Library News

By Demian Katz

A new semester is starting, and it probably won’t be too long before you need to find some information in the library. Fortunately, searching for library resources has just gotten easier!

The library catalog now has a new feature. In addition to searching for books in our collection, it also searches for full-text articles in dozens of our subscription databases. One search box gives you access to millions of resources, most of which you can’t find in Google.  Content included ranges from scholarly journal and newspaper articles to e-books and theses.

To try the enhanced catalog, search here .

Just type your search in the Library Catalog box and hit Find. Books and other resources found in Falvey Library will show up on the left under Books & more; articles and other electronic resources will display on the right under Articles & more.

Articles & more: The blue “Find It” buttons will help you locate full-text articles or request content from Interlibrary Loan. You can click on the tabs above the search results to refine your search and explore beyond the top ten results in each category.

Don’t give up if you don’t find what you need right away. Although our catalog should help with many of your search needs, it’s still just the tip of the iceberg.  You can also visit our Subject Guides for help with research in specific subject areas, or you can connect with a librarian online if you need a bit of human assistance.

Have fun searching, and please feel free to contact us if you have questions or problems. We will use your feedback to continue to improve our online tools.

Explore history through the 17th-18th Century Burney Collection Newspapers. Learn about the English Civil War, the Restoration and 18th century political and cultural developments.

According to the publisher, “The newspapers, pamphlets, and books gathered by the Reverend Charles Burney (1757-1817) represent the largest and most comprehensive collection of early English news media. The present digital collection, that helps chart the development of the concept of ‘news’ and ‘newspapers’ and the ‘free press,’ totals almost 1 million pages and contains approximately 1,270 titles. Many of the Burney newspapers are well known, but many pamphlets and broadsides also included have remained largely hidden.”

Joseph Drury, assistant professor of English at Wesleyan University, says “The Burney Collection is an exceptionally rich database of periodicals and newspapers, invaluable to anybody interested in doing research on eighteenth-century English culture. Most of the material from the early part of the century is not available anywhere else, and there is very little overlap with Eighteenth-Century Collections Online, because ECCO for the most part doesn’t include newspapers, journals and periodicals, only printed books. Because what it includes is so ephemeral, the Burney gets you much closer, I think, to everyday cultural life — it gives you immediate responses to political events, theatre reviews, literary squabbles, fads, and fashions and so on.”

Burney, which also includes Acts of Parliament, features newspapers published in London, the British Isles and its colonies.

In addition to English literary and historical scholarship, this new database will be invaluable to political scientists, philosophers and anyone interested in delving into life in the 17^th and 18^th centuries.

“Newly digitized, all Burney treasures are now fully text-searchable.”

Our bound journal collection has moved to Garey Hall, but never fear! We’re here to help you get the articles you need. Even though the stacks are restricted (library staff access only), we will scan or retrieve the journals you need.

The link to Interlibrary Loan on our home page will take you to the ILLiad patron login screen where you can request electronic delivery of articles from the Falvey Library or Garey Hall collections. It’s also used to request articles and books from libraries all over the world.

As noted in a blog article by University Librarian Joe Lucia, “the items being transferred to the Garey Hall facility are mainly bound volumes containing historical runs of print journals and periodicals. A large percentage of this material is now available online. Approximately 100,000 volumes will be stored in Garey Hall once this project is complete.” The move of journals will make it possible for the library to create new spaces for users.

The ILLiad all-purpose request form is used to process your request in the most efficient way possible, whether it’s an article from our bound journal collection or an article from a library across the country. We can often deliver your article within 48 hours. Our new Garey Hall services begin on Monday, August 23rd.

If you prefer that we deliver the physical item from Garey Hall to Falvey for your perusal, use the Garey Hall retrieval request.

While “dog days” normally refer to hot, humid weather (of which we have had far too much this summer), it is also the title of an eye-catching display that draws attention to Falvey’s newspaper collection.

Located on the kiosk near the library entrance, two posters invite the viewer to “Gaze in wonder at the 37 newspapers that Falvey receives in print,” “PAWS awhile, grab a paper over by the reference area,” and “… smell the flowers.”

Another poster tells you about the online newspapers available to library patrons.

Hanging above the kiosk are newspapers with headlines, “DOG DAYS ARE HERE!” and “DOG DAYS FULL OF BITE,” along with colorful cartoon dogs’ heads with newspapers in their mouths. As one sign notes, “We do not have a Falvey dog to bring your favorite newspaper to you, but …our Interlibrary Loan staff certainly does quite a bit of fetching!”

Judith Olsen, a reference librarian and Publications and Communication team leader, compiled the handout which lists and explains Falvey’s subscriptions to online newspapers. She and Bill Greene, Access and User Assistance, worked with display creator Joanne Quinn.

Be sure to check out the pet photographs of Buddy, Cody, Chalupa, Madison, Sammie, Maggie, Cara and Buffy, posted by our dog-loving staff!

By Alice Bampton

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The initial log requires you to sign in. Username: trial and Password: trial. Click on ‘Demo Access’ to begin.  Each user will create their own individual username and password and then log in to the database. Your individual trial accounts are good for 30 days.

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David Uspal recently joined Falvey as Web Specialist for Library and Scholarly Applications. Joe Lucia, University Librarian, commented, “Dave brings many exciting skills to the library, and he will be working to advance our open source applications on all fronts in the months ahead.”

Dave works with the Technology Development team to update library web sites and to add new resources.

A native of Reading (Pa.), Dave has a bachelor’s degree in computer science with a minor in management information systems from The Pennsylvania State University and two master’s degrees from Penn State, Great Valley in software engineering and systems engineering.

His hobbies are board gaming and his two house rabbits. Dave noted that he tried doing home repairs over the summer but decided this wasn’t a hobby he is likely to pursue.

Article and photograph by Alice Bampton

Beginning on Wednesday, August 4 and continuing for 10-12 days thereafter, the library materials currently housed in the Old Falvey stacks will be moved to a new storage location in Garey Hall (the area formerly occupied by the Law School library). The items being transferred to the Garey Hall facility are mainly bound volumes containing historical runs of print journals and periodicals. A large percentage of this material is now available online. Approximately 100,000 volumes will be stored in Garey Hall once this project is complete.

As with any major project of this sort, there will be some disruption involved. Direct access to items being transferred will be curtailed for a minimum of two weeks, and possibly longer.

Thanks for your patience and understanding as we move forward with this late-summer project.

If you have questions, please contact joseph.lucia@villanova.edu