Off The Shelf

A few weeks ago I posted two library tips for new learners.

Here are two more below:

1. Sort by Relevance:
Sometimes your results look random at first, since the databases sort articles by date as a default.  So the most recent article will be at the top – not the most relevant.  Luckily, there’s an option to change the way articles are sorted to Relevance.  Look for a Sorting drop-down menu all the way on the right of your article results list – straight across from the number of articles.  It should say “Sort By – Date.”  Change it to “Sort By – Relevance” to bring the best articles to the top (according to your keywords).

2. Contact a Librarian for Search Help:
The librarians are available most weekdays from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. CST.  We recently added extra hours on Monday, when we are open until 8 p.m.  We’ve added some Saturday hours, as well: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. CST.  These are the hours you can normally get us right away via phone.  We promise a reply in 8 business hours for email, but our average is much lower.  (If you don’t get a response in eight hours, check your junk mail folder or let us know!  Sometimes our emails get rejected without us knowing.)

– Erika