Library Suggestions

Subscription to MacWorld

2007-04-20T09:11:00.000-07:00

SUGGESTION:
Three suggestions to bring back MacWorld which was recently cancelled.

ANSWER:
MacWorld is available electronically in full-text with graphics and other formats through the Academic OneFile database.
From the Library’s home page, click in the order below:

1. Find
2. Magazine & Journal Articles
3. Electronic Magazine & Journals
4. Enter MacWorld in the "Title begins with" search box
5. Academic OneFile - years and issues to select appear

Today, 4/20/2007, the April 2007 issue is available. Given the high cost of most paper journals, the library is transitioning to electronic format whenever possible. Academic OneFile is part of the Tennessee Electronic Library (TEL) which is paid by the Tennessee State Library and Archives.

Winston A. Walden
Director of the Library

Mysterious Odor in Library

2007-03-07T09:48:00.000-08:00

SUGGESTION:
Three complaints about bad odor in the library.

ANSWER:
We agree. It is awful. Library staff and facilities staff have looked for its cause. Until we identify its origin, there is not much we can do about it. The size of the building would require an enormous amount of air freshener to mask the smell. That could also adversely affect people in the building. The odor is somewhat of a mystery because it comes and goes. You would think it would be constant or not.

As far as getting rid of the smell, no one is more interested in this than the library staff who have to put up with it a lot of hours during the week.

Winston A. Walden
Director of the Volpe Library

Computer Terminal on 3rd Floor

2006-10-18T09:33:00.000-07:00

SUGGESTION:
What happened to the computers upstairs? It’s a pain to have to go downstairs just to look up a book.

ANSWER:
Information Technology Services (ITS) told us some time ago that one would be installed. We are waiting.

UPDATE:
A computer terminal was installed on the 3rd floor in Spring, 2007

Winston A. Walden
Director of the Library

Library Doors

2006-10-18T09:28:00.000-07:00

SUGGESTION:
Fix the doors! How can anyone be expected to focus, study, research, or THINK with a constant slamming sound every single time someone enters the library?? Put my fees to good USE PLEASE.

ANSWER:
The doors are maintained by TTU Facilities and Business Services. The doors have been a problem almost since the building was first opened. The closing mechanisms have been replaced on all of them. When they bang and squeak we call Facilities.

Winston A. Walden
Director of the Library

Recycling in the Library

2006-10-18T09:11:00.000-07:00

SUGGESTION:
How about some recycling receptacles for plastic bottles?

ANSWER:
Recycling is under University Facilities and Business Services – ask them. We would like to have plastic and aluminum recycle bins.

Winston A. Walden
Director of the Library

Stapler at the Circulation Desk

2006-10-18T09:06:00.000-07:00

SUGGESTION:
Replace the stapler @ the circ. Desk. It is horrible and always Jams-up.

ANSWER:
We just replaced the one that walked away despite it being on a leash.

Winston A. Walden
Director of the Library

More Printers in the Library

2006-10-17T09:41:00.000-07:00

SUGGESTION:
It has come to my attention that two laser printers in the library are just not enough to handle the print load. At times you have to wait five to fifteen minutes to print an item. It would reduce the stress of students who are in a crunch to print. Your attention to this matter is greatly appreciated.

ANSWER:
Printers and computers on Level 2 and in the Media Center are under ITS. We told them a faster printer was needed.

Winston A. Walden
Director of the Library

Adobe Acrobat Reader on Laptops

2006-10-17T09:40:00.000-07:00

SUGGESTION:
You should add Adobe Acrobat Reader to the laptops that can be borrowed.

ANSWER:
We didn’t know they didn’t have it. It will be installed.

Winston A. Walden
Director of the Library

Providing Pens/Pencils

2006-08-08T09:19:00.000-07:00

SUGGESTION:
It would be nice to have a writing utensil at the suggestion box.

ANSWER:
In the spring semester of 2006, we put thirty (30) pens and pencils in a holder next to the paper cutter and stapler on the Circulation Desk. A note on the container read: “Please Return”. All thirty (30) were gone in two (2) weeks.

Winston A. Walden
Director of the Library

Pen by the Suggestion Box

2006-02-22T09:32:00.000-08:00

SUGGESTION:
“A pen by the suggestion box.”

ANSWER:
We have, but they quickly disappear. You will need your own or borrow one at the Circulation Desk.

Winston A. Walden
Director of the Library

Dry Erase Boards

2006-02-22T09:30:00.000-08:00

SUGGESTION:
“Dry erase boards that erase!”

ANSWER:
We have cleaned the dry erase boards and bought a sufficient amount of cleaner to keep them clean. We also purchased new erasers that may be washed. These clean erasers should help. Students using the dry erase boards need to use the pens and erasers we provide. We did this cleaning to avoid purchasing new boards which would have cost us about $1,200.

UPDATE:
All the dry erase boards were replaced with larger boards in March, 2007.

Winston A. Walden
Director of the Library

Library Temperature

2005-08-16T09:25:00.000-07:00

SUGGESTION:
I found the two notes below at the same time in the Suggestion Box.

“It’s too Hot in Here!”
“I cannot study in the library b/c it is always so cold and I am not the only one to feel this way!”

ANSWER:
Yes, sometimes it is cold, and sometimes it is hot. This condition usually occurs in the spring and fall when the outside temperature can vary considerable in a day or from day-to-day.

Quickly changing the temperature in a large, open building like the library cannot be done. The library staff does not control the building temperature. When it is hot or cold, we call TTU facilities; and they adjust the controls fairly soon after we call. However, when it is hot or cold in the library, it is often hot or cold in other campus buildings needing attention. The library is a high priority building for facilities due to the large number of people using the building. Facilities has responded to our calls about the building temperature at night and over the weekend. Since the building was occupied in the spring of 1989, all the control equipment that runs the heating and cooling system has been changed to make it easier and faster to change the settings. This year, facilities is making some significant modifications to the campus chilled water system. These changes will give facilities better control over the temperature in the library. Better control but not instant change, and we will still have hot and cold times in the building.

Winston A. Walden
Director of the Library

Requesting a Book

2005-08-16T09:09:00.000-07:00

SUGGESTION:
Has anyone considered making a “Request a Book” card that students could put in the suggestion box?

ANSWER:
Students have always been able to recommend books for the library to purchase. There are yellow cards to use, with the slips of paper, on the side of the Suggestion Box. These are not required and neither is all the information requested on the card. An author and title will usually do, but more information about the book will help. Please note, that recommending a book does not mean it will be purchased. A book will be evaluated in terms of its value to the collection, its cost, and budget restraints. If a person would like to know the action taken on a recommendation, the person should leave their contact information, i.e. phone, email, etc. For a book to be ordered, received, and processed for checkout often takes several weeks or months.

Winston A. Walden
Director of the Library

Study Room for Presentation Practice

2005-05-11T09:07:00.000-07:00

SUGGESTION:
A study room with a computer and small projector to practice presentations.

ANSWER:
The Media Center offers a couple of options for practicing presentations. Students can use Room 110 when it is not scheduled for class viewing, or they can use the Multi-media Studio. The Studio has cameras and an editing system so presentations can be recorded and critiqued. Please call 372-3544 for additional information and to reserve either facility.

Winston A. Walden
Director of the Library

Computer Suggestions

2004-12-08T09:34:00.000-08:00

SUGGESTION:
Computers on main entry level do not have Microsoft Office programs. So the computers in the Media Center are flooded with students. Install Microsoft Word and Excel on the equipment on main entry level.

ANSWER:
A critically important part of learning is developing the ability to locate reliable information. This requires a place where students have access to equipment for searching for information and also have access to information professionals for guidance in their research. These are the only computers on campus dedicated to this purpose. There are numerous open computer labs on campus. Check the Information Technology Service (ITS) Website for locations and hours.

The PC lab workstations on the main entry floor of the Library are provided for this purpose. We are aware that students sometimes use this equipment for other activities. If you need a computer for doing research, the librarians at the Reference Desk are available for asking a student who is not doing research or class work to give up the machine for a student who is.

SUGGESTION:
I am a student working on my Ph.D. and teaching full-time at a community college. Allot 5 computers for just Ph.D. students.

ANSWER:
This fall Tech has 9,319 students. Many students, undergraduate as well as graduate, have other responsibilities, like employment and families. All of these students are important to us. It would be hard to justify to the 9,115 undergraduate and master’s students that we have set aside computers for the exclusive use of the 102 Ph.D. students.

We are happy to announce that we are now (December 2004) able to make 16 laptops that have been in use for library instruction also available for individual student checkout. Because these machines will still be used for library instruction, they will be available for in-library use only. However, they are equipped with wireless network cards that give access to the campus network from most areas on the second and third levels of our building. You can check them out in the Media Center.

There are numerous computers available in open labs on campus. The lab in Brown Hall, room 207, is open 24 hours daily, except Saturday.

SUGGESTION:
The printer on the main entry floor of the library seems very slow to me.

ANSWER:
We have spoken to the ITS staff who maintain the PC lab equipment. A perceived slow response can be due to a number of factors, including complexity of a print job, the computer at your workstation, network congestion, and age and memory of the printer. The University acquires new equipment each year to replace the oldest equipment in the PC labs, so there are constant improvements in the available equipment and response time.

When you have a problem with a computer or printer, please report it to the librarian at the Reference Desk so that we can get the problem(s) fixed.

SUGGESTION:
Laptops should print to the laser printer.

ANSWER:
We think this is a great idea and asked ITS to see if it is possible. ITS is working on a solution.

Winston A. Walden
Director of the Library

Extended Checkout Time for Videotapes

2004-10-28T09:44:00.000-07:00

SUGGESTION:
Give more time for videotapes – 3 days is not long enough. If you want to watch one over spring or fall break and are out of town, it is due back before classes resume.

ANSWER:
Students are not given overdue charges for library materials that come due during a break or holiday that occurs within a semester.

Winston A. Walden
Director of the Library

TTU Periodical Holdings List

2004-10-28T09:13:00.000-07:00

SUGGESTION:
Put the TTU Periodical Holdings List on-line, so we can check from other sites if the journal is in the Library.

ANSWER:
The Library’s Periodical Holdings List was put on-line in early September 2004. You access the list from the Library’s website on the Print Magazine/Journal Search page. We are working to put these records in our Library Catalog.

Winston A. Walden
Director of the Library

Limiting Free Printing

2004-10-08T09:45:00.000-07:00

SUGGESTION:
Georgia Tech’s user account allows you to print only 50 pages per week which is perfectly reasonable to me. That may cut back on some expenses for you & I don’t think too many people would oppose.

ANSWER:
Printing costs have increased dramatically. Even if some cost recovery is not a goal, some method to stop frivolous printing needs to be implemented. TTU’s Information Technology Services (ITS) is responsible for the printers that students use in the Library and those in the open labs on campus. ITS is considering charging students for printing. Various plans are under consideration. Once ITS determines which plan to implement, it will have to be further approved on campus. This decision cannot be made solely by ITS.

Winston A. Walden
Director of the Library

Coffee Shop

2004-10-08T09:38:00.000-07:00

SUGGESTION:
“Coffee shop - - downstairs café”.

ANSWER:
TTU food service (Chartwell’s) is supposed to put a coffee/snack shop in the Library. We were told that it would be in last Fall semester. It is still not here, and I have no information about when it will be here. It will be on Level 2, the main level, in the far end of B-Wing. New stairs to the outside door have been built.

Winston A. Walden
Director of the Library

Library Needs to Stay Open Longer

2004-08-17T09:20:00.000-07:00

SUGGESTION:
Stay open 24 hrs. MTSU, UT, etc. all stay open 24 hrs. MTSU even has a computer lab that stays open 24 hrs.

ANSWER:
I checked with the UT Libraries (Knoxville, Chattanooga, Martin) and the TBR Libraries (MTSU, APSU, ETSU, TSU, and UM.) Only UT-K keeps a library open 24 hours. It is open 24 hours from Sunday noon to Friday when it closes at 10:00 p.m. UT-Martin keeps a study room open 24 hours.

TTU kept a study room open from the 2:00 a.m. building closing until the building opened at 7:45 a.m. during final exams starting in fall, 1990. This practice ended at the beginning of the school year 2003/04 when Chartwell’s Food Service planned to put a coffee shop in the Extended Hours Room.

Before Chartwell’s, we were considering not opening this room during finals when the building closed at 2:00 a.m. It simply was not used. We also had difficulty finding people to supervise the room during those hours.

At the request of the SGA, we kept the Extended Hours Room open during the regular semester from midnight when the building closed until 2:00 a.m. We did this for four years from fall, 1992 through spring, 1996. These hours attracted very few students, so we stopped.
We will not keep the building open 24 hours. The reasons are:
1. We do not anticipate adequate use to justify the cost. This has been reinforced by our experience with the Extended Hours Room.
2. We have difficulty staffing until 2:00 a.m. during finals, and it was almost impossible to staff hours after 2:00 a.m.
3. Many of the library resources that students, both on and off campus, use are available through the Library’s Website.
4. Security concerns mean we would have to have better security, which costs. Many libraries in research universities, like UT-K, are open 24/7. Many of these have a security guard or guards in the building. Some have video surveillance.
We have expanded hours to meet student needs without being asked. Since fall, 1998, the Library is open until 2:00 a.m. the week before finals. We call this “Projects Week” because this is the time students need the Library for their semester projects. The number of students in the building during these hours has justified our maintaining this change.

TTU Information Technology Services provides a 24-hour PC lab in Room 313 of Clement Hall.

Winston A. Walden
Director of the Library