Author: Kimberly

Find a Quality Source: Drop-In Research Help

Kimberly

Have a paper or project due soon, and need information to complete it? Drop in to:

Find a Quality Source: Drop-In Research Help

Bring whatever you are working on to a reference librarian and get immediate expert assistance in finding the information you need, whether it be articles, statistics, company information, or books. You will walk away with the source or two (or three) that you need!

Four sessions:

  • Tuesday, April 18th, 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. (during activity period)
  • Tuesday, April 18th, 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.
  • Thursday, April 20th, 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.
  • Sunday, April 23rd, noon to 1:00 p.m.

(No RSVP necessary; just come to our classroom, room 11, on the lower level anytime during the hour.)

OverDrive Launches Upgrade.

Kimberly

OverDrive launched a new version of its website today. There are many changes, but as a heavy OverDrive user, I’m thrilled to report on the new feature called Wish List.

When looking at a title in OverDrive, you can click the plus sign, circled in red on the image below, to add that title to your Wish List.


My Wish List allows me to keep a running list of titles that I’d like to read/listen to without placing them on hold. Why is this exciting you ask? Because it puts the control in my hands. When I have time to read, I can now just go to my wish list to see which of my options are available instead of placing a hold and getting an e-mail that a title is available at a time that is inconvenient for me. I absolutely love this feature. You can still place holds and get an e-mail alert when a title is available, but the immediate-gratification side of me loves the Wish List feature. Having the items on my Wish List also makes it quicker and easier to access them on the smaller screen of my iPhone.

Did you know that we now offer more than 2,100 downloadable eBooks and audiobooks via OverDrive ? The Bentley Library’s OverDrive collection includes fiction and nonfiction bestsellers, award winners, classics and perennial favorites. Current Bentley students, faculty and staff can borrow titles from OverDrive at http://bentleydownload.lib.overdrive.com/ using a Bentley email address and password. New titles are added monthly, so check back often.

You can enjoy OverDrive titles on all computers and devices, including iPhone®, iPad®, NOOK®, Android™ phones and tablets, and Kindle®. If you are new to OverDrive, check out their Getting Started page for information and assistance. Enjoy!

Resource of the Month: Congress.gov

Kimberly

As we focus on the current Presidential Election, a Library of Congress blog post, Time to Say Goodbye to Thomas, reminds us to check in on our other branches of government. THOMAS.gov retired on July 5, 2016, and Congress.gov is now the place to go to find out what Congress is doing.

congressgov

The site provides not only information on what Congress has done and is currently doing, but resources for all who want to understand and get involved in the legislative process. Coverage for legislative information includes committee reports and the Congressional Record starting from the 104th Congress and member profiles are available from the 93rd Congress to present. Need a primary source for a history class? A gallery of U. S. Founding Documents provides lots to choose from.

One can easily create a free account to set up alerts tracking particular bills, congressional members, or any aspect of the business of government reported in the Congressional Record.

Help is available:

You can also follow Congress.gov through various social media channels, view the Ways to Connect at the bottom of the landing page.

waystoconnect

 

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Resource of the Month provides a very brief introduction to a useful website or Library database, highlighting key features you should know about. If you would like more information about this free web resource (or any of the library’s databases), please contact us for research assistance. If you would like a demonstration of this resource for a class, please schedule a research instruction class using this form.

On Display: Presidential Biographies

Kimberly

whitehouseOn display at the Bentley Library (May 17 – June 27) is a selection of presidential biographies. Before the image of dusty dense tomes is brought to mind, please be aware that we’ve left those titles in the stacks!

There are a plethora of presidential biographies published, so choosing a small selection was the challenge. We’ve looked at Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award listings, book review sources, best presidential biography lists, and solicited faculty recommendations to prepare this display. We’ve tried to include at least two titles for each president.

When browsing the display shelves, you’ll notice that some of the titles include a “Bentley Pick” bookmark.

benteypickThese bookmarks indicate titles recommended by your fellow Bentley readers including Professors Gary Donato, Clifford Putney and Chris Beneke and President Gloria Larson. If you would like to recommend a title from this display, just fill out a bookmark at the Reference Desk or send your suggestion to refdesk@bentley.edu and we’ll include a bookmark in your choice.

I’ve heard many interesting comments from patrons and colleagues in preparation for this display. Many roadblocks/perceptions that stop patrons from enjoying these titles include:

  1. They are too weighty/heavy!

Many of these titles are available in a handy paperback format and some are available through OverDrive and can be borrowed through an e-reader. See curated online display

  1. I don’t have the time to slog through the text!

Many of these titles are available as audiobooks on CD format and through OverDrive. Just listen while in the car, walking your 10,000 steps or relaxing on the beach : )

  1. They are too dry and boring!

Many of these titles have won awards, are best sellers, and some, according to the reviews, even read like thrillers.

Why not make a goal of reading a biography for every president? This is a challenge that many readers have taken on. For example, My Journey Through the Best Presidential Biographies is a blog by avid American history fan, Stephen Floyd, about his experience reading through the presidents. Why not read and join in the conversation? If you’d like a complete listing of all the titles recommended to keep after the display comes down, just send an e-mail request to refdesk@bentley.edu and we’ll send you the list for your own records.

We hope that you enjoy this selection and maybe check one out for your next “beach read”. Start your journey today!

Bibliography

Showing in the Art Gallery: Paintings by Linda Collins

Kimberly

On exhibit from May 2 – June 20 June 17 in the RSM Art Gallery is an installation of dog portraits and Cape Cod landscapes by artist Linda Collins.

The series of dog portraits on view includes Kodiak, one of the handsome and huggable therapy dogs that visited the library last semester. Kodiak and his canine friend Athena are returning to the library on Thursday, May 5 (Reading Day), from 4:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m., for another Take a Paws stress relief session

In lieu of a formal opening reception for the exhibit, Linda Collins will be present at Take a Paws on May 5.  If you would like to meet Ms. Collins or learn more about her artwork, please visit the gallery during that event.  You can also see more of the artist’s work on her website and her blog.

Linda Collins
Inspirations
May 1 – June 17, 2016

Painting of Kodiak, a Bernese Mountain Dog.
Painting of Kodiak, a Bernese Mountain Dog.

About the Artist

Linda Collins, a Cape Cod resident, has been painting for the past ten years. She began by taking portraiture classes at the Cambridge Center for Adult Education. “If you are going to take up something new, why not start with the most challenging subject matter!” From people she moved on to painting pets, still life, and more recently, landscapes. “The dogs are always what I go back to though. If I am struggling with something else, painting a dog always gets me in a happy place.” This show represents the full range of her painting, with the large canvas landscapes being her most recent.

Linda, the Assistant Director of the Falmouth Public Library, is a member of the Falmouth Artists Guild and the American Impressionist Society. She has had her work in juried shows both locally and nationally, including the “6 Inch Squared Exhibit” at the Randy Higbee Gallery in Costa Mesa, CA and the “Best and Brightest” at the Scottsdale Artists’ School in Scottsdale, AZ.

“I work full time as a librarian but it is wonderful to have found this creative outlet that has become a full time passion.”

Learn About Downloadable Books at Our OverDrive Clinics

Kimberly

overdriveclinicHave you checked out our OverDrive collection recently?  We’ve been busy adding downloadable ebooks and audiobooks – including current bestsellers Go Set A Watchman by Harper Lee, The Widow by Fiona Barton, Smarter Faster Better by Charles Duhigg and perennial favorites by authors like J.R.R. Tolkien, Bill Bryson and John Irving, and classics by Jane Austen and Bram Stoker.

Simply click into OverDrive to view our Newest Additions or to browse the ebook and audiobook collections by genre or check out the Getting Started Guide.

If you haven’t already set-up your laptop, Kindle, iPad, NOOK, smartphone or other device, we’d love to help you get started. We are holding two drop-in clinics this week to answer questions about Overdrive:

OverDrive Downloadable Books Clinics

Tuesday, April 12
2:30PM – 3:30PM
and
Thursday, April 14
4:30PM – 5:30PM

No RSVP is required – just come to our classroom (lower level, room 11) and we’ll be there to lend you a helping hand! If you bring your device with you, we can help you with the initial set-up or troubleshoot any problems you’ve been having. We hope to see you there.

Database of the Month: Business Insights: Essentials

Kimberly

BIE
Business Insights: Essentials provides in-depth information on U.S. and international businesses (both public and private) and industries. Included are company profiles, industry profiles, financial data, investment reports and articles from business periodicals. The strength of this database comes from its underlying sources. It is a great resource for getting a company’s history, market share and SWOT analysis. It is also a great resource for getting an overview of a particular industry as well.

Usage tip: Start by searching for a company name (such as Wal-mart) or ticker symbol (such as WMT)  in the keyword box and look through your results for the company profile. This will create a “dashboard” view of all of the available reports regarding your company including:

  • A Company History (sourced from International Directory of Company Histories)
  • Market share (sourced from Market Share Reporter)
  • SWOT Analysis (sourced from Global Markets Direct SWOT Reports published by GlobalData Ltd.)
  • And many others  (see below image).

BIECDS

The company profile also provides a Related Articles area that groups current article content into specific subject categories. These articles help to update the above reports with the most current data available. The Related Articles are grouped into these categories:

  • Financial Data
  • Legal Issues
  • Management
  • Operations & Technology
  • People; Products & Services
  • Sales & Marketing
  • Statistics
  • Strategy & Planning

Remember, when you click on one of these subject categories in the company profile, you will only link to articles relevant to this specific company.

The company profile also includes the industry names and the NAICS codes in which the company operates including the one indicated as the Primary Industry. Clicking on the linked title (see below image) will bring up an industry profile.

BIENaics

Of note: searching for the NAICS code (such as 452990) in the keyword search box on the database’s homepage will also bring up an industry profile.

An industry profiles lists “Top Companies” by Revenue and provides “Industry Essays” (sourced from the Gale Business Insights Online Collection, 2016 which consists of these encyclopedias: Encyclopedia of American Industries; Emerging Industries & Global Industries).

Business Insights: Essentials can be used to compare companies and/or industries using available metrics. This feature is available under the Comparison Charts drop down menu from the database’s homepage.

  • Metrics available for companies: Number of employees, Number of employees over Time, Revenue, Sales per employee, Sales Per Employee over Time
  • Metrics available for industries: Number of Companies; Number of Companies over Time; Employees; Number of Employees over time; Sales Per Employee; Sales Per Employee over Time; Revenue

Comparison charts & data can be exported into Excel.

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Database of the Month provides a very brief introduction to a database available from the Library’s website, highlighting key features of the database that you should know about. If you would like more information about this database (or any of the library’s databases), please contact us for research assistance. If you would like a demonstration of this database for a class, please schedule a research instruction class using this form.

All About Data: Big & Small

Kimberly

dataposter

On display, from November 17, 2015 to January 4, 2016, at the Bentley Library is an interdisciplinary collection of books highlighting research about data. Included are popular and scholarly works about collecting it, obtaining it, analyzing it, evaluating it and finally accounting for it.

Visit the library and browse through the physical display located in front of The McGladrey Art Gallery or view the contents of the display online. If you see something online you would like, just request it through the library catalog, and you will be notified when the item is available on the hold shelf for you.

Many of the titles in this collection are also available electronically through Books 24×7.com and Overdrive Downloadable Books.

To highlight a few:

Books 24×7.com:
(Of note: Multiple users can view the same content at the same time.)

Overdrive Downloadable Books:
(Of note: Downloadable content is checked out to one user at a time.)

We hope that you enjoy this display. If you notice we are missing a title on this topic, please feel free to suggest a purchase.