And the winner of the Thorntons chocolates is...

...Mark Lambert! Congratulations to student Mark, the winner of our latest library competition whose name was picked out at random this morning.

If you recall, we asked SMU students and staff to like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter or join our Blog for Valentine's day to be in with a chance to win a lovely box of chocolates. Our Facebook site has since seen the biggest increase of followers - we are now up to 177!

So thank you to everyone who has joined us via the Blog, Twitter or Facebook. We hope that you are enjoying following us as well as finding out some interesting & useful information along the way :-)

Having trouble finding relevant journal articles?

You’re very welcome to call in to your SMU library and ask to speak to a librarian for help, of course, but you might also like to take a look at some guidance from the National Library of Wales.: http://welshjournals.llgc.org.uk/content/students. The guidance includes some very useful tips on Effective Searching that can be used to help you find better results when using internet search engines and library databases. This brief guide provides a nice overview of how search engines work and how you can get the best out of them. It’s well worth spending a couple of minutes clicking in and finding out how to apply some simple strategies that will help you to find more relevant journal articles and resources!

This information is available on the Natioanl Library of Wales’ database Welsh Journals Online. This is a freely available database which is accessible via the SMU library web pages or by accessing the database directly. The database holds digitised versions of Welsh journals that can be browsed and read online.

If you would like to develop your internet search skills further, don’t forget to look at the Internet Detective tutorial, which we looked at on the blog back in November. Or just come in and ask a librarian!

Step back in time with the National Archives

Are you a history teacher, history student or history buff? If so, you might be interested in the National Archives website, and especially in the Education section. It’s filled to the brim with lessons, topics, podcasts, film clips and resources for video conferences and virtual classroom sessions. There are primary and secondary resources for historical periods from 1066 until the present day and there is lesson material appropriate for key stages 1 to 5. You’re bound to find something useful no matter which age group you’re teaching or what topic you’re covering.

The National Archives website is well worth a look even if you’re not in the business of history education. It’s full of interesting stories and fascinating resources! At the moment, for instance, the Education section is featuring ‘Cats, mice and votes for women’, which uses newspaper reports and other contemporary documents to look at the tactics used by the suffragettes and the police during the suffrage movement.

The National Archives homepage is a gateway to all sorts of information, from family history to newly released documents that shed light on the workings of government and the secret service. Go on, have a look!

More good news for researchers of business information!

As readers of this blog will know, SMU Library is currently running a free trial for the Key Note business information database until 7th March 2012. We have now also arranged to run a concurrent, free trial for Passport GMID until 8th March 2012.

Passport GMID is a global market information database and analysis tool containing comprehensive data and reports across all industries, countries and consumers.
Subscribers use the system to support a wide range of business functions and research projects:

Industry analysis
Export and market entry strategies
Trend monitoring
Company analysis
Country profiling
Consumer and household profiling
Lifestyle analysis
Modelling and forecasting
General business reference

A Passport GMID subscription includes:
10 million internationally comparable market statistics on industries, countries and consumers.
18,000 full text market reports, company reports and country reports.
Expert analyst comment on emerging industry trends, country trends and consumer trends.
Details of thousands of information sources to aid further research.
Powerful data analysis functions allowing users to customise data for specific needs.

To access Passport GMID, go to the business subject pages on the library website. Click on the Databases tab in the top left corner of the screen and then find Passport GMID in the alphabetical listing.

We currently subscribe to Datamonitor360 for marketing and company information. Why not compare this service to Key Note and Passport GMID? Never has so much business data been available to SMU library users at the mere touch of a button or two ...

A fitting tribute...

On Wednesday 8th February at 5.00pm, the Library at Dynevor was officially re-named 'The Griffith Library at Dynevor,' in memory of Art & Design lecturer Sue Griffith. It was a well attended and fitting celebration / commemoration. If you missed the event, the accompanying exhibition of artwork by women artists will be on display for a little while longer in the Library and main foyer of the Dynevor Centre. We've also got a permanent commemorative plaque next to the Library counter, which includes a lovely quote from Sue about libraries...

Love your SMU Library on Valentine's day!

We are offering SMU students and staff the opportunity to win a lovely box of chocolates in our Valentine's prize draw! All you have to do is 'Like' us on our Library Facebook page, 'Follow' us on our Library Twitter site or join our Library Blog!

You have until 21st February to do so, after which we will pick one lucky winner at random. We will also include in the draw all SMU students and staff who already like, follow or have joined our blog previously.

Lastly, of course by following us via our Facebook, Twitter or Blog pages in the future you will also find out lots more about the library service and resources that we have to offer you! What's not to love about our libraries :-)

Try our new library catalogue!

Take a look at the library website http://apollo.smu.ac.uk/library/index.asp?page=newCat&newCatPage=home as we’re currently trialling the new version of our library catalogue - Prism 3. It includes some new features such as the display of book jackets. Feel free to leave any feedback using the link provided.

Librarian wins folk music awards!

Singer June Tabor, who once worked as a librarian in London, last evening won four prizes at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards at The Lowry theatre in Salford - congratulations June!

For more on this story, see the link to the BBC news website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-16954049

Happy birthday Mr Dickens!

Today is the 200th anniversary of Charles Dickens' birth. There will be events held all over the world this year to celebrate the bicentenary. You can find out more on the Dickens 2012 website. Closer to home, though, why not come in to Townhill Library and borrow one of his novels from us? It's a good excuse to re-visit an old favourite, or a chance to find out what all the fuss is about. Claire Tomalin was in the news last week suggesting that Dickens is too challenging for modern children, but that's not the case for us at Swansea Met! The author's depictions of injustice and the inequalities between rich and poor in society are still relevant today. And not just that, but he's a funny guy. Really! There's real comedy to be found amongst the tragedy and that's what makes a Dickens novel such a great read. Come in and try one.

We'd love you to share your favourite Dickens novel with us, so get in touch if you've got any recommendations for other readers. It's got to be Great Expectations for me. "What larks, Pip!"

Congratulations Suzanne!

Hello again! My name is Suzanne Taylor and I’m the subject librarian for Performance & Literature, Counselling & Psychology and Educational Studies. I’m also studying for a MSc (Econ) in Information & Library Studies, via a distance learning course with Aberystwyth University.

After a nail biting couple of months, I’ve received confirmation that I’ve passed my final assignments, equivalent to a Postgraduate Diploma, and am now a qualified Assistant Librarian. It has been lovely to delete ‘trainee’ from my email signature and to have a new sign for the office door!

The coursework has been challenging at times, especially as when I started, I hadn’t written an assignment for more than fifteen years! It’s also made me appreciate just how difficult it can be to balance studying with working full-time and having a life outside work.

Although I could stop now, I’m going to carry on and complete my degree. So, in future, if you see me laden down with books or typing furiously I’ll probably be tackling my dissertation. Wish me luck....only 15,000 words to go.....