing and it gains in importance as we believe that it will, those fees could aggregate substantially over time. The Compact ensures that support is available to eliminate these processing fees as a disincentive to open-access publishing."

The Compact supports equity of the business models by committing each university to the timely establishment of durable mechanisms for underwriting reasonable publication fees for open-access journal articles written by its faculty for which other institutions would not be expected to provide funds.

Additional universities are encouraged to visit the compact web site and sign on. ...

,,, the Compact's FAQ establishes a loophole for grant-funded research: "a compact institution may reasonably expect that ... the funding agency should be responsible for payment of the publication charge, and the article would not be eligible for underwriting by the institution whether or not the funding agency actually covers the particular charge."

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Addendum: At the time this compact was signed, only Berkeley already had established an OA fund. But subsequently both Cornell and Harvard have also established OA funds to support the OA publishing of their faculty (follow links for additional information). It is expected that MIT and Dartmouth will announce OA funds eventually, too.

Currently the U of Illinois is a supporting member of BioMed Central, so our members get a discount on the publication fees when they publish in BMC journals. And we have a membership in Oxford's Nucleic Acids Research, which also provides our authors with a discount when publishing in NAR. If you have comments on whether the U of Illinois should join the Compact and set up an OA fund, please contact Paula Kaufman, the University Librarian.

Posted by florador at 11:07 AM

August 13, 2009

Libraries Closed Friday, August 14, 8am-1pm

All campus libraries will be closed on Friday, August 14, from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. The closure will provide library staff the opportunity to complete various tasks to prepare for the new semester. Please arrange your study or research schedule accordingly. Questions? Contact Jeff Schrader, Assistant Dean of Libraries for Facilities, via e-mail or by telephone at 333-0317.


Melody Allison
Assistant Biology Librarian and Associate Professor of Library Administration
Biology Library
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
101 Burrill Hall, 407 South Goodwin
Urbana, IL 61801
mmalliso@illinois.edu
(217) 333-7461; 3654

Posted by mmalliso at 12:20 PM

April 23, 2009

Library merger meeting

I'd like to remind everyone of the meeting tomorrow, Friday the 24th, to
discuss the library new service model report, which I sent out earlier.
This is the last time for you to comment before the library administration
writes a report that will be sent to the Provost.

As a reminder, on p. 4 of that report, it is recommended that the Biology
Library merge with the ACES library in the spring of 2010.

If you can't make it to the meeting, please send your comments to Paula
Kaufman, ptk@illinois.edu, and/or Scott Walter, swalter@illinois.edu. They
will be revising the report and sending it to the Provost very quickly, so
the sooner you respond the more likely they'll be able to consider your
issues.

The meeting will be from 10-11AM, Friday, April 24 in Room 66 of the Mail
Library. That's down in the basement if you haven't been there before. I
hope to see you there.

Diane Schmidt
Biology Librarian

Posted by mmalliso at 4:26 PM

April 14, 2009

Biology Library closure, part 2

Hello, everyone,

Here is the latest "New Service Model" proposal from the University
Library. As you'll see in the proposal, they still plan on closing the
Biology Library, merging it with the agriculture library. According to the
proposal as written, the Biology Library would close May 2010, although
our books and journals might not be moved to ACES until as late as
December 2010. The timing and details of the proposal are subject to
change, but the major actions are probably going to take place.

There will be another open session for comments held Friday, April 24th,
from 10:00 - 11:00 am in Room 66 in the basement of the Main Library.
Please plan on attending if you possibly can, and if not send your
comments by then to Paula Kaufman, ptk@illinois.edu, and Scott Walter,
swalter@illinois.edu.

Diane Schmidt
Biology Librarian

Posted by mmalliso at 10:04 AM

March 31, 2009

Biology Library closure meeting/input

There will be an open meeting this Friday, April 3, at 8:00-9:00AM in the
Grainger Engineering Library Commons (room 235), to discuss changes in the
science libraries, which includes closing the Biology Library. Despite the
late notice and early hour, I encourage you to attend and/or send your
comments to Scott Walter, swalter@illinois.edu, or Paula Kaufman,
ptk@illinois.edu. Please copy me as well, if you send in comments.

As you may remember, back in January the University Library was asked by
Provost Katehi to accelerate its movement towards departmental library
consolidations as part of the “New Services Models” program. In late
January I sent out a message to the department chairs and school heads
informing them of the proposal included in the Provost’s letter to close
the Biology Library and merge its collections and services into the Funk
ACES Library. After lengthy discussions between the librarians who serve
other life sciences libraries we agreed that if the Biology Library was to
be closed, then consolidating it with the Funk ACES library and creating a
life sciences library containing all or parts of the collections and
services pertaining to the Applied Health Sciences, ACES, and Biology
libraries, as well as Veterinary Medicine at a later date, was the best
solution. Under this model, the Biology Library collection would need to
shrink to no more than half its current size. As you will see in the
attached proposal from the University Library administration, this
proposal was not accepted. Instead, they propose that the Biology Library
materials and services would be split between the Chemistry Library, the
Funk ACES Library, and perhaps the Library of the Health Sciences.

I do not support the proposal to split the Biology Library collections and
services. There is no bright line between the collections and services
used by the two schools, but in this proposed split it would roughly be
MCB going to the Chemistry and Health Sciences libraries and IB going to
the ACES library. The Chemistry Library has room for only about 6,000
volumes, which amounts to half of the Biology Library books that have
circulated recently and only a very few journal volumes.

As a separate but related issue, Melody Allison, the Assistant Biology
Librarian, will be moving this summer to the ACES library as Assistant
ACES Librarian due to staffing cuts at the ACES Library. This will leave
only one librarian serving SIB and SMCB.

A final report will be sent to the Provost at the end of April. I
encourage you to provide your input on the proposed library mergers and
consolidations before then.

Diane Schmidt
Biology Librarian


Posted by mmalliso at 1:15 PM

February 12, 2009

Digitized Hymenoptera books

The latest entry in the University Library's Digitized Book of the Week
blog at http://www.library.uiuc.edu/blog/digitizedbotw/ highlights a grant
that I received to digitize books on bees, wasps, and ants from UIUC and
the Field Museum. Please check it out! It's particularly nice that these
materials will be included in the Biodiversity Heritage Library
(http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/).

Only about half of the 175 volumes covered by the grant have been
digitized up to now, so stay tuned for many more strange and wonderful
materials. Also, if the money holds out we may be able to digitize a few
more hymenoptera-related titles. Let me know if you have any suggestions
for out-of-copyright books that I might have missed.

Diane Schmidt
Biology Librarian

Posted by mmalliso at 5:08 PM

January 23, 2009

Biology Library Notes: Spring 2009 update

The Biology Librarhttp://www.library.uiuc.edu/blog/mt-static/images/formatting-icons/email.gify hopes your Winter Break was safe and warm, despite the frigid Arctic blast. We have a number of new resources and resource updates that will make your spring semester warmer despite what the weather brings us outside!
____________________________________________________________________________
VuFind (beta version)
VuFind is a ‘next generation’ catalog interface being beta tested for our University of Illinois online library catalog and the I-Share catalog for Illinois academic libraries. Links are provided both from the University Library Gateway and the Biology Library hompage. VuFind has a number of features not currently available in these current catalogs. VuFind is not taking the place of current catalogs, but providing another search option allowing use of advanced features such as facet searching (subject, title, topic, language, format, and more), automatic search history creation where previous searches can be repeated easily by clicking on search query link, one-time entering of Library ID# and other details for requests once your personal “MyAccount” is created, user-added comments and tagging, and much more. Caveats: The current beta version does not search course, reserves, allow call number searching, have departmental library limits, or have direct export to RefWorks. The University Library’s Next Generation Catalog Working Group is interested in your feedback. Click Tell us what you think about VuFind at the top of the VuFind page just under the header to let them know what you like, what you don’t like, and what you would like to see. [Note: the Feedback link at the bottom of the page sends your comments to the state library consortium, CARLI , so please use the afore-mentioned link to our Library working group -- or send comments to both! ] For more information, see VuFind Catalog Interface and VuFind Frequently Asked Questions.

Biology Library Resources Module
The “Biology Library Resources Module” is a portal created for quick access to Library resources and services students and faculty need for their research and scholarly work. This portal can be used for courses. It can be linked to from course homepages and Illinois Compass courseware. The module can be adapted to specific course and other needs. Just contact Melody Allison, Assistant Biology Librarian, who will be happy to work with you, including provision of librarian assistance to students in Compass courseware (mmalliso@illinois.edu or 333-7461). (See also entry Biology Library Guides)

Electronic Books for Life Sciences
There are a growing number of electronic books (e-books) available to UIUC Library patrons. The LigGuide “Electronic Books for Life Sciences” presents electronic books in life sciences areas that are available through the University Library. This guide explains how to find Library electronic books and provides access to selected titles and packages with life sciences titles.

Biology Library Guides
Biology Library has number of guides available to support your curricular and research needs. Whether you need help using our major life sciences article databases, finding library resources, or identifying major reference and other materials in various life sciences subject areas, we have a wide assortment of guides to meet your needs. These guides can be linked to from course pages or I-Compass pages. A number of our guides have been updated to digital LibGuide versions making them even easier to access and use, and more are being planned. The following are examples of just a few of the ones available to help you get the most out of our Library resources:

• Guide to the Campus Resources for New SOLS Faculty and Guide to Campus Resources for Students are good ways for the new student or faculty member to get acquainted with library resources and services as well as for the established students and faculty to see what currently is happening in our ever-changing environment.
• Resources for Biologists guide contains links to selected career and work resources useful for the new and the experienced biologist. Find here information about presentations and teaching, research, writing and publishing, school rankings, grants and funding, safety, ethics and standards, math and statistics used in life sciences, social networks for researchers and academics, biology games, and more!
• Journal Resources page links you to information about Library print and electronic journals, journal abbreviations tools, journals lists and thesauri for the major life sciences databases, citation format resources, citation management tools, journal email alerts, and other information.
• Research Resources page links you to UIUC and other sources related to research responsibilities, such as academic integrity, copyright, ethics, plagiarism, research process, and the tools and resources to accomplish them, such as resources for citation format styles, citation management tools, the NIH Funded Research Policy, and Writing Labs.
• Tips for Searching Article Databases shows how to construct effective search strategies.
(See also previous entries "Electronic Books for Life Sciences" and "Biology Library Resources Module").

Instructional Services
A wealth of library resources are available for student and faculty curricular and research needs. Keeping up with new resources as well as changes in established resources features and functions can be a formidable challenge. Let us help you save time and effort in this endeavor with our many and varied instructional services. We can help make sure that your students are using the best resources for their course and research information. We can also help keep you up-to-date with new resources and new features of established resources. We can provide 1:1 consultations or office calls for faculty and class sessions and 1:1 consultations for your students. For more details, see Biology Library Instructional Services.

Librarian "Office Calls" for Faculty
Are there occasions when you would like to learn more about your favorite database, but just haven’t had the time to grapple with all the new nuances? Or maybe you would like to move out of your comfort zone and get acquainted with a bibliographic database that you are not familiar with? Or perhaps you want to begin to use a research tool, like RefWorks, that is new to you? Just contact Melody Allison, Assistant Biology Librarian, at mmalliso@illinois.edu or 333-7461.

Illinois LibX Toolbar
THE Library has updated to a new tool bar product, called LibX Toolbar. LibX Toolbar has all the features of the previous I-GO toolbar plus much more. Available for both Internet Explorer and Mozilla FireFox browsers, it provides quick access to several often used electronic Library and campus resources right at your fingertips. No more typing in URLs, treading through bookmark directories and content, or trying to locate that ‘convenient’ place you put URLs which made sense at the time you placed them there but now cannot be located. The Toolbar takes you to all of the following:
• Department library Web sites
• Online Library Catalog
• Online Research Resources Web site
• Campus phone book
• Google searching
• Course reserves
• Interlibrary loan
• My Library Account
• Online Reference Collection
• RefWorks
• UIUC Express Mail
• NetFiles
• Illinois Compass
• Automatic linking -- inserts I-Mark link for our Online Library catalog from sites suchs as Amazon and Google
• Drag and drop searching of highlighted terms from Web documents into LibX Toolbar 'Search'
• Drag and drop citations onto LibX Toolbar 'Scholar' button to find citations in GoogleScholar
• and more !!
For more information, including download, see http://www.library.uiuc.edu/toolbar
____________________________________________________________________________

Please let us know if you have any questions about these updates, or suggestions for our guides or Web site.


Melody Allison
Assistant Biology Librarian and Associate Professor of Library Administration
Biology Library
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
101 Burrill Hall, 407 South Goodwin
Urbana, IL 61801
mmalliso@illinois.edu
(217) 333-7461; 3654

Posted by mmalliso at 2:33 PM

April 8, 2008

The University of Illinois is Now a Member of BioMed Central

The University of Illinois Champaign-Urbana is now a Supporting Member of the open access publisher, BioMed Central.

What this means is that when you submit a journal article for publication in one of nearly 200 BMC titles, you will receive a 15% discount off the article processing charge!

Here's a list of the BMC titles:
http://www.biomedcentral.com/browse/journals/.
This discount also applies to articles submitted to Chemistry Central
http://www.chemistrycentral.com/ and to PhysMath Central http://www.physmathcentral.com/.

Here's a list of the article processing charges for the various BMC journals (before discount):
http://www.biomedcentral.com/info/authors/apcfaq
For most of the journals, the fee is $1690, but may be as high as $2685 or as low as $500. A few are even free.

Many of the BMC journals have already earned quite respectable Impact Factors. See:
http://www.biomedcentral.com/info/about/faq?name=impactfactor
e.g., Genome Biology (7.17); BMC Bioinformatics (3.62); BMC Biology (4.43); BMC Evolutionary Biology (4.46)

Why should you consider publishing in a BMC journal?
First of all, know that all research submitted will receive rigorous and rapid peer review. If the article is accepted:

Papers published by our colleagues:
The University of Illinois' "homepage" lists papers that were published in BMC jouranls by U of I authors in the last year -- at this point 30 research articles, software, protocols, etc:
http://www.biomedcentral.com/inst/11700
For your interest, here's the U of I-Chicago's home page:
http://www.biomedcentral.com/inst/48900

Submitting a paper:
If you are on campus within our recognized IP range when submitting a manuscript you will be identified as belonging to a member institution and automatically granted a 15% discount on article processing charges If you are at home or at an external terminal when submitting your paper, you can still claim this discount by stating that you are a affiliated with the U of I. Papers may be submitted either via a journal home page or via http://www.biomedcentral.com/manuscript/.

Posted by florador at 4:05 PM

January 25, 2008

The Savvy Researcher Workshop Series

Need help finding and managing research information? Check out these sessions sponsored by the Reference Library.

************************************

The Savvy Researcher Workshop Series
http://www.library.uiuc.edu/learn/instruction/workshops.html
(registration preferred- access through website)
All workshops held in the Undergraduate Library, Room 291

Improving Your Library Research Skills

Are you struggling with your research? Need help locating articles and other materials? This workshop will go over how to locate items in the library system, including how to find online resources through library databases and when to use Interlibrary Loan. Bring your research paper with you -- time will be set aside to answer individual questions.
Tuesday 1/29, 3:30-4:30pm
Tuesday 2/26, 3:30-4:30pm


Drowning in Data? RefWorks can Help

Learn how to use RefWorks, a citation management software program subscribed to by the University of Illinois Library and CITES that is free to faculty, staff, and students of the University of Illinois. This workshop will cover the basics: how to access RefWorks, search catalogs, import references from library databases, retrieve and manage citations, create bibliographies according to various citation styles (e.g., MLA or APA), and use Write N Cite to add parenthetical references to your work. For more information about RefWorks see: http://www.library.uiuc.edu/refworks/
Friday 2/1, 1:00-2:00pm
Thursday 2/28, 3:30-4:30pm

Tools to Stay Current in Your Research

Save valuable research time! Online research resources are pervasive today, making it much harder to stay current in your field. This workshop will introduce several current awareness features including how to set up an RSS feed reader account, creating search alerts from library databases as well as Table of Contents alerts.
Tuesday 2/5, 3:30-4:30pm
Tuesday 3/4, 3:30-4:30pm

How To Be A Better RA/TA

Geared towards Research and Teaching Assistants, this library workshop will introduce several time-saving tips. Topics include the basics of working for others (e.g., proxy authorizations and departmental charge accounts), current awareness services, PapersInvited, how to locate dissertations, and how to use RefWorks, a personal citation database.
Friday 2/8, 1:00-2:00pm
Thursday 3/6, 3:30-4:30pm

Info Hacks **New**

Is your academic pile of information overwhelming? Are you looking for new ways to get organized? Learn from the best! Librarians will give you the low-down on how they organize their own research materials using several different strategies including the GTD method (Getting Things Done), citation management, current awareness tools, social bookmarking and quick tips.
Friday 2/15, 1:00-2:00pm
Friday 3/7, 1:00-2:00pm

What Google Scholar Can Do for You **New**

Even librarians use Google Scholar! Improve your searching by learning tricks of the trade using advanced features of Google Scholar. Learn the benefits and limitations of what Google Scholar can do for you. Also, learn about the new Google Book project and how to find online books.
Friday 2/22, 1:00-2:00-pm
Tuesday 3/11, 3:30-4:30pm

*************************************************************
Merinda Kaye Hensley
Instructional Services Librarian, Reference Library
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
300 Main Library
1408 West Gregory Drive, Urbana, Illinois 61801
mhensle1@uiuc.edu, 217.244.1880 (v), 217.333.1116 (f)

--

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Melody Allison
Assistant Biology Librarian and Assistant Professor of Library Administration
Biology Library
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
101 Burrill Hall, 407 South Goodwin
Urbana, IL 61801
(217) 333-7461; 3654



Posted by mmalliso at 12:13 PM

September 27, 2007

The Savvy Researcher Workshop Series

The Savvy Researcher Workshop Series
http://www.library.uiuc.edu/learn/instruction/workshops.html
(Free workshops, but registration is required - access through website)

Workshop 1:
The Savvy Researcher: Improving Your Library Research Skills
Are you struggling with your research? Need help locating articles and
other materials? This workshop will go over how to locate items in the
library system, including how to find online resources through library
databases and when to use Interlibrary Loan. Bring your research paper
with you -- time will be set aside to answer individual questions.

Friday 10/5, 1-2pm
OR
Tuesday 10/16, 3:30-4:30pm

Workshop 2:
The Savvy Researcher: Drowning in Data? RefWorks can Help
Learn how to use RefWorks, a citation management software program
subscribed to by the University of Illinois Library and CITES that is
free to faculty, staff, and students of the University of Illinois. This
workshop will cover the basics: how to access RefWorks, search catalogs,
import references from library databases, retrieve and manage citations,
create bibliographies according to various citation styles (e.g., MLA or
APA), and use Write N Cite to add parenthetical references to your work.
For more information about RefWorks see:
http://www.library.uiuc.edu/refworks/

Wednesday 10/10, 2:30-3:30
OR
Tuesday 10/23, 3:30-4:30pm

Workshop 3:
The Savvy Researcher: Tools to Stay Current in Your Research
Online resources are pervasive today, making it that much harder to stay
current in your field. This workshop will address several current
awareness features including RSS feeds, a few select RSS feed readers,
Table of Contents Alerts as well as introduce RefWorks, a personal
citation management database.

Choose the time that works best for you:
Tuesday 10/9, 3:30-4:30pm
Friday 10/19, 2:30-3:30
Tuesday 10/30, 3:30-4:30pm

Workshop 4:
How To Be A Better Research Assistant
Geared towards Research and Teaching Assistants, this library workshop
will introduce several time-saving tips. Topics include the basics of
working for others (e.g., proxy authorizations and departmental charge
accounts), current awareness services, PapersInvited, how to locate
dissertations, and how to use RefWorks, a personal citation database.

Tuesday 10/2, 3:30-4:30pm

*************************************************************
Merinda Kaye Hensley
Instructional Services Librarian, Reference Library
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
300 Main Library
1408 West Gregory Drive, Urbana, Illinois 61801
mhensle1@uiuc.edu, 217.244.1880 (v), 217.333.1116 (f)

Posted by mmalliso at 9:46 AM

Invitation to Open Access Forum

The Graduate School of Library and Information Science, the University Library, and the Office of Technology Management of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign are proud to present:

A Forum on Open Access, Alternative Publishing Models, and Author Rights

November 9, 2007
8:30 am – 3:00 pm
Alice Campbell Alumni Center, Ballroom

Complimentary breakfast and lunch provided.

The objective of this forum is to inform and engage faculty, graduate students, and other campus researchers concerning open access to intellectual property. Interested undergraduates are also welcome. Topics will include current trends and issues in scholarly communication, open access and teaching, open access and tools for discovery, and the potential for open access to increase the dissemination and impact of research publications. This forum will also discuss various models for, or degrees of, openness, from open-access institutional repositories (like the University of Illinois' IDEALS) to other alternative publishing models, including independent and non-profit open-access publishing, as well as low-cost commercial publishing.

Registration is complimentary but required before November 2, 2007.

Register and find out more about the November 9th Open Access Forum at:
http://www.otm.uiuc.edu/openaccess.asp

Prof. Katie Newman
Biotechnology Librarian, Biotechnology Information Center (BIC),
and UIUC Scholarly Communication Officer

Office: 123A Burrill Hall, MC-112
Email: florador@uiuc.edu
Phone: (217) 265-5386
Fax: (217) 333-3662

Posted by mmalliso at 8:54 AM

September 21, 2007

Announcing New University Library Gateway Site

The re-designed University Library Gateway Web site is now up. Highlights include:


* new Easy Search search engine that provides powerful one-stop searching across dozens of digital and print resources to locate journals, books, and other media directly from the University Gateway
* resources and services links accessible from Library Gateway and organized by University affiliation / interest (undergraduates, graduate students, faculty, alumni, visitors, users with disabilities)
* new and updated information, guides, and tutorials about using the library for research (“How to Use the Library”)
* subject guides from various departmental libraries can be accessed directly from the Library Gateway (“Subject Resource Guides” ) as well as from their source library site
* departmental libraries organized by libraries ("Find a Library") and by College major ("Libraries by College/Major")
* more

Content will continue to be added, updated, and enhanced. Your feedback is welcomed by the Library Web Content Group and Gateway SWAT team. Send you comments to the "Gateway conversion team" link at the bottom of any new page or directly by e-mail gateway_conversion@library.uiuc.edu. I will keep you posted as to redesign of pages deeper into the University Library site (departmental libraries' pages) when changes move beyond upper level site pages.


Melody Allison
Assistant Biology Librarian and Assistant Professor of Library Administration
Biology Library
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
101 Burrill Hall, 407 South Goodwin
Urbana, IL 61801
(217) 333-7461; 3654

Posted by mmalliso at 2:03 PM

August 22, 2007

Biology Library Fall 2006 News

New University Library Gateway coming soon ! Feedback welcome !

The University Library is evaluating a new design for its home page, which offers enhanced features and functionality. To access the test site, click http://www.library.uiuc.edu/new/ . Among the new features is a link to the search engine UIUC Library Search Assistant which performs searches across multiple Library and other electronic resources. Also departmental libraries can now be accessed by college and major via “LIBRARIES BY COLLEGE/MAJOR” as well as by departmental library name via “Find a Library”. Undergraduates, graduate students, faculty and other user groups can easily find resources and services useful to their particular needs under the “Resources For” section. Faculty, students, and staff are encouraged to view the test version to explore the new look and features. Feedback can be provided by clicking on 'Gateway conversion team' at the bottom of the page. Changes in the Biology Library Web page will be made once the new University Library Gateway development is completed.

Do you know where your students are ……

…. getting their information?? According to a report by the OCLC Online Computer Library Center, a cooperative of more than 54,000 libraries, browser search engines were the first choice for information by 72% of college students in the study (Part 1-26). Are you certain that your students are using the best sources of information for their course work and research? Are you confident that they know how to use information resources effectively? We can help make sure that your students are using the best resources for their course and research information needs by:


• Providing sessions on library use and services (Online Library Catalog, how to locate library materials, borrowing, interlibrary loan, etc.)
• Presenting workshops on how to use particular databases, how to set up current awareness services to keep up-to-date on the literature, etc.
• Providing sessions on the use of library resources for reading research papers
• Formulating course, project, or research related library instruction sessions
• Assisting with research assignment development
• Creating handouts, guides, Web pages, Web tutorials, and other library research or subject related information tools
• Compiling source selections for class assignments and curriculum
• Providing sessions on information sources that are useful to laboratory classes
• Designing customized print and Web resources for a specific class, project, or subject area
• Presenting new faculty workshops
• Presenting new graduate student workshops

Schedule an information resources instruction session today by filling out the Instruction Request Form , or contacting Melody Allison, Assistant Biology Librarian, at mmalliso@uiuc.edu.

Biology Library Guides

We have several Library orientation, database, subject, and other guides that will help you make the most of out resources. There is a wealth of information in these tools to help you make the most efficient and effective use of the Library’s great variety of information and research resources and services. The only way to get more details is through an information instruction session (see previous item)!

Our orientation guides provide basic information about the Biology Library and its resources and services. Guide to Campus Resources for New SOLS Faculty and Guide to Campus Resources for Students deliver information about the Biology Library and its resources and services; BioBlog; University Library; departmental libraries; the I-Go Library Toolbar; RefWorks; campus academic information; and general information useful for new (and not-so-new! ) faculty, students, and employees.

There are database guides for major life sciences bibliographic databases (Biological Abstracts, Current Contents, PubMed, Science Citation Index, and Zoological Record) with links to vendor guides and tutorials for further enlightenment. The Electronic Resources at the Biology Library guide gives a brief introduction to two dozen bibliographic databases which may be of interest to life sciences researchers.

There are general guides on several topics such as how to locate materials in the Biology Library; how to locate books, journals, and series; and how to locate dissertations and conference proceedings, along with links to information about RefWorks and the Library Discover tool. Our Web site Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) page provides detailed information on finding journals and journal articles, finding books and other materials, using and creating course reserves, and Biology Library services.

Subject guides provide titles of core reference titles, including indexes & abstracts, protocols & methods, and journal titles, for various topic areas.

Two other guides that are useful for any one doing research are the Journal Resources and Research Resources pages. The Journal Resources page links you to information about the Online Research Resources database, journal abbreviations and acronym tools, serials lists for major bibliographic databases, citation format resources, RefWorks and Endnote, and other information related to journal use. The Research Resources page links you to UIUC and other sources of information about academic integrity, intellectual freedom, copyright, ethics, plagiarism, research process, etc.

As our access to electronic resources grows, so do challenges in accessing them. This is true for our growing collection of e-books. Two new guides will help you in this endeavor. Electronic Book Resources at the Biology Library will inform you about various e-book collections our patrons have access to as well as several reference e-books of interest in the life sciences. Retrieving Articles at University Library will help you understand the ways that journal articles may be found using our various resources.


“Librarian Office Calls” for SOLS Faculty

Are there occasions when you would like to learn more about your favorite database, but just haven’t had the time to grapple with all the new nuances? Or maybe you would like to get out of your comfort zone and get acquainted with a bibliographic database that you are not familiar with? Or perhaps you want to begin to use a research tool, like RefWorks, that is new to you?

The Biology Library is piloting a new service for SOLS faculty called “Librarian Office Calls.” You can schedule a librarian to come to provide personalized instruction about library resources to enhance your course and research activities in the convenience of your own campus office (Burrill Hall or Chemical & Life Sciences Laboratory). Schedule a “Librarian Office Call” today by filling out the Instruction Request Form , or contacting Melody Allison, Assistant Biology Librarian, at mmalliso@uiuc.edu.

Illinois Digital Environment for Access to Learning and Scholarship (IDEALS)

The Illinois Digital Environment for Access to Learning and Scholarship (IDEALS) is a set of collections and related services that together constitute the campus institutional repository. IDEALS preserves and provides persistent and reliable access to the digital scholarship of faculty, staff, and students and aims to provide the greatest dissemination and recognition to these works as possible. Offered through the University Library and CITES under sponsorship of the Office of the Provost, IDEALS is now open for deposit! For more information, contact Sarah Shreeves, IDEALS Coordinator, at sshreeve@uiuc.edu.

UI Now has University Library News

Get the latest News from the University Library via UI Now, the place to get the news and feature stories on campus activities. You may subscribe to the Library news via a RSS feed (requires a reader) and get the news as soon as it is available. Learn more about RSS feeds at the Scholarly Communication blog and RSS on Wikipedia.

New ISI Web of Knowledge Interface Coming Soon

Thomson Scientific’s ISI Web of Knowledge interface is changing, and will formally be released sometime this fall. Until then, access to Science Citation Index (Web of Science), Biological Abstracts, Journal Citation Reports, and other databases we get through Thomson Scientific will remain with the current platform. You may access the new version in the current version through a link in the title bar.
Among the changes is the replacement of the “CrossSearch” by the “All Databases” search, which allows you to:


• Search across all ISI Web of Knowledge databases our institution subscribes to

• Retrieve up to 100,000 results, automatically sorted by the journal cover publication date

• Easily refine and analyze your search results

You will also see is a change in how your search terms are entered. The new version has three “Search for” boxes with search field options that can be combined with Boolean operators. Additional “Search for” boxes can be added with a simple click.
See http://isiwebofknowledge.com/currentuser_wokhome/cu_new/newface/ for more information about the new interface. For a short tutorial click see http://www.brainshark.com/thomsonscientific/newwokintro .

Current Protocols in Stem Cell Biology trial in progress

Trial access for Current Protocols in Stem Cell Biology (CPSC) will continue through 12/31/07. CPSC covers protocols and methods for embryonic stem cells and adult stem cells as swell as genetic manipulation of stem cells. CPSC is published in affiliation with the International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR). Please email comments or questions using the form at http://www.library.uiuc.edu/mailform/mail.php?emailcode=ersupport.
For a short tutorial click see http://www.brainshark.com/thomsonscientific/newwokintro .



Chicago Manual of Style Online

Good news from the spring is worth repeating. The Chicago Manual of Style is available electronically. We look forward to electronic versions of other format style manuals as they become available. Will keep you posted.

Please feel free to contact me with any questions at mmalliso@uiuc.edu.

Have great Fall semester.

--


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Melody Allison
Assistant Biology Librarian and Assistant Professor of Library Administration
Biology Library
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
101 Burrill Hall, 407 South Goodwin
Urbana, IL 61801
(217) 333-7461; 3654





Posted by mmalliso at 4:31 PM

July 10, 2007

Provost's Letter in Support of Retaining Publishing Rights

From Provost Linda Katehi, in an email sent to the U of Illinois Faculty, 7/10/07
==========
Dear Colleague,

New opportunities created by electronic publishing and archiving are changing the business of scholarly publication. Because traditional publication agreements transfer copyrights to publishers and restrict electronic distribution by the author and their institution, publishers appear to have captured much of the benefit of these changes.

In November 2006, faculty governance leaders from CIC universities discussed these issues that affect scholarly communication and called for a concrete strategy that would help faculty retain more control over their published intellectual property. Subsequently, the CIC provosts issued a
Statement on Publishing Agreements and an Addendum to Publication Agreements for CIC Authors. (http://www.cic.uiuc.edu/programs/CenterForLibraryInitiatives/Archive/Report/CICAuthRtsFINAL16May07.pdf) The Addendum is intended to be used by faculty entering into publication agreements with journal publishers or presses. It supports authors rights to use their own published work in teaching and research, to post a publication on a personal website, or to deposit it in a repository maintained by their institution or a professional association. IDEALS (www.ideals.uiuc.edu) is the University of Illinois institutional repository.

Late this Spring, the U of I Senate endorsed the principles expressed in the CIC Provosts Statement and Addendum; encouraged faculty to consider using it as well as other publication agreement addenda that increase their rights in reproducing, distributing, and archiving their own work; and asked the CIC Provosts to provide leadership in negotiating with publishers to develop new publication agreements that provide CIC authors and institutions greater rights for use, distribution and archiving their published scholarly works.

It is our responsibility as scholars to ensure that our work is available as widely as possible to maximize its scholarly impact, accessibility, and educational use. I encourage you to use the Addendum and to deposit your research and scholarship in IDEALS, which provides reliable and persistent access to its holdings.

===============
You may read more about what the U of I is doing at the Scholarly Communication website. See:
What the U of I is doing
What YOU can do.

Posted by florador at 9:46 AM