PsycINFO Training Videos on YouTube

The American Psychological Association has begun a PsycINFO YouTube channel.  Right now, there are seven helpful training videos.  New videos will be added regularly.  The channel is accessible at: http://www.youtube.com/user/PsycINFO.

Videos include: 1) Finding Peer-Reviewed Items in PsycINFO (on the EBSCOhost platform); 2) APA PsycNET: Using the Index Terms and Keywords Effectively; 3) Finding Peer-Reviewed Items in PsycINFO; 4) APA PsycNET Sample Search; 5) APA PsycNET: Setting up a personalized alert; 6) Searching APA PsycNET: Using the Term Finder; and 7) Searching APA PsycNET: Using the Author Index.

Faceted Searching Solutions

The Association for Library Collections & Technical Services (ALCTS) offered a forum series at the ALA Annual Conference in Anaheim.  One was sponsored by the ALCTS Catalog Form and Function Interest Group entitled “Old Records, New Records, New Interfaces.”  Three librarians, Charley Pennell, Mary Charles Lasater, and Cheryl Gowing, presented their experiences from their online catalog redesign projects.  Links to the powerpoint presentations are below:

Charley Pennell, Principal Cataloger for Metadata, North Carolina State University Libraries – Endeca Presentation

Mary Charles Lasater, Authorities Librarian, Jean and Alexander Heard Library, Vanderbilt University – Primo Presentation

Cheryl Gowing, Director, Information Management & Systems, University of Miami – Encore Presentation

[Also, here is a link to SirsiDynix's faceted searching solution: Enterprise.]

SirsiDynix Institute Free Webinars

The SirsiDynix Institute is “an ongoing forum for professional development in the library community. By providing free access to industry-leading speakers and events, our mission is to support librarianship and advance the work of librarians around the world.”

  MP3’s of past events are available for free at: http://sirsidynixinstitute.com/podcast.xml

The schedule of upcoming web seminars is available here: http://www.sirsidynixinstitute.com/future.php

OCLC Acquires EZproxy

This press release dated January 11, 2008 announced that OCLC has acquired EZproxy authentication and access software.  Betsy Wilson, member of the OCLC Board of Trustees and Dean of University Libraries at the University of Washington, states in the announcement that, “The library community has embraced EZproxy as the preferred solution for serving patrons remotely, and we believed it’s important to continue the service model that users currently enjoy.  OCLC’s acquisition of EZproxy ensures that the software will be developed and supported for libraries over the long term.”

EZproxy 4.1 is scheduled to be released in March 2008.