ABS PhD students- refresher session

The Library welcomes ABS PhD students in to the Library on Wednesday 2nd November for a library workshop on "Reassessing information literacy skills".  The workshop is open to any ABS PhD student who would like to come along for a refresher and ask for help with their information searching.  Content could include:

• Accessing resources off-campus
• Searching individual databases effectively
• Setting up search alerts
• Citation searching
• Accessing PhD Thesis from other Universities

The workshop is being held in the Library Seminar Room, 2nd floor of the Library Building and will run from 2:00pm.  The information specialist leading the session will be Nicola Dennis.

Downloading PDFs from Business Source Premier EBSCOHost on a MAC

If you are having problems downloading PDFs from Business Source Premier / EBSCOhost and you are using Safari 5.1 on a MAC, then you may need to install a plug-in.

Please see the following instructions from EBSCOHost to help resolve this problem:

Why am I receiving a "Plug-in not found" error when opening a PDF on a Mac using Safari?
http://support.ebscohost.com/knowledge_base/detail.php?id=5765

Lydia Matheson
Business Information Specialist

Problems accessing e-resources

Unfortunately there are on-going problems accessing some resources off campus. The problems appear intermittent and are not affecting everyone. We apologise for this and are trying hard to resolve the issues, but need more evidence of where problems are occurring. If you experience any difficulties please email details to library@aston.ac.uk stating what you were trying to access, whether you are off or on campus, and please send a screenshot of any error message if possible.
Thanks for your help

Update on Aston e-Library problem with accessing individual resources

We are pleased to report that the problem with the Find Resource option within the Aston e-Library has now been fixed. We apologise for any inconvenience this problem has caused. If you are still having problems please email library@aston.ac.uk

Aston e-Library: Problems accessing individual resources

We are currently experiencing some problems with the Aston e-Library which is affecting access to the Find Resources part of the service. Staff are working to resolve the problem and LIS will let you know via the Blogworm when the service is fully available again. In the meantime please use the electronic resources webpage to link through to databases.

We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.

Are you studying BMM646 as part of your MSc in Marketing Management?

We welcome students studying MSc Marketing Management (Supervisor Group 2) and (Supervisor Group 1) students to the Library on Monday the 24th October.

Students will be attending an Applied Research Methods workshop run by the Information Specialist, Nicola Dennis as part of their preparation for researching information for assignments, presentations, group work and the MSc project at the end of the programme.

Students will be using the Library Seminar Room on the 2nd floor of the Building between 2:00pm - 5:00pm.
(Supervisor Group 2) 2:00-3:30
(Supervisor Group 1) 3:30-5:00

Proquest access problems

There are currently intermittent problems with accessing the Proquest database. Proquest are working to try and resolve this and we will update this post as soon as it's been fixed.

Are you studying BHM330 Applied use of online research methods?

We welcome students studying MSc Human Resource Management & Business, MSc Organisational Behaviour, MSc Organisational Psychology & Business, MSc Work Psychology & Business and MSc Social Responsibility and Sustainability to the Library on Monday the 17th October.

Students will be attending an Applied Research Methods workshop run by the Information Specialist, Nicola Dennis as part of their preparation for researching information for assignments, presentations, group work and the MSc project at the end of the programme.

Students will be using the Library Seminar Room on the 2nd floor of the Building at 9am, 10:20am and 11:40am depending on their assigned group.

Study spaces within the Library Building

Group Study Spaces
Most of the group study spaces are located on the ground floor of the Library Building. Using the large study tables or the comfortable seating areas, you can work in groups to discuss your assignments, prepare presentations and plan tasks. feel free to use the whiteboards provided to make notes of your discussions. The 1st floor contains quiet study carrels and group study spaces in the Learning Development Centre.

Flexible Study floor
The 2nd floor of the Library is a Flexible Study area. During the examination period and throughout term three, the 2nd floor will be for silent study only. During the rest of the year, it will be available for use as group study space.

Silent Study
We have designated the 3rd floor as a Silent Study area, where noise must be kept to a minimum, so as not to interfere with individual quiet study. If you need to talk to someone, please move to a group study area or to the stairwell. If you are working in a silent study area and are disturbed by noise from others, please contact a member of Library staff who will deal with the problem immediately.

Introducing.... Podcasts!

Yesterday, Aston University Library & Information Services published the first podcast in a new series covering a range of topics relating to library services and research skills.

The first podcast includes a welcome to LIS by Nick Smith, Director, and answers a number of frequently asked questions to help new students in particular make the most of the services and facilities provided by LIS.  Future episodes will include introducing your Information Specialists, using Google, Aston e-Library, and searching effectively for journal articles.

Keep an eye on the podcast webpage to pick and choose the podcasts most relevant to you, or subscribe to the whole series by RSS.  Subscription via iTunes is coming soon!

We'd love to hear your feedback on this new initiative.  Please comment on this post, or send us an e-mail to let us know what you think, or to suggest topics you would like us to cover.

Datastream and 3000Xtra

ABS Students,

Will you need to use the research database Datastream for your dissertation? Are you registered to use the ABS Trading Room? Then you might be interested in the Question and Answer sessions run by the company Thomson Reuters that provide the two resources; Datastream and 3000Xtra.

How does it work?
All your data questions are answered using interactive Adobe e-training sessions

What you need to do!
To sign up email knowledge.networkuki@thomsonreuters.com and state the date, time and session you would like to enroll on to. Include your email address. They will email you with the rest of the information.

3000xtra
Wednesday 5-10-2011 at 3pm
Wednesday 26-10-2011 at 3pm

Datastream
Tuesday 4-10-2011 at 2pm
Thursday 20-10-2011 at 2pm

Nicola Dennis
Information Specialist

Web of Knowledge: not displaying results in Internet Explorer 9

There is a known problem in IE9 where search results are not displaying in the database Web of Knowledge.

Web of Knowledge have told us that enabling the compatability mode as follows in IE9 should resolve this problem:

•Click on Tools menu.
•Click on Compatibility View Settings.
•Type 'webofknowledge.com' in the text-box and click on Add.

If you have any further problems with this database, please contact us at library@aston.ac.uk with screenshots of your problem if appropriate.

Library Matters Live Sessions

Dear Students,

The Library Matters Live timetable for this week (3rd October - 7th October) has changed to due to clashes with your programme timetable. Please view the Library Matters Live webpages to see the changes and make a note of your session.

If you haven't attended a Library Matters Live session and your degree is not listed on this week's timetable please ask for assistance at the Library Help Desk, Ground Floor of the Library Building.