Computing services notes

Computing services notes - from Middle Managers 8/7/08

* All circ problems: aleph, print demons, notices, etc -- anybody/everybody just send a Grover http://www.uflib.ufl.edu/grover ticket. As Systems learns the quantity, frequency, and variety of problems reported, they'll learn how to how to base assignments.

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* New linking service - Serials Solutions 360 Linker - is being tested The "Find it@UF" icon will change slightly (substituting the SFX trademark swirly with an @) and we’ll need to know when to make the switch on all our handouts, web pages, etc.

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* phishing -- everyone remember to never give out any of your passwords to anybody. Not to Systems, not to CIRCA, not to UF. Requests for passwords (especially from email messages) are masquerades for phishing schemes. OK to give your logon, but never your password.

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* Active Directory -- public computers will begin conversion this week. Patrons will use Gatorlink to logon. We may create guest accounts (following procedures) valid for 14 days. Guest accounts cannot be renewed; patrons will have to select a new name (smith1, smith2, etc) every 2 weeks. The Peoplesoft folks have not yet committed to making longer-term, renewable guest accounts. These guest accounts are for computer use only; they do not govern borrowing privileges or remote access. (Patrons can log into to the Library Proxy with their Gatorlink, but it only connects if their Gatorlink account indicates an eligible status.)

*** We currently have 300 courtesy borrowers, and some of them may be eligible for real Gatorlinks (which they can create themselves). They should check with Jim Stevens. In the meantime, it may be easiest to create them a temp guest account on the spot and then (we or patron) contact Jim to see what else can be done. Stay tuned.

*** There are 1800 guest computer use accounts active today. 1800 accounts x every 2 weeks means a lot of work for staff and a lot of grief for patrons. We'll hope to succeed with requesting speedy establishment of longer-term, renewable guest Gatorlink accounts.

*** Small branches with only student assistants on the weekends might send guests to MSL for account creation.

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* Active Directory for staff computers -- might happen in mid-Fall. Huge implications for how we all manage our email; some aspects will be time-consuming and deadline-based.

*** Campus email only saves Inbox and Sent email for 30 days. Then it goes into Deleted folder. After 30 days, stuff in Deleted is irretrievable. We all must learn to put any items we want to save into our Retain Permanently folder.

*** Our new email address will be our Gatorlink. If you might be professionally embarrassed by your Gatorlink name, change it soon.

*** We'll all have to notify our discussion lists of our new (gatorlink) address. We should still receive mail directed to uflib, but we won't be able to post to lists that expect us to send from uflib. Feel free to start converting your discussion lists to gatorlink soon.

*** Will said he'll check the group email addresses (sciref, illoan, etc) to see how they can be addressed, managed, and accessed in the campus AD. Stay tuned.

*** We should receive recommendations and procedures on storing and backing up email on library vs. campus servers before we switch. Some gory details available at http://www.mail.ufl.edu/questionsandanswers.shtml and http://www.mail.ufl.edu/managemail.shtml.

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* Office 2007 - if you really want Office 2007 on your staff computer now, please send a request via Grover. If you can wait til about mid-Sept, Systems will be able to push the software over the network rather then sending a staff member to enslave your computer for awhile.

Calculators

Hi, in case students come to the desk desperate for a calculator I have left a few freebies at the reference desk. Feel free to give them out!

LibGuides tips

Some tips for creating LibGuides:

Images
To add an image to a LibGuides page, first upload the image to our server. I've put a few in http://www.uflib.ufl.edu/msl/subjects/ but we might want to create a new folder for our LibGuides images. After you link to the image, click the "centered text" icon to center your image in its box.

Editors (secondary authors)
If you create a new page/tab within a Guide of which you are not the primary author, your photo and contact info will appear on that new page/tab! This may be OK, but if you'd rather have the primary author appear, ask the primary author to create a new page/tab, then copy the page created by the secondary author, then delete the secondary author's version.

Subjects
Assign your published page to one or more Subject Categories. Click on Change Status, then in the Subject Categories (Optional) section, pick one, click on "associate," repeat as desired. Be sure to pick at least one from:
* Agriculture
* Biological Sciences
* Chemical & Physical Sciences
* Engineering
* Math & Stats
* Course Guides
and notify Joe so he can add the pages to those listings from http://www.uflib.ufl.edu/msl/subjects/index.html.

Good news: We can alter the Subject Categories at any time (even after a page has been published) and secondary authors may change them, too.

What else?
What other tips have you learned for improving and coordinating our LibGuides???

MSL Meeting 7/29/08

Steve Williams from systems showed up to explain the new trouble ticket system.

Anyone is allowed to access it and submit a trouble ticket. Go to http://www.uflib.ufl.edu/grover

Library 2.0 Committee met and there is no more talk about new wikis.

There was discussion about one massive library committee blog to house all committee minutes

However, this is not rolled out for the public yet

New self check out machine is here.

The desensitizer isn’t working right and Chrissy has to fix that.

Once functional Chrissy would like people to try it out and bring up issues during the weekly meetings

Val talked to Barbara Hood about the brochures.

The Map Library and Health Science brochures are used more for development.

Possibly create a pdf for use on the website.

Collaboration

Health Science Center uses rolling white boards, which might be good to use here for groups

Also the use of a large screen tv or projection screen for groups in L107

Tara met with the directors about Advanced Directory.

Change to using gatorlink name and password to log onto computers

Will happen between August 8th and August 16th

They are working with bridges to create semi permanent gatorlink id.

One reminder. Do not log anyone onto a computer using your information.

MSL Meeting 7/29/08

· Steve Williams from systems showed up to explain the new trouble ticket system.

• Anyone is allowed to access it and submit a trouble ticket. Go to http://www.uflib.ufl.edu/grover

· Library 2.0 Committee met and there is no more talk about new wikis.

• There was discussion about one massive library committee blog to house all committee minutes

• However, this is not rolled out for the public yet

· New self check out machine is here.

• The desensitizer isn’t working right and Chrissy has to fix that.

• Once functional Chrissy would like people to try it out and bring up issues during the weekly meetings

· Val talked to Barbara Hood about the brochures.

• The Map Library and Health Science brochures are used more for development.

• Possibly create a pdf for use on the website.

· Collaboration

• Health Science Center uses rolling white boards, which might be good to use here for groups

• Also the use of a large screen tv or projection screen for groups in L107

· Tara met with the directors about Advanced Directory.

• Change to using gatorlink name and password to log onto computers

• Will happen between August 8th and August 16th

• They are working with bridges to create semi permanent gatorlink id.

• One reminder. Do not log anyone onto a computer using your information.

MSL Meeting - 07/01/2008

Announcements:

• Welcome Adrian!!


• No building access after normal hours - this means do not enter the building between 1:30am & 4-5am. If you do alarms will go off and the police will come to take you away :0


• L208A conference room - Carol D's old office has been turned into a conference room. The 3rd floor conference room is now another Xerox office because they had to move from the 5th floor. There is a telephone available in the new conference room for teleconferencing


• Staff meeting time - The MSL reorg report suggested changing the meeting time to the afternoon so the evening/weekend staff could attend. Sometime in mid-July we will begin holding meetings at 3pm


• Opening time - our official opening time is 8:00am


• Circulation wall calendar will be making a comeback so circ staff can easily see who is gone/back/etc. However, make sure you put your time off on the black calendar in Pat's office. This is the "official" calendar and you must put your time off here.


• Convocation is August 13th at 2pm. Tara is compiling a list of MSL accomplishments


• July 10th is the next cross division meeting. There should be lots of reorg and other interesting information presented


• Nominations for the library excellence awards close today

MSL Services

• OPS Budget - cut by $41,000. We will have 55hrs/wk of time that needs to be filled with non-OPS students. Feel free to help shelve or shift while we are down :) Just contact Christine for directions. Also, if students come to the desk searching for a job... Ask if they are work study. If they are ask them to attach a copy of their work study permit to the application.


• Construction - movers will be here mid-July to finish the moving. The new doors will be put in sometime before that.


• Evacuation procedures - For the next fire alarm we will make an announcement on the PA for everyone to leave. The elevator is fixed now. Assignment for everyone: find all the fire extinguishers & fire pull handles in the building - Tara will conduct a quiz at the next meeting!


• MSL Reorg - Adrian came over and will combine with the serials unit to make a collection services unit which reports to Vernon. Joe will be taking over the MSL website. Circulation will report to Vernon with both Marijka and Vanessa reporting directly to Vernon so he can get updates on both days (Marijka) and nights/weekends (Vanessa). The system liaison program has been dropped. Michael and Laurie will now report to Systems.

Web Presence

We talked a little about the need for a Science Portal launch. We will wait a few weeks and talk about it again soon to decide what type of PR is best. Tara will put in a syshelp to get icons put on all the public computers for the science portal.

Computer services

Contact Laurie if you'd like to use remote desktop and she will set it up for you.

Selectors - Nature proposal

FCLA is working with Nature to get discounts on any new journals we subscribe to and a increase cap. We talked about canceling some peripheral journals to get Nature Chemical Biology, Nature Photonics and Nature Geology (?).

SNAs

Student Navigation Assistants

http://dotsx2.usc.edu:3002/export/html/160

Scroll down that page and you’ll see all the responsibilities for SNAs. It sounds like they have a desk but it sounds like they are also “roaming” because of all the chores they are assigned: enforcing food policies and quiet study, shelving books, picking up trash. They are apparently well-trained to serve in this position because they are allowed to assist student patrons with library research (peer-to-peer) at public computers.

This might be a way to incorporate peer-to-peer, provide lots of work-study students with jobs, and fulfill some much needed functions that librarians and library staff do not supply when we are stuck behind a desk.