SOURCE

VOLUME 12 · NUMBER 1 ·
January, 1998

IN THIS ISSUE:
Rowland enhances remote access to Ovid
Rowland Profile
ROMEO's Web
UMC departments share resources through library
Enforcement of food and drink policy
Key Reference Sources
New shelving allows for expansion
Focus on Friends
Credit card option for user convenience
National Medical Librarians Month
National Library Week
FAQs on File

The library has recently enhanced remote access to its Ovid database system which provides Medline, CINAHL, HealthStar, PsycLit, ERIC, and CancerLit through full web based searching options. Ovid users can now take full advantage of the World Wide Web by using popular browsers such as Netscape Navigator or Microsoft Internet Explorer to search the library's databases. Previously, internet users could only access the databases through a telnet session called from web browsers. This required telnet software and configuration of the browser to run the telnet session.

The new interface makes use of an Ovid Java client. This client, written in the Java programming language, is faster and does not need to be distributed or administered by the library. The application updates itself as soon as new versions become available, and it only transmits and uses those parts of the client that it needs - significantly increasing speed and performance. In addition, because the client is retrieved at the beginning of each session, the latest software is always available to the user with no updating or configuring required at the desktop.

The Java client is a true application that combines the best of both the Ovid Windows client and the Ovid Web Gateway. In functions, it closely resembles the Ovid Windows client, which is already familiar to many users. The Java client, which features a live graphical user interface, because it is a true client application, has all the Ovid tools available from a minimum of screens. Limiting and refining searches, refining them, viewing or combining sets, and entering new terms are all options available from the main search screen. Compared to an HTML-based Web environment, the Java client interface is more flexible because information does not have to be sent in the form of "pages." Users need not return to the top or bottom of a page to point and click on icons.

The Java client is faster because only the raw data is brought to the desktop; there is no need to transmit page layout information. It retrieves and displays requested information then works in the background retrieving more information and code while the user continues to work. The client uses Java's multi-task capabilities to reduce network traffic and optimize communication between the client and server. This modular approach speeds the process enormously.

Customization of the interface is under the user's control. Users can take the client "off the browser" and resize it to fit their desktop and display the retrieved information in a variety of fonts controlled with handy buttons that are part of the interface. For advanced searchers, the Ovid Java client has all the advanced tools of the Ovid Windows client and more. Command line searching is fully supported in the client for users already familiar with database structures. Java, a Sun Microsystem product, is well established as a key computing environment for the future. The language's platform independence means that code can run on any platform that is Java-capable, including Macintosh, UNIX, Windows 95 and NT, giving it a "write once/run everywhere" capability. Unlike the current standard Web environment that revolves around HTML, Java allows real communication to occur between client and server. There is no reloading of pages. Instead, a self-contained mini-operating system fills each client request for more information or programs in real time.

The Ovid Java client is a valuable addition to the informational tools provided by the library. The web user can employ the same skills learned from the Windows interface without having to learn new procedures and does not have to set up telecommunications software or configure the browser. Remote access to the Ovid system has more features available for searching than ever before. It is easier, quicker, and richer than it has ever been to search the library databases remotely.

Richard Everett was appointed September 1 as head of the library's circulation and interlibrary loan services. He joins the faculty as instructor of academic information services.

Everett is a graduate of Rutgers University of New Brunswick, New Jersey, where he received his master of arts in library and information science. He also served an internship at the Firestone Library at Princeton University. His undergraduate degree in English was earned at Bloomsburg University in Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania. Between graduate degrees, he served four years in the U. S. Navy as a remedial reading instructor and leading petty officer for his unit.

He has worked in interlibrary loan services at Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania, at Millersville University, Millersville, Pennsylvania.

Everett has several publications to his credit and is currently an active member of the American Library Association.

The library's web page continues to expand access to electronic resources

equipping patrons with tools for more effective information management. Rowland's home page serves as a filter for the vast amount of electronic health sciences sources available on the Internet providing tools for expedient management of relevant information to support the Medical Center's mission.

The following new titles: Behavior OnLine, EyeWorld, What's New at FDA, Dermatology Online Journal, Emerging Infectious Diseases, Frontiers In Bioscience, A Journal and Virtual Library, and Molecular Vision have been added to the "Electronic Journals" section.

Two new categories, anatomy and diabetes, have broadened the existing "Health Hyperlinks" section, which organizes electronic sources by broad subjects. These categories link users directly to several new sources. A few of the new sources in Anatomy are The Heart: An Online Exploration, Neurosurgical Anatomy - Cadaver Dissections, Liver Anatomy Tutorial, and Gross Anatomy: LUMEN Structure of Human Body. In the Diabetes category the following sources have been added: Diabetes, Diabetes History, and Complications of Diabetes Mellitus.

Other Health Hyperlink categories, which have seen farther additions to their source listings, are Statistics, Clinical Practice Guidelines, Consumer Health, and Continuing Education. The Electronic References category has added the source, RXList - The Internet Drug Index.

The section of "Additional Resources" continues to see the most growth in the category of "Browse Health Sites". Numerous new Web sites have been added to this section. Some of the new sites now accessible for users are Pan American Health Organization, Mayo Clinic Health Oasis, Mental Health Net, American Diabetes Association, The Dental Site, Dentistry, WHO Statistical Information System, and National Center for Health Statistics, to name a few.

In July the library expanded its home page to include a bibliographic service called TOPIC TRACKS. This service is designed to direct users systematically to a variety of "in house" as well as web-based sources and serve the user with a quick and easy introduction as they initiate a literature search. The latest addition to TOPIC TRACKS is Fen-Phen. (fenfluramine and phentermine). The FDA has asked for withdrawal of this once popular combination of appetite suppressants for the treatment of obesity. Evidence has been found linking fenfluramine to heart valve problems.

The most recent database addition is Mississippi Alliance for Gaining New Opportunities through Library Information Access (MAGNOLIA). A state funded endeavor; the MAGNOLIA project provides access to periodicals and other databases for citizens of Mississippi through its libraries. Facts on File has just been added to the MAGNOLIA collection of databases.

The library's section, "Instant Updates" gives users the latest services and sources, forthcoming events, most recent announcements, and news. Services and sources are so numerous that users are encouraged to consult this section weekly to keep abreast of the expansions provided by Rowland. Connect @ the library.

The library still has the same policy on the prohibition of food and beverages in the library. Patrons see this policy each time they enter the library, and it is also displayed on easels in various places throughout the library. No tobacco products are allowed in any UMC building.

However, library staff have recently seen evidence of food and drink in the library and discovered more insects as a result. Rowland users will certainly understand the damaging effects that food and drink, improperly managed, on library collections. The increasing use of expensive computer equipment makes adherence to the policy more important than ever.

Library staff have been asked to make renewed efforts to enforce the policy. Anyone caught breaking the "no food, no drink" policy will have library use privileges suspended. Additional part-time personnel have been hired, and part of their job duties will be to enforce the library policy.

Rowland's policy is to protect and preserve the resources that are currently available. Patrons should make a commitment to make this policy work for the benefit of all.

A new collection of AIDS related materials from the Division of Infectious Diseases, Delta Region AIDS Education & Training Center (ETC) has been added to the RoMeO online catalog. These materials are available for all users from the Delta Region ETC Office on the fifth floor of the hospital. Adding these titles is the first step toward building a UMC union catalog of materials.

The materials in the AIDS collection are distinctive by their call numbers. The classification assigned in the AIDS area is WC 503 - WC 503.7 usually followed by a letter designating the author of the material. For the Delta ETC materials, a unique number is assigned with the designation "DELT" preceding it, therefore the call numbers will resemble this:

WC 503 Delt66 1994

These items are located in the UMC medicine department's Division of Infectious Disease, not in Rowland's book stacks or current journals. If a particular item has a DELT designation, the user will know immediately that the item is not available within the library, but located in the particular department named. The various departments' circulation policies will determine the loan time and/or fines assessed.

If both Rowland Medical Library and the Delta ETC office own the same title, a note is added to the body of the record stating:

ALSO AVAILABLE: UMC Division of Infectious Disease, Delta Region ETC AIDS Office, 5th Floor Hospital 984-5542.

To locate materials held only by the Delta Region ETC AIDS Office, the user can perform the following search in the online catalog:

TITLE KEYWORD: delta/aids

All records will then be retrieved noting availability in the Delta Region ETC Office. The user can then narrow the list by using the advanced options for limiting or sorting by subject, title keyword, author, etc.

The technique of information management becomes increasingly more important as these titles are added to build a UMC union catalog of material. Rowland can act as the management tool enabling departments to work together making information available. Sharing of resources from various departments not only benefits the UMC community but also health care professionals statewide.

- C. Machado

Have you tried to find a reference to a journal article and could not interpret the journal title abbreviation? Did you want to cite a reference in a manuscript and could not find the correct abbreviation for the journal title? The Periodical Title Abbreviations (Ref Z6945 A3 1966) includes database abbreviations and selected monograph abbreviations as well as periodical title abbreviations. It translates abbreviations to full titles and vice versa. Titles are included for the following: science, the social sciences, the humanities, law, medicine, religion, library science, engineering, education, business, and art. This two-volume set features 159,000 entries. In Volume 1, entries are arranged by the abbreviation. Volume 2 lists entries in alphabetical order by full title.

Because the goal of uniformly constructed abbreviations has not been reached, Periodical Title Abbreviations records abbreviations as they are, not as they "should" be. The tool is not intended to be used as an authority file or as a standard for periodical abbreviations, but as a record of the ways titles are abbreviated.

The library offers several reference sources which publish article citations from tables of contents prior to the availability of the printed copy of the journal. These sources alert users about the most recent literature still "in press". Current Contents, one current awareness publication, features the table of contents from recent issues of journals arranged by broad disciplines. Each weekly issue provides a list of the lead authors with addresses and an index of the keywords in the article titles. Rowland Medical Library subscribes to Current Contents in the areas of life sciences, clinical medicine, and social and behavior sciences.

Another current awareness service, Faxon Finder, is published electronically. Access is provided through the library Web page. Subscription to this table of contents service utilizes passwords in order to conduct a search. UMC users should contact the reference desk for instructions and assistance to use this valuable source.

The library's collections continue to grow. This expansion has made additional display space necessary for the index and abstract area of the Reference Department. Rowland recently added new shelves in this department to accommodate this growth and give the capacity for further expansion.

Department staff have rearranged, added, and shelved some of the more frequently used indexes and abstracts, which included AIDS Bibliography, Biological Abstracts, and Biological Abstracts/ RRM. The additional shelving has increased accessibility, making it easier and faster to locate the desired reference materials and has facilitated the maintenance of the reference collection. The additional range of steel shelving for current journals has had the effect of a facelift giving this area a newer, more spacious appearance.

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- G. Yang

The Dessert by Candlelight gala, a benefit sponsored by Friends of Rowland Medical Library at Pearl River Glass Studio was a thoroughly delightful evening! Over two-thirds of the 100 registrants came to for the festivities on a rainy, unseasonably cold night.

Stained glass master Andrew Young allowed the Friends to use his main production studio for the gala. Large worktables with drawings and stained glass projects in various stages of completion were placed beside guest tables covered with white tablecloths and decorated with lighted candles and ivy. Some large finished stained glass works located about the studio were back lighted revealing intricate designs and rich color adding to the unique artistic setting.

In a setting lighted with tapers in silver candelabras, guests enjoyed wine, coffee and a sampling of each of five extraordinary desserts including lemon almond torte, praline cheesecake, white chocolate bread pudding using a recipe from Commanders Palace, chocolate strawberry butter cremecake, and add-to-bar (chocolate bar with pudding in between). The desserts were made by UMC's Food and Nutrition Services and were, in a word, spectacular.

Unveiling the charter member plaque provided the evening's drama. Young told how the plaque was made at the Pearl River Studio applying the same stained glass colors and framing that he used in his "Render the Spirit" panels that hang in the library. Friends responded to the new art glasswork with much excitement and applause.

The charter member plaque is not only a work of art but an engineering feat as well. The plaque is 49' x 61' x 4' and weighs about 100 pounds. Names of the 162 charter members are etched on the back of a clear float glass with a flat polished edge. On the front surface are several decorative appliques of colored stained glass. Two inches behind the glass is 3/4" plywood with stained dark walnut veneer and behind that is another 3/4" plywood base that will anchor to the steel beams in the wall. Plaque components are held together by stainless steel nuts.

Numerous people are responsible for the success of the gala. Foremost is Dr. Gretchen Haines, vice-president of the Friends executive committee and chair of the gala committee. Others are members of her committee, Andrew Young and associates at the Pearl River Glass Studio, Bill Goodwin and co-workers in UMC's Food and Nutrition Services, Ada Seltzer and staff in Rowland Medical Library, and Barbara Austin. Friends of the Library extends our special thanks to each of you for a job very well done.

Adding to the enjoyment of the evening was the exhibition of oil paintings by Collin Asmus, a young art professor at Millsaps College, in his show titled "Ultramarine." Some of his pieces were displayed in the studio gallery for all to experience the various emotions associated with water in "Ultramarine."

The Friends' recent fund-raising activities have brought in $1400 from the Dessert by Candlelight Gala and $780 from work during National Librarians' Month. In addition $10,000 was transferred to the library's endowment fund in late August thereby making a total of $30,000 which the Friends have contributed to this fund from membership fees and various projects.

The annual fall meeting of the Friends' Board of Directors took place on October 9 in the Guyton History Room. The annual meeting of the general membership and a reception honoring the faculty and staff of Rowland Medical Library followed the directors meeting.

Harold B. White, Ph.D.
President, Friends of Rowland Medical Library
Professor Emeritus of Biochemistry

New members

INDIVIDUAL

Lou F. Moore
Kenneth Ray Butler, Jr.
Jane F. Tyson
Linda E. Sabin
Tereza Ventura Holman
Roger B. Johnson
Steven M. Pollock
Francis G. Serio
Travis J. Taylor
James John Corbett
Betty A. Groat

Library patrons may now pay fines, fees and photocopy charges with VISA or MasterCard.

Staff will save the time previously used to make change and write receipts. Users will save time by experiencing fewer instances of having to reschedule photocopy sessions because of a shortage of the correct change.

Patrons outside UMC will also be allowed to pay by credit card. In the past, if a person needed to make a request through interlibrary loans for copies of material owned by the library, the process could take several days. A person had to come into the library, sometimes traveling to Jackson from another part of the state, fill out a form and make payment for the requested material by cash or check in advance. Now they can pick up the phone and give the request information along with their credit card number. The material will then be copied, charged to their credit card, and mailed back to them just as quickly as possible.

The Medical Library Association stresses global connections as it prepares for the centennial celebration in 1998. The credit card option is one way of helping to make our world smaller and more accessible.

- R. Everett

October of each year has been designated by the Medical Library Association to give nationwide recognition to the services and expertise which medical librarians provide to our health care community. National Medical Librarian's Month was officially celebrated at the Medical Center October 6-9 and co-sponsored by Friends of the Rowland Medical Library.

This event coincided with the first membership meeting of the Friends for the 97-98 academic year. Friends used this celebration as a fund raising activity by selling memberships, popcorn, RoMeO T-shirts, totes and chances for prizes. Tickets were also sold to their special fundraiser, Dessert by Candlelight, where the Charter Member Plaque was unveiled. The plaque is on permanent display on the second floor of the library, outside the Guyton reading room.

On Thursday, October 9, the Friends hosted a reception honoring Rowland's faculty and staff. The reception showcased the many unique services provided by the various departments of the library, helping to accomplish the MLA's goal of recognizing the important role that medical librarians play in our nation's health care. Rowland's expert faculty and staff were highlighted in a slide presentation showing each person doing his or her job to get current information to users. The reception also included a demonstration of the many sources available through the library's web page.

Grand prize winners in the drawing this year were Mitzi Olson and Lou F. Moore. Olson, a fifth year pharmacy student in the doctorate program won a three-volume set of pocket size medical reference books while Moore, associate professor of nursing, won the $50 copy card.

-K. Hill

Rowland Medical Library invites everyone to Connect @ the Library for the annual celebration of National Library Week scheduled locally for April 20-24. This will be the eighth year the library has participated in this national event which promotes the many services libraries and librarians offer for users. National activities continue to target services for children and youth as was done last year but putting it on a global level this year. RML will encourage the global reach through services that connect our users via a local touch. New features and services will be displayed emphasizing how Rowland's local touch makes the global reach much nearer than ever before. Knowledge management is truly making the world a smaller place by bringing it within reach.

Activities during the week will include the daily drawings for door prizes. Friends of RML volunteers will be in the lobby all week recruiting new members and raising funds through the sale of popcorn, T-shirts and totes. Launched in 1997 and a tremendous hit with the UMC family, the used book sale will be back for its second year, Tuesday through Thursday. A new category of books has been added this year, health sciences in hardbacks and other books on medical information.

The popular fine amnesty days will have a new twist this year. Patrons are encouraged to join Friends or renew their membership to have an overdue fine forgiven. One Friends membership or renewal will erase one overdue fine, offered during NLW week only, April 20-24. The fine amnesty does not include fees for lost items, processing charges or other library services. On Thursday, April 23, the Friends will sponsor the fifth Dean Billy S. Guyton Lecture on the History of Medicine. Details on the lecturer and reception will be forthcoming.

K.Hill

Users may obtain coins for the photocopy machines at the circulation desk because the

copier coin changers will not currently accept dollar bills. With the increased demand for change in the evenings and on weekends, a smaller number of coins may be available during these times. As a result, circulation may not be able to provide change for a $20 dollar bill. The library encourages users to restrict requests for change to smaller amounts during these peak times. Users may also purchase a copy card for 50 cents and receive encoded copies of any dollar amount desired. Cards are reusable and can be re-coded as many times as needed.

The 25 computer workstations located in the self-study area are not the responsibility of

Rowland. This area is currently administered and staffed by the Department of Institutional Research and operated and serviced by the Division of Information Systems. These workstations are configured the same as those in the computer laboratory in the institutional research area for use by UMC faculty, staff and students in meeting academic and course-related needs. Any problems or questions regarding this equipment and available programs should be directed to the institutional research staff at extension 1206. This department also supplies all printer paper and toner. To call for assistance, public phones are available on the first floor of the library on the wall next to the stairway and elevator.

Materials are picked up from the remote book drops twice each day, at 10 a.m. and

3 p.m., except on Saturdays and Sundays. If an item that is due on a Friday, is put in the book drop after 3 p.m., it will not be picked up until Monday morning. Thus it will be returned late resulting in a fine. A pick-up schedule is posted on each remote book drop. Placing items in the library's book drops and using the drop shoot outside the library in the foyer, avoids fines because returned items are processed on weekends. Users are encouraged to take advantage of this convenient method for returning materials that have due dates on Fridays through Sundays.