Local libraries entice thinkers to “Start Something Here”

GEW Penn State hosts one of the largest GEW events in the country, connecting members of local entrepreneurial communities and the University, with a shared vision of building relationships and cultivating access to ideas and innovation. Join the University Libraries and Schlow Centre Region Library for any or all of the following presentations during Penn State’s GEW Week.

For a complete listing of all GEW Penn State events, visit: https://gew.psu.edu/attend/schedule/

SCORE: Speed Counseling for Businesses and Nonprofits
Monday, Nov. 13, 12 – 2 p.m, Downsbrough Community Room, Schlow Centre Region Library

Are you looking to start or grow your business or nonprofit? Meet one-on-one with a SCORE mentor and receive expert counseling and advice on business planning, nonprofit management and growth. SCORE is a nonprofit association of business counselors who foster business and nonprofit communities through mentoring and education. Appointments are offered on a first come, first serve basis.

Pennsylvania Business Resources
with LaMonica Wiggins, Entrepreneurship Librarian, Penn State University Libraries
Monday, Nov. 13, 6:30-7 p.m, Downsbrough Community Room, Schlow Centre Region Library

Are you interested in starting a small business in Pennsylvania? Come learn about the extensive business resources available to residents, how to conduct industry research, find business plans and collect local and national demographics and statistics.

Overview of Foundation Directory Online for Nonprofits & Individuals
With Karen Lambert, Adult Services Librarian, Schlow Centre Region Library
Monday, Nov. 13, 7-7:30 p.m, Downsbrough Community Room, Schlow Centre Region Library

Are you a student, artist, or researcher?  Is your nonprofit looking for grants?  This session will offer a brief glimpse of the Foundation Directories where nonprofits and individuals can find info on grant makers, grants, and additional funding resources.  Free access to the Directories is now available within Schlow Library at all public computing stations.

Non-Patent Literature Searching using Government Resources
With Angela R. Davis, Engineering Liaison Librarian, Penn State University Libraries
Tuesday, Nov. 14, 6-7 p.m., Willard Building, Penn State, University Park

Searching for non-patent literature will help you identify examples of prior art, become aware of industry jargon, search the market for existing products, devices, or technology, and  consumer interest. Learn how to locate this information using freely available government resources.

Marketing Research
With Kevin Harwell, Business Librarian, Penn State University Libraries
Wednesday: Nov. 15, 2:45-3:30 p.m., W211A Pattee Library, Penn State, University Park

Mintel Academic, eMarketer and Passport GMID provide market research information that can be useful for a variety of business applications, including product development and market planning.  They can provide insight into consumer behavior and lifestyle related choices, brand performance, and industry trends. Please note that access to these databases is limited to students working on projects with direct connection to the Penn State curriculum.

Changing the World: Resources Available for Developing a Start-Up Company
With members of the Happy Valley LaunchBox team and LaMonica Wiggins, Entrepreneurship Librarian, Penn State University Libraries, Moderator: Vanessa Eyer, Engineering Librarian, Penn State University Libraries
Wednesday, Nov. 15, 6-8 p.m., 325 Hammond, Engineering Library, Penn State University

Interested in building a start-up company but don’t know where or how to start? Happy Valley LaunchBox can help! Presenters will discuss resources and services that can assist in your efforts to develop a start-up company, with time to network and ask questions. Light refreshments will be served. Please contact the Engineering Library at 814-865-3451, UL-ENGR@lists.psu.edu, or Vanessa Eyer vld5011@psu.edu for more information.

Understanding Patents and Intellectual Property
John J Meier, Patent and Trademark Resource Center Librarian, Penn State University Libraries
Thursday, Nov. 16, 1:30-2:30 p.m., 211A West Pattee Library, Penn State, University Park

This hands-on workshop will focus on understanding what patents are, the basic process of obtaining a patent and online searching of prior art (previous inventions). Attendees should have an interest in patents and be prepared to do practice searching in Google Patents and international patent offices.

By: Dace  Freivalds

Ensuring that users can easily find and access our resources is critical to meeting the Libraries’ mission. LionSearch, The CAT, Google Books and Google Scholar are but a few of the many tools that our users employ to search our resources. While each of these tools is effective in its own way and for a particular audience, in keeping with the Libraries Strategic Plan goal to “simplify finding and access to collections and other information sources” in late 2016 Associate Dean for Technology and Digital Strategies Karen Estlund charged the Discovery Solutions Working Group with assessing the discovery landscape and recommending a discovery solution for the Libraries that is based on user experience and sustainable principles.

The group’s charge was to focus on indexing, relevancy, and coverage issues in assessing a discovery solution. Our literature review and responses from vendors showed that there is no compelling evidence that one discovery solution is inherently superior to another when it comes to indexing, relevancy and coverage. Survey results, benchmarking and anecdotal evidence from colleagues made plain that PSUL faculty and staff feel strongly that there is no demonstrated need to move from LionSearch to another system. However, based on evidence that arose during our research, we recommended that adjustments be made to our discovery interfaces in order to provide a cohesive, modern, intuitive interface for users to find and access items.

Thank you to everyone who participated in our Discovery Brown Bags and responded to our surveys. Your input was invaluable in helping inform our work which led to two major recommendations:

1. Retain LionSearch (Summon)

2. Implement a “Bento Box” with a seamless and consistent presentation of search results regardless of the source of data

These and additional recommendations are detailed in our final report which
is available in Box at https://psu.box.com/s/huy5bnuvnaouzp284zbx07t7j6rd0nxj.

To learn more about the Discovery Solutions Working Group findings, recommendations and next steps, please join us at the:

LFO Fall Colloquium
Tuesday, Nov. 7 at 2 p.m.
Foster Auditorium and on Mediasite

Submitted by Dace Freivalds, Chair, on behalf of the Discovery Solutions Working Group (Zoe Chao, Marie Cirelli, Jennie Levine Knies, Eric Novotny, Banu Kutlu, Jeff Edmunds and James  eyzer-Andre†)

“The Library” donor newsletter, Fall 2017 edition

The Fall 2017 online version of The Library, a newsletter for the University Libraries’ donor audience, is now available for download as an accessible PDF on the Development, Giving to the Libraries, and News and Events pages of the Libraries’ website.

The cover story features limited-time opportunities for supporters of Penn State to secure University-provided matching funds for certain scholarships, early career professorship/librarianship positions, and other endowments and financial gifts, all of which are part of Penn State’s current capital campaign, “A Greater Penn State for 21st-Century Excellence.”

The newsletter is produced by Public Relations and Marketing in collaboration with and support from the Libraries’ Office of Development and Alumni Relations.

By: Trace  Brown

As of Friday, Nov. 3, Maker Commons will only be accepting course-related 3D print submissions from registered classes for the remainder of the fall 2017 semester. This is necessary in order to complete the printing of queued class prints by finals week.

Personal 3D printing and registration of class projects will resume on Monday, Jan. 8. Any additional information related to these changes will be posted to http://makercommons.psu.edu

By: Shep Hyken

It happens all the time. As a customer, you interact with good people who don’t seem to deliver great customer service. They are nice, even knowledgeable, but they don’t seem to be what I call customer focused. So, I took a few minutes to talk to several people about how they were trained.

Read more here:

https://hh168.infusionsoft.com/app/hostedEmail/5684438/75bd097b6dcfa482?inf_contact_key=a75abecf4f4e8c2242c120cacc5f13c9abc848f6b3fe5d845c5d7e004079aff7)

Fall 2017
Academic calendar information for all campuses is available online.

Extended! Now through Saturday, Dec. 8, “The Painted Photograph: Selections from the B. & H. Henisch Photo-History Collection exhibit,” Pattee Library operating hours, Paterno Family Reading Room, 201A Pattee Library, University Park.

Through Jan. 7, 2018: “William Styron: Books and Biography” exhibit, guest curator Edwin Erle Sparks Professor of English James L.W. West III, Styron expert and biographer, Eberly Family Special Collections Library Exhibition Room, 104 Paterno Library, University Park.

Through Jan. 15, 2018: “The History of Pattee Library and Paterno Library” exhibit, Pattee Library’s central entrance exhibit cases and adjacent Sidewater Commons, first floor Pattee Library, University Park.

Sunday–Sunday, Nov. 5-12: Penn State Military Appreciation Week and Homecoming Week.

Monday, Nov. 6–Saturday, Dec. 16: NLM/NIH Traveling Exhibit: Opening Doors: Contemporary African American Surgeons, Life Sciences Library, 4th floor Paterno Library.

Saturday, Nov. 11: Veterans Day.

Monday–Friday, Nov. 13-17: International Education Week, details TBA.

Tuesday, Nov. 14: Penn State GIS Day, 1:30-5 p.m. speakers and lightning talks with 9 a.m.-5 p.m. poster display, Pattee Library and Paterno Library, University Park.

Nov. 19-25: Thanksgiving week break, no classes Nov. 20-24.

Thursday, Nov. 23: Thanksgiving Day holiday.

Wednesday, Dec. 6: Docunight: Iran via Documentaries, 7 p.m. Foster Auditorium, 102 Paterno Library, University Park.

Friday, Dec. 8: Last day of fall classes. 

Sunday–Tuesday, Dec. 10-12: De-Stress Fest, University Park locations.

Tuesday, Dec. 12: Tech Update, by I-Tech, 10-11 a.m., Mann Assembly Room, 103 Paterno Library, University Park.

Tuesday–Wednesday, Dec. 12-20: Hanukkah.

Saturday, Dec. 16: Fall commencement, University Park and other Penn State campuses; details and speaker information at multiple Penn State campuses TBA in December.

Please submit event information — and all Library News submissions — to Public Relations and Marketing via the Library News submission form.