News and Microforms Reference Desk Blog

This is a public web space for News and Microforms Library staff and faculty to share reference and operational information, post answers to recurring questions, explanations of class assignments, and other information to help with the News and Microforms Reference/Service Desk

Unexpected Outage with PASS

Students may temporarily need to use other means of savng their work from public machines.

Information Technology Services (ITS) is currently experiencing an outage with PASS.  Staff are working on resolving the problem; updates will be posted as they become available.  For the most current information regarding the alert, see http://its.psu.edu/alerts/alert-326.

Peggy

posted by: newsmicro at 22:02 | link | comments (2) |
server issues

New York Times supplements

Desk staff,

Be aware that the New York Times Book Review and the New York Times Magazine is removed from the Sunday issues of the New York Times newspaper when they are processed.  One copy is placed on the newspaper shelf directly under the Sunday New York TImes.  The second copy is placed on a shelf in the News and Microforms Library workroom.  We only shelve one copy in the public area due to theft or loss.  If someone comes to the reference desk and asks for one of these supplements, first check the shelf in the public area to make sure it is missing.  If it is not there, then you may pull the second copy from the workroom shelf, provided that you ask the patron to return it to the desk when they are finished with it.  You will then return it to the shelf in the workroom.

If you have any questions about the locations mentioned above, ask one of the full-time staff to show you where they are located.  Also remember that the New York Times (including these two supplements) is available through ProQuest National Newspapers of ProQuest Direct databases.  The database is a good source if they are looking for a specific article for research purposes.  You may even try asking them what they are looking for before you offer them the workroom copy.  They may be satisfied with the database content.  If you need help finding content in these two databases, please ask for help.

Lisa

posted by: newsmicro at 16:51 | link | comments (2) |
library news and information

Life Magazine Assignment

Expect students from Comm 401 to come in for issues of Life Magazine (AP2.L547) from 1938. Their Prof does not want them to look at the microfilms but rather the bound copies located in stacks B. Although the CAT lists issues from 1938 as being located in the Reserve Reading Room this is actually no longer the case.
                                                                                                                                                                    -T.J.

posted by: newsmicro at 19:06 | link | comments (2) |
course assignments

Watching TV

Hello desk staff,

I need your help.  When you change TV channels and when you do the room count, take a look at what's playing on the TV screens.  If there is any programming that doesn't look like news or interview programs or documentaries that are news-related, change the channel to Al-Jazeera or CNN Espanol and let me know by e-mail.  I need to know what channel the television is on, and the day and time that the non-news program is on.  This should only be an issue with the center television/international channels.

Thank you for your cooperation, Lisa

posted by: newsmicro at 16:42 | link | comments (2) |
staff assignments

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