Hello again,
Tuesday. It's my first work day of the week. I work by myself in a small special library which is part of large research organisation. We have various other libraries and information service points dotted around the country.
9am - I switch on all the lights, gather up yesterdays newspapers and set out todays papers. Boot up computers, log in etc. Usual housekeeping. I check my personal and the libraries generic email acct and see what needs to be actioned. Storeman advises that the recycle skip has been emptied. I've 6 metres of abstracts to discard after having listed them on aliadups with responses required two weeks ago. I fill up a trolley and make a few trips to the skip.
9.30am - I follow up the previous days email requests for docdel and staff queries.
10am - Open the postal mail, accession journals and put them on display. Tuesdays we change the display so I remove older journals and shelve. I discharge returned loans and shelve them too.
10.30am - Time for a cuppa and yoghert, sit with a couple PA's just back from holidays and discuss their overseas trips.
10.50am - Scientist drops in. Wants to locate a couple of technical reports. One is available online the other in the collection. We discuss the possibility of digitising the print copy and some other materials. We go on to discuss digital rights management. An interesting discussion. He leaves with the promise I will look into the possibility of digitising the information we discussed.
11.20am - Email from scientist wanting a paper. I find a location and explain it's availability and how he can gain access.
11.30am - Two document delivery requests, one book loan, one article.
11.45am - Check my feeds and alerts for information to post to newsletter or information blog.
12.15pm - End processing of a couple of catalogued items.
12.30pm - Weeding. Go to where I left off in the monographs. Identified some titles, take them back to office evaluate and list them on draft duplicates list.
1pm - Lunch and a walk with a colleague from Records.
1.30pm - Continue weeding/evaluation. Help visiting scientist access library computer.
2pm - Check new starters list. Send a welcome and introductory email. Invite them to come in to the library for an induction on library services and products or attend our online "Intro to Library Services" training.
2.30pm - Work on monthly report.
2.40pm - Continue deletion of superseded standards.
3pm - Time to go home.
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Monday, July 25, 2011
Library Day in the Life
Hi,
This is the first time I've participated in this project, Library Day in a Life. I'm looking forward to reading others blogs and reflecting back over mine at the end of the week.
I'm lucky enough to work in a government special library, four days a week, 9 - 3pm. Today is my at home day.
That said, I am currently studying towards a Bachelor of Information Studies thru Charles Sturt University in Wagga, NSW. So my day off gives me a chance to work on my assignments, catch up on my reading and to do some research.
I also take time to look at my twitter feed. I often garner some gems of information about new technology, upcoming conferences/meetings and issues other professionals are tackling. I also keep an eye on Facebook as I've "liked" a number of company/organisation pages and I find some useful posts from eg. database vendors about updates and system issues.
I've a couple of emails from scientists that I will need to action in the morning but most of them are follow ups and are aware I'm not about on Mondays. We have a great team of information specialists who look after our "Ask a Librarian" mailbox if an enquiry requires a more immediate response.
Well. Time to do a bit more reading before Masterchef.
I'm looking forward to blogging about my activities at work tomorrow.
This is the first time I've participated in this project, Library Day in a Life. I'm looking forward to reading others blogs and reflecting back over mine at the end of the week.
I'm lucky enough to work in a government special library, four days a week, 9 - 3pm. Today is my at home day.
That said, I am currently studying towards a Bachelor of Information Studies thru Charles Sturt University in Wagga, NSW. So my day off gives me a chance to work on my assignments, catch up on my reading and to do some research.
I also take time to look at my twitter feed. I often garner some gems of information about new technology, upcoming conferences/meetings and issues other professionals are tackling. I also keep an eye on Facebook as I've "liked" a number of company/organisation pages and I find some useful posts from eg. database vendors about updates and system issues.
I've a couple of emails from scientists that I will need to action in the morning but most of them are follow ups and are aware I'm not about on Mondays. We have a great team of information specialists who look after our "Ask a Librarian" mailbox if an enquiry requires a more immediate response.
Well. Time to do a bit more reading before Masterchef.
I'm looking forward to blogging about my activities at work tomorrow.
Thursday, July 21, 2011
My Dad
I love to read.
My Dad engendered this love of reading. Every month he would take us to the local public library. It'd be of an evening, after dinner. We'd be in our pj's and dressing gowns. ...Crikey, now I've aged myself some. :oD.
We'd choose mainly picture books, so we must have been very young. When we got home Mum would write them down in a log book so we'd know what we'd borrowed and had to return.
Dad loved to read. He had a mini library under the house. Mainly westerns.
It was his love of reading that started mine. My first library job was in that public library we visited in my younger years. It was a great start to my career in libraries.
My Dad engendered this love of reading. Every month he would take us to the local public library. It'd be of an evening, after dinner. We'd be in our pj's and dressing gowns. ...Crikey, now I've aged myself some. :oD.
We'd choose mainly picture books, so we must have been very young. When we got home Mum would write them down in a log book so we'd know what we'd borrowed and had to return.
Dad loved to read. He had a mini library under the house. Mainly westerns.
It was his love of reading that started mine. My first library job was in that public library we visited in my younger years. It was a great start to my career in libraries.
One of my favourite library quotes
The Library connects us with the insight and knowledge, painfully extracted from Nature, of the greatest minds that ever were, with the best teachers, drawn from the entire planet and from all our history, to instruct us without tiring, and to inspire us to make our own contribution to the collective knowledge of the human species. I think the health of our civilization, the depth of our awareness about the underpinnings of our culture and our concern for the future can all be tested by how well we support our libraries. Carl Sagan, Cosmos
Getting ready for "Library Day in the Life" project. - Organised by Librarian by Day
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Blog in June ... well, at least once. ;-D
I've been reading some of my favorite library blogs with interest this month. Seeing what the trends are, what people can come up with day in day out blogging. It's interesting and reassuring.
I've been working in a special library on my own since February. So reading these blogs feels like I have a network of colleagues at my finger tips and much less alone. That said, I love where I work and the opportunities it presents.
However, I'm not new to this profession, I've been working in libraries .... for over 20 years. I've done a couple of stints in a public library but for the most part I've worked in special libraries. For the last year and half I've returned to study and I'm doing a Bachelors of Information Studies via distance thru Charles Sturt. It's great. Distance ed. has changed and improved SO much since I last studied. It has got me excited again. Excited about libraries and the technologies that are so much a part of libraries now.
That said, I had a mini light bulb moment yesterday. Walking past a bookshop I noticed their latest bestsellers on display. One of the authors caught my eye and without hesitation I though "I must download that on to my eReader when I get home". Yikes!! Without a moments hesitation. Not "must reserve that at the library", not "must pop in and read the blurb and consider a purchase". In fact I had my eReader and iPad with me in my backpack. I didn't even need to wait till I got home!
This is how most people think. It's immediate, most have the technology and they want it now. They want their information instantly. I thought I knew this but I think maybe now I get it.
I've been working in a special library on my own since February. So reading these blogs feels like I have a network of colleagues at my finger tips and much less alone. That said, I love where I work and the opportunities it presents.
However, I'm not new to this profession, I've been working in libraries .... for over 20 years. I've done a couple of stints in a public library but for the most part I've worked in special libraries. For the last year and half I've returned to study and I'm doing a Bachelors of Information Studies via distance thru Charles Sturt. It's great. Distance ed. has changed and improved SO much since I last studied. It has got me excited again. Excited about libraries and the technologies that are so much a part of libraries now.
That said, I had a mini light bulb moment yesterday. Walking past a bookshop I noticed their latest bestsellers on display. One of the authors caught my eye and without hesitation I though "I must download that on to my eReader when I get home". Yikes!! Without a moments hesitation. Not "must reserve that at the library", not "must pop in and read the blurb and consider a purchase". In fact I had my eReader and iPad with me in my backpack. I didn't even need to wait till I got home!
This is how most people think. It's immediate, most have the technology and they want it now. They want their information instantly. I thought I knew this but I think maybe now I get it.
Saturday, February 5, 2011
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