Faculty Librarian Newsletter

Library orientation to first year students

2012-02-03T15:48:00.001+02:00

During this past week I presented very brief library orientation sessions to groups of first year students in the faculty.

Building students

Quantity Surveying students

Students in ICT

Welcome to first year students at NMMU!

2012-01-27T15:06:00.002+02:00

I hope you will enjoy the welcoming ceremony of the First-Year Orientation Programme that takes place tomorrow. Wishing you success in your studies at NMMU!

The University Blog published an article, How do you make the most of ‘the student experience’? 10 Tips. Quoting from the article, in brief the tips are:

Don’t compare yourself to others. The Student Experience is YOUR experience.
Be involved!
Seek out new opportunities and experiences rather than waiting for them to come to you.
Embrace failure.
Pick yourself up, dust yourself down, keep going.
Take your experience seriously, even when you’re having fun
Enjoy the benefits, but do remember you can have too much of a good thing…
Embrace the unknown. Prepare for the unknown. But don’t fear the unknown.
Look beyond employability. Look beyond the piece of paper you get at the end of those years.
Focus more on yourself, less on the degree. “Your degree isn’t the source of awesome. You are.

Last, but not least: the best news in 2011! IEEE Xplore Digital Library

2011-12-09T14:04:00.001+02:00

NMMU LIS has subscribed to IEEE Xplore Digital Library!
IEEE Xplore Digital Library contains Journals and Magazines, Conference Proceedings, Standards and Books.

This comprehensive online collection delivers access to the most vital information in technology today:

Access to nearly 1/3rd of the world’s current literature in electrical engineering, communications, computer science and more
The top-cited journals in many fields
The journals, conferences and standards that fuel more new patents than any other publisher
Globally accepted standards in power generation, information technology, telecommunications and other emerging fields

Covered technologies include: Aerospace & Defence; Automotive Engineering; Biomedical Engineeering; Biometrics; Circuits & Systems; Communications; Computer Hardware; Computer Software; Electronics; Energy; Engineering; Imaging; Information Technology; Medical Devices; Nanotechnology; Optics; Petroleum & Gas; Power Electronics; Power Systems; Robotics & Automation; Semiconductors; Smart Grid, Wireless Broadband and much more.

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Another academic year has passed and I shall be starting my leave today. Thank you to the faculty for your support during 2011 which I really appreciate very much. I also want to wish you all a very happy holiday!

Best wishes to students!

2011-11-25T12:36:00.001+02:00

For those students who are starting a new career, have a look at the good advice given by Dr Ken Haycock:
Ten Keys to Career Success

Should you need tips on interviewing:

Questions a Job Candidate Can Ask in an Interview

What’s the key to a good interview – beyond the usual truisms we all know already?

Top 10 myths about job interviews

Choose Your Boss Wisely

How to Ace the Tough Interview Questions

Here are sites on writing your CV (resume):

Top 10 Ways to Rock Your Resumé

Free resume builder online - Resumsimo

Six Words You Should Drop from Your Resume

Final Cut: Words to Strike from Your Resume

For those students who need advice on paying back student loan: 30 Best Blogs for Recent Grads Saddled With Debt

For the students who will be returning next year to continue your studies, do read: 10 easy ways to use the summer break to prepare for next year.

Struggling to prepare for the exams?

2011-11-09T15:48:00.000+02:00

TheUniversityBlog recently published a post containing useful hints, Right Revision & Perfect Preparation: 23 Pre-Exam Tips. Quoting from the post, the main points are:

Get the boring admin out of the way as soon as you can
Get your gear in place the day before (or even sooner)
Remember spare pens/pencils
Make your write right
Revise with good time
Get your technique sorted
Speak the positive speak and give yourself personal lifts
Have variation as you revise
Sleep, eat, relax, enjoy yourself…LIVE YOUR LIFE!
Don’t talk with others just before exams
Find out what’s going to be covered in an exam
Explain concepts to yourself until you understand them
Use the library
Use the Internet
Create links between concepts and ideas
Use mnemonics to remember stuff you have to memorise
Work alone
Work with others
Practice questions in your own time
Practice questions to a time limit
Read through the questions and instructions before you start answering anything
Breathe
Read. The. Questions.

Best wishes for the exams!

Thank you to the Faculty

2011-10-21T09:56:00.000+02:00

Thank you again to the Faculty for making it possible for me to attend the Internet Librarian International 2011 Conference in London next week. I am looking forward to the event and will endeavour to put into practice what I have gained by attending the conference.

I will be back in my office on 7 November 2011.

Are you still procrastinating?

2011-10-19T12:02:00.000+02:00

Although I have posted about procrastination before (see entry 26 July 2011), perhaps there are some students who have not yet stopped procrastinating. Amy Gallo wrote Stop Procrastinating...Now in the blog of the Harvard Business Review on Tuesday October 11, 2011.

She describes five principles that can be followed when you find yourself procrastinating. Quoting from the post, in brief, the principles are:

Figure out what's holding you back
Set deadlines for yourself
Increase the rewards
Involve others
Get in the habit

She also gives some hints on do's and don'ts that would be useful to remember.

Another YouTube to MP3 Converter - Xenra

2011-10-12T14:27:00.000+02:00

Welcome back to staff and students at the start of the last term of the year!

In an article entitled The Revolution in YouTube to MP3 Conversion has Begun, I read that Xenra.com has announced the launch of its new YouTube to MP3 converter. "A simple, fast and free online YouTube to MP3 conversion tool which allows you to download your favorite YouTube videos without the hassle of annoying advertisements or surveys. This service is completely free and requires no registration."

Are you a perfectionist?

2011-10-07T08:02:00.001+02:00

Then you may want to read what Jeff Szymanski wrote in a post titled Perfectionism: Healthy or Hurtful? that appeared in the Harvard Business Review blog recently. Szymanski describes both healthy and unhealthy perfectionism.

This is how he described healthy perfectionism:

"Striving for high but achievable standards that result in feelings of satisfaction and increased self-esteem
Matching your time and energy to tasks that match your strengths and interests
Having a sense of what you value and what your priorities are and devoting the lion's share of your time and attention to these areas
Reaping payoffs from your efforts that are greater than your costs."

Do you need an app for your browser or smartphone? Try Quixey!

2011-09-29T15:54:00.000+02:00

Phil Bradley wrote the following on his weblog: "Quixey is a genius resource. If you're looking for an app for your browser or smart phone, this has just become one of your very best friends. Type in what you're looking for, limit to the resource that you're interested in, read the little summary and then click on the link to go and get it... If you're into apps for your smart phone or iDevice, then you're going to be very happy indeed. Cracking little engine... Since it also includes priced as well as free apps keep a hold onto your wallet!"

Mobile access is available to Taylor & Francis Online

2011-09-19T11:40:00.000+02:00

For mobile access to the Taylor & Francis Online database, visit Taylor & Francis Online Mobile FAQs. Mobile access is provided to the 1,600 Journals and Reference Works that are available. Taylor & Francis Online Mobile allows users to access knowledge via iPhone, Android, Blackberry and tablet devices.

Are you having a setback?

2011-09-15T15:35:00.000+02:00

Teresa Amabile and Steve Kramer may have some ideas for you on how to counteract a setback. They published a post today on the HBR Blog Network entitled: Three Ways to Turn Setbacks into Progress. Quoting from the post, the the main points are:

First, don't treat setbacks as failures, but rather as challenges and learning opportunities.
Second, don't constrain the solution in advance.
Third, focus on small, achievable wins.

"These three actions won't completely neutralize the negative impact that setbacks have ..., but they will go a long way toward reducing it. More importantly, these actions can help turn today's setbacks into tomorrow's successes."

Congratulations to the School of ICT!

2011-09-13T09:57:00.000+02:00

The NMMU School of ICT won the Radio Algoa FM competition, "Worn to be wild!" that took place on "casual day." Congratulations!

Hargraves Book Exhibition, 6-8 September 2011

2011-09-07T09:56:00.000+02:00

For the last time this year there is a Hargraves book exhibition being held in the library at Summerstrand Campus (South). Academic staff are invited to visit the book exhibition from today until Thursday (6 - 8 September 2011). The exhibition is held in the Buzz Room (just off the Entrance Hall) and is open between 07:30 – 16:00. Here is an opportunity to view books that can be purchased for the library.

Please vote for the NMMU School of ICT!

2011-09-05T14:51:00.000+02:00

The School of ICT has been selected as one of the top 5 entries for the Algoa fm “Worn to be wild” casual day competition. Please vote for their picture and inform your friends and family so that they can vote for them as well! They need all the support that they can get!
Follow this link to vote for them: http://www.algoafm.co.za/competitor.asp?id=161

In front: Dieter Steenberg

From front , second row (left to right): Amber Share, Teri Campher, Gwen Kleinhans, Heloise Levack, Shaun Vincent

From front, third row (left to right): Amber Share, Heloise Levack, Shaun Vincent

From front, fourth row (left to right): Cheryl Schroder, Andrew Rutherford, Ronald Leppan

At the back: Claudette Le Roux, Margi Brittain

In front: Gwen Kleinhans

From front , second row (left to right): Teri Campher, Ms Margi Brittain

From front, third row (left to right): Amber Share, Heloise Levack, Shaun Vincent

From front, fourth row (left to right): Cheryl Schroder, Andrew Rutherford, Dieter Steenberg

At the back: Claudette Le Roux

To view more photos on the NMMU School of ICT Facebook page, please follow this link: www.facebook.com/NMMU.IT

Are you feeling that you need to take a firm grip with your studies?

2011-08-31T08:38:00.000+02:00

Read the post Five Simple Tips That Will Help You Achieve Greatness by Jonathan Figaro. The main points are:

Believe in your own success
Never Give In
Take Baby Steps:

Set a deadline
Mental Visualization
Take 100% Responsibility
Focus on Important Tasks

Just do it
Think good thoughts.

Do you need some tips on completing your thesis?

2011-08-27T08:47:00.000+02:00

If yes, have a look at the "Top 10 tips for a trouble-free thesis" that James Hayton wrote in Surviving your thesis (by James Hayton, from Physics World, May 2011). Briefly quoting from the article the tips include:

Never just sit down and try to type
Use pen and paper before pixels
Don't turn on the computer until you know what you're going to work on...
Get your mind into the right state to work before you sit down at the desk
Give yourself time away from the computer to think
Not all content is of equal value.
See your progress
Work in 25 minute bursts of high energy and focus...
Get into the habit of finishing sections...
You won't follow all of the advice all of the time.

Free access to Cambridge Journals (2009-2010) until 30 August 2011

2011-08-10T15:14:00.000+02:00

All content available in Cambridge Journals Online (CJO) covering 2009-2010 is currently freely available until 30 August 2011. Subjects such as Computer Science and Engineering are covered in CJO.

From the web page:
"To access the free articles, you can browse our journals by subject , or alphabetically by title. Once at a journal's homepage, you can find the free 2009 / 2010 material by expanding the 'Journal Menu' section of the left hand page menu, and clicking 'Back Volumes'. From there you'll be able to click down to Journal Issues and, subsequently, read or download individual articles. You don't need to have registered with CJO to read the free material, however to take advantage of all CJO functionality, including the ability to bookmark papers and save your searches, we recommend that you do so. Register for free here or at any other point on CJO, using the gold button at the left hand menu."

Thank You to the Faculty

2011-08-05T16:52:00.000+02:00

I want to thank the Faculty of Engineering, the Built Environment and Information Technology for the Faculty Special Award for Excellent Service to the Faculty which I received this afternoon from the DVC Prof Piet Naude. I really appreciate the award and in return also want to thank the staff and students of the faculty for their support.

Successful Faculty Book Exhibition

2011-08-05T09:10:00.000+02:00

The book exhibition for the Faculty of Engineering, the Built Environment and Information Technology by Hargraves Library Service was held yesterday in the Seminar Room (next to the Dean's office) at North Campus. It was a huge success! About 40 staff members attended the exhibition and ordered a large number of books. I want to thank all academic staff who attended and ordered books as well as Hargraves Library Service and the LIS Acquisitions Department staff for their participation and assistance.

Jean Thomas
Faculty Librarian

To academic staff : Faculty Book Exhibition today

2011-08-04T05:19:00.000+02:00

Academic staff are invited to visit the book exhibition held by Hargraves Books for the Faculty of Engineering, the Built Environment and Information Technology today from 08:00 to 16:30. The exhibition is held in the Seminar Room, C252 (next to the Dean's office, C block, 2nd floor) at the North Campus. Here is an opportunity to view books that can be purchased for the library. Looking forward to seeing you at the exhibition!
4 August 2011

ISI Web of Knowledge databases currently available on free trial

2011-07-29T11:21:00.000+02:00

The following databases in ISI Web of Knowledge are currently available on a free trial until 31 August 2011:

Current Contents Connect®:

“Current Contents Connect® is a current awareness database that provides easy Web access to complete tables of contents, abstracts, bibliographic information, and abstracts from the most recently published issues of leading scholarly journals, as well as from more than 7,000 relevant, evaluated websites.”

The editions & collections you’ll have access to:
o Agriculture, Biology & Environmental Sciences
o Engineering, Computing & Technology
o Social & Behavioral Sciences
o Business Collection
o Telecommunications Collection

Derwent Innovations Index(SM): 1963-present:

“This resource merges the value-added patent information from Derwent World Patents Index® with the patent citation information from Derwent Patent Citation Index®”

INSPEC®: 1969-present:

“Inspec®, produced by The Institution of Engineering and Technology*, is a comprehensive index to literature in physics, electrical/electronic technology, computing, control engineering and information technology. Updated weekly, Inspec provides data from journals, books, reports, dissertations, and conference proceedings.”

Please note that NMMU also has access to INSPEC through EbscoHost.

Looking for grey literature?

2011-07-27T15:08:00.000+02:00

Have a look at Open Grey. "System for Information on Grey Literature in Europe, is your open access to 700.000 bibliographical references of grey literature (paper) produced in Europe and allows you to export records and locate the documents.

Examples of grey (gray) literature include technical or research reports, doctoral dissertations, some conference papers, some official publications, and other types of grey literature."

The following subject areas are covered:

Electronics and electrical engineering, computer science
Energy and power
Materials
Mechanical, industrial, civil and marine engineering
Methods and equipment

Are you prone to procrastinate?

2011-07-26T09:56:00.000+02:00

"Deep procrastination is a distressing affliction. Students who suffer from it lose the ability to start school work. Deadlines pass and they hand nothing in. Professors provide special extensions, but the students still can’t bring themselves to do the work..."

If you have a problem with procrastination, then have a look at Cal Newport's post that recently appeared in the Study Hacks blog: How to Cure Deep Procrastination.

Welcome back to staff and students

2011-07-25T09:10:00.000+02:00

At the start of the 3rd term, I want to welcome back staff and students!

In a blog of the Harvard Business Review, Tony Schwartz recently published an interesting article: Ten Principles to Live by in Fiercely Complex Times. He asked the question: "What enduring principles can you rely on to make choices that reflect openness, integrity and authenticity?" Quoting from the article, in brief, here are the principles that work for him:

Always challenge certainty, especially your own.
Excellence is an unrelenting struggle, but it's also the surest route to enduring satisfaction.
Emotions are contagious, so it pays to know what you're feeling.
When in doubt, ask yourself, "How would I behave here at my best?"
If you do what you love, the money may or may not follow, but you'll love what you do.
You need less than you think you do.
Accept yourself exactly as you are but never stop trying to learn and grow.
Meaning isn't something you discover, it's something you create, one step at a time.
You can't change what you don't notice and not noticing won't make it go away.
When in doubt, take responsibility.

Need help with writing in English?

2011-07-11T12:50:00.000+02:00

Do you need an English dictionary? Have a look at the free site available of the Oxford Dictionaries.

The web page on better writing contains links to:

Grammar
Spelling
Punctuation
Practical writing
Improve your English
Abbreviations

The OxfordWords blog is available where "... you’ll find articles about words, language, and dictionaries, plus English grammar and usage tips, interactive features, games, competitions, and more…"

Migration from Informaworld to Taylor & Francis Online

2011-06-29T15:18:00.000+02:00

Taylor and Francis Online now replaces Taylor & Francis (Informaworld) which became available to NMMU staff and students in February 2011.

All the journals to which the NMMU LIS has access in Informaworld are still available in Taylor & Francis Online.

Pondering about career success?

2011-06-15T15:33:00.000+02:00

Have a look at Dr. Ken Haycock's commencement speech, Ten Keys to Career Success. Although the speech was aimed at graduates who were starting their careers, it is still worthwhile to read. Quoting from the speech the main points are:

10. Understand the education you got.
9. Recall always our enduring values.
8. Continue to demonstrate that we make a difference.
7. Your job title is irrelevant.
6. Take advantage of the career resources available to you.
5. Develop your network.
4. Build your board of directors.
3. Continue to learn.
2. It is all about you.
1. Celebrate.

Free PDF books to download from the National Academies Press

2011-06-06T13:42:00.000+02:00

"The National Academies Press makes all PDF books free to download; more than 4000 titles now available free to all readers." Books on Computers and Information Technology, Engineering and Technology, as well as on Construction: Design, Research , Planning are available.

Are you feeling stressed?

2011-06-02T12:24:00.000+02:00

Try the 7 Timeless Tips That Will Supercharge Your Body, Mind, And Soul by Henri Junttila. The headings of the tips are:

Drink Water
Eliminate Sugar
Gluten-Intolerant?
Mini-Exercises
Breathe
Socialize
Release

Do you need ideas on how to prepare for the exams?

2011-05-31T11:52:00.000+02:00

Have a look at Michael White's post, Effective Exam Revision Techniques [HOW TO] that describes the method he follows. He also provides a link to another blog post on the topic by Jessica North.

New look for JournalTOCs - Free current awareness service

2011-05-26T11:23:00.000+02:00

JournalTOCs has a new interface with additional features. "JournalTOCs is the biggest searchable collection of scholarly journal Tables of Contents (TOCs). It contains articles' metadata of TOCs for over 16,387 journals directly collected from over 825 publishers. ... [It] has taken special care to include all the highest rated journals in their fields, guaranteeing quality results."

Help for those who use the APA Style for referencing - Citation Fox

2011-05-24T10:57:00.001+02:00

University Libraries (University at Albany, State University of New York) has made Citation Fox available. "CitationFox-APA is intended to help with the construction of citations in APA style. It is based on the 6th edition of the Publication manual of the American Psychological Association... CitationFox-APA contains templates and examples for over 500 different resource types."

Looking for a converter?

2011-05-20T12:33:00.000+02:00

Schwitcher.net is a free online audio file converter.

Smashing Appas has published a list, 11 Excellent Online Converters That Can Help You Convert Files And Formats.

Free File Converter

Free Youtube To Mp3 Converter: Convert Youtube Videos to Mp3

Starting to prepare for the examinations?

2011-05-11T09:01:00.000+02:00

About 95% of the June 2010 examination papers are available through the portals as well as about 65% of the 2008 and 2009 papers. If you do not know where to find the previous examination papers, follow these instructions.

If you think you are failing...

2011-05-04T10:13:00.000+02:00

Do read the excellent post that TheUniversityBlog has published on How to Fail Brilliantly. Quoting from the post the main points are:

Separate aspects of failure out of your control from those you can deal with
Spend more time on rectifying, not blaming
Analyse why the failure occurred
Accept
Understand which aspects of the situation *were* successful
Use failure as part of a process, or as a tool
Be responsible

At the start of the 2nd term, some ideas on how to be more productive

2011-05-03T14:04:00.000+02:00

Welcome back to staff and students at the start of the 2nd term!

As this is a short term, you may want to get more done before the examinations start in June. Jiri Novotny has published a blog post on the Dextronet Blog that has a number of ideas on how to be better organized and productive. Read 10 best tricks of fooling myself to work. In brief the tricks are (quoting from the post):

The ultimate trick
Not eating at the computer
Rudder of the day
Real relaxation
“Back to work” mantra
Always knowing what to do next
Sheet of paper with the most important task
Eliminating distractions
When falling asleep…

Reflecting on the first term of 2011

2011-04-21T10:10:00.000+02:00

This has been a very long and busy first term of the academic year. Perhaps now the time has come to reflect and change strategies before the start of the second term. Here are some suggestions:

For those who are suffering from burnout, look at Melanie Pinola's on Lifehacker called: How to Overcome Burnout When You’re a Superachiever.

Should you want to return to the NMMU with the intention to work harder, perhaps you would be inspired by the blog post by Thanh Pham entitled Brian Tracy’s 5 Rules for Greater Productivity. Briefly quoting from the post, the main rules are:

“A great life or a great career is built by performing one task at a time, quickly and well, and then going on to the next task.”
“Whatever you have to do, there is always a limiting factor that determines how quickly and well you get it done. Your job is to study the task and identify the limiting factor or constraint within it. You must then focus all of your energies on alleviating that single choke point.”
“One of the most important requirements for being happy and productive is for you to guard and nurture your energy levels at all times.”
“Once you have decided on your number one task, anything else that you do other than that is a relative waste of time”
“Your most important tasks and priorities are those that can have the most serious consequences, positive or negative, on your life or work. Focus on these above all.”

To stay in charge of your emotions during the second term, perhaps you would benefit reading the post by lizziepauker, 3 Critical Thinking Tips to Overcome Emotional Situations. Quoting from the post, the main points made are:

Restate the objective.
Calmly communicate.
Take a time out.

I want to wish all staff and students of the Faculty of Engineering, the Built Environment and Information Technology a very happy, peaceful and enjoyable autumn recess!

Punctuality at training sessions - the 15 minute rule

2011-04-15T09:54:00.000+02:00

During the first term of 2011, I have presented numerous training sessions to postgraduate students. I now have a rule that students who arrive 15 minutes after the start of a session, are not allowed to attend the session and have to make another booking to attend.

Here are the students who attended on Saturday 11 April and who all arrived promptly at the start of the session (09:00):

More on being successful

2011-04-09T08:40:00.000+02:00

Following up on the theme of my post on Wednesday, yesterday I found an interesting article posted on the blog of the Harvard Business Review by Marcie Schorr Hirsch entitled: What Separates the Extremely Successful from the Pack?

Quoting from the article: "A review of the literature on success revealed myriad correlations between particular variables and success in the workplace. These variables were discipline-linked — the educational researchers explored the relationship between academic choices and career achievement; the psychologists looked at the connection between personality types and success; the sociologists' inquiries examined issues such as the impact of family birth order on career achievement — but this seemed limiting. Real lives are multidimensional. Each career will include elements related to many different disciplines, and individuals pursuing success will make choices in many areas that may influence their careers."

Do you want to succeed?

2011-04-06T09:42:00.000+02:00

Heidi Grant Halvorson has published an article, Nine Things Successful People Do Differently, on the Harvard Business Review blog. Quoting from the article the main points are in brief:

Get specific. When you set yourself a goal, try to be as specific as possible.
Seize the moment to act on your goals.
Know exactly how far you have left to go.
Be a realistic optimist.
Focus on getting better, rather than being good.
Have grit.
Build your willpower muscle.
Don't tempt fate.
Focus on what you will do, not what you won't do.

Need help on handling criticism?

2011-04-04T08:23:00.000+02:00

Have a look at the article by Leo Babauta, The Art of Handling Criticism Gracefully. Another article that may be of help is 8 Tips for Dealing Calmly with Criticism. Which I Find Very, Very Challenging by Gretchen Rubin.

Looking for free online books?

2011-03-30T12:46:00.000+02:00

There are numerous sites available to download free online books:

15 Best Websites To Find And Download eBooks

KnowFree (KF)- Free eBooks and Training Videos

Project Gutenberg - Free eBooks

45 Top Websites To Download Free EBooks

Online Books, Poems, Short Stories - Read Print Library

18 Best Sites To Download Free Audio Books

Built Environment Honours students attending training

2011-03-19T14:02:00.000+02:00

Here is the group of students who attended a training session on finding information for research purposes today (and yesterday, as the session was split into two parts):

For students: more about writing assignments

2011-03-18T10:58:00.000+02:00

I have posted about writing skills on 8 November 2010 and also on 16 February 2011. Here is another page that can help you when writing an assignment. The page is entitled: 7 Steps to Writing That Knockout Final Paper. Quoting from the page, the main points are:

Re-read the assignment prompt in the presence of several witnesses.
Make an argument.
Stand on the shoulders of some authority, especially the ones your professor assigns.
Use proper citation*, not just to avoid the evils of plagiarism, but also to lead the appropriate scholarly trail of notes so another reader can track down the same sources in order to join the conversation as well and provide more ideas.
Stick to the text, whatever the course is.
Find an alert proofreader!
Revise your paper and rewrite the conclusion.

* For assistance in citation, please see the links under Reference Techniques (citing sources) on the Faculty Librarian web site.

FindFiles.net

2011-03-17T11:54:00.000+02:00

Pandia Search Engine News has published a piece on FindFiles.net. "FindFiles.net is a new generic file search engine that currently searches over 300 Million publicly available data files... FindFiles.net is free, you don’t have to sign up and there is one click download."

Staff and students : Faculty Librarian Website

2011-03-12T08:27:00.000+02:00

Staff and students of the Faculty of Engineering, the Built Environment and Information Technology are welcome to visit the Faculty Librarian Website and discover the keys to your research success.

Please send any comments or suggestions to Jean Thomas.

Hargraves Book Exhibition, 8-10 March 2011

2011-03-08T14:16:00.000+02:00

Once again the Hargraves book exhibition is now being held in the library at Summerstrand Campus (South). Academic staff are invited to visit the book exhibition until Thursday (8-10 March 2011). Unfortunately a venue was not available to hold an exhibition at Summerstrand Campus (North).

The exhibition is held in the Buzz Room (just off the Entrance Hall) and is open between 08:00-16:00. Here is an opportunity to view books that can be purchased for the library.

Are you worried about making a speech?

2011-03-07T14:20:00.000+02:00

Dan Pallotta has written a list of basic rules about public speaking called Delivering the Speech of Your Life. In brief here are most of the main points:

Know your goal.
Practice the transitions.
Don't fear silence.
Never, ever, ever use PowerPoint as your speech notes.
Give something of yourself.
Be yourself.
Don't speak in abstractions.
Feel what's happening in the room and use it to connect your speech to this moment.
Make eye contact until it scares you.
Don't miss your own talk.
Come from a place of love for your audience.

Have you got a to-do list?

2011-03-04T11:35:00.000+02:00

If you need help in managing your to-do list, then it might be a good idea to have a look at what Peter Bregman wrote in a blog post What To Do With Your To-Do List. He describes a process whereby nothing stays on his to-do list for more than three days.

Free offer from Music Online (until 15th of March)

2011-03-02T09:16:00.001+02:00

Act now and get free music from Music Online! The offer is only available until the 15th of March, but you need to register.

What music is available? Their blog has the following description:
"All the classical, jazz, American, and world music content you could want—in every format. Cross-search all of our recordings, scores, reference, and video content from a single interface. Listen to the best recordings from the best record labels—while you follow along with the score and read the composer's biography. Create playlists and take them anywhere with mobile access."

Do you need help in finding the table of contents of a journal?

2011-02-24T09:44:00.000+02:00

Have a look at the detailed guide to JournalTOCs alerts, Table of Contents (TOC) Alerts produced by the Cornell University Library. "JournalTOCs is the largest free collection of scholarly journals Tables of Contents (TOCs). It contains TOCs for 14,946 journals (including 1,818 Open Access journals) collected from 734 publishers."

Staff: Are you tired of paging through paper catalogues?

2011-02-22T11:30:00.000+02:00

A much easier option exist! If you can identify the LC numbers corresponding to your subject interests in either the Alphabetical Index to LC Classifications or the LC Classifications Arrangement, you can inform your Faculty Librarian of the relevant LC numbers, and alerts will be created for you in the new Blackwell Collection Manager 8. Alerts will be sent to you describing new titles that fall within your subject interest profile. The alerts can be delivered to you at a frequency that best suit you, e.g. weekly, monthly, so please also notify the Faculty Librarian of how frequently you wish to receive alerts.

Should you wish to create alerts yourself, contact your Faculty Librarian who can provide you with a user name and password to Blackwell’s Collection Manager 8 as well as step-by-step instructions on how to create alerts for yourself. You can create as many subject interest profiles as you need.

Students do you need help on how to study?

2011-02-21T14:55:00.000+02:00

If your answer is yes, then have a look at the resources on the site Howtostudy.org.
In brief here are the main categories on the site:

Getting Ready - How to prepare and set goals.
Taking In - How to get information.
Remembering - How to work with information.
Output - How to take tests and handle anxiety.

Having problems with spelling?

2011-02-18T11:18:00.000+02:00

Try Respelt! It is a free online spelling checker that helps to check spelling in documents, web pages and also RSS feeds. It can be used free of charge.

Specially for students: assignments

2011-02-16T09:01:00.000+02:00

As the academic year is now in full swing, you will be writing and handing in assignments. Read the useful tips on What to do when you get your marked essay back that appeared in the TheUniversityBlog. Briefly the main points are:

Check the tutor’s comments (and grade).
Read your essay again – What sticks out?
Note down areas you’d like to improve and what you want to do differently next time
Note down what you’re especially happy with so you can work in a similar way for future essays
List what you agree and disagree with about your tutor’s comments
Engage as far as you can
Take the matter further; but only if you must
Still have questions?

Industrial engineering students at library orientation

2011-02-15T14:26:00.000+02:00

Today I met first year students of the Department of Industrial Engineering at a library orientation session:

Would you like to boost your critical thinking?

2011-02-15T14:12:00.000+02:00

Have a look at 70 Questions to Boost Your Critical Thinking by Breanne Harris.

Need to be motivated?

2011-02-14T11:24:00.000+02:00

If your answer is "yes" then have a look at How to Break Out of a Motivational Slump by Henrik Edberg that was posted on The Positivity Blog.

Meeting Construction Management first year students

2011-02-11T12:32:00.000+02:00

Today I met the first year students of the Department of Construction Management.

Mechatronics first year students

2011-02-11T12:30:00.000+02:00

Yesterday I met the first year students of the Department of Mechatronics. Unfortunately due to a misunderstanding about the venue, only about half the class attended the library orientation session.

Meeting electrical engineering students

2011-02-10T09:52:00.000+02:00

Yesterday I presented a library orientation session to first year students of the Department of Electrical Engineering:

20-point checklist on how students could vastly improve their assignments and marks

2011-02-10T09:49:00.000+02:00

Tara Brabazon has published an article in the Times Higher Education, Tara Brabazon: Written evidence of the workings of the mind in which she offers a 20-point checklist on how students "... could vastly improve their assignments, and marks, if they followed a few important rules."

In brief the checklist includes the following:

Using “i” instead of “I”.
Not capitalising the first word of a sentence.
Single-sentence paragraphs.
Use of long sentences.
Using words such as “everybody”, “society”, “the masses” or “all of us”.
Use of the word “nowadays”.
Weak transitional phrases.
Referencing errors.
Absence of full stops.
Repetition of words.
Use of an odd synonym that does not fit the context.
Use of a colon and/or semicolon when the student has no idea of their purpose.
Excessive use of “I think” and “I feel”.
Excessive paraphrasing.
Awkward integration of quotations into sentences and paragraphs.
Starting a conclusion with “In conclusion”.
Limited bibliography or reference list.
No bibliography or reference list submitted.
Complete disconnection from the question.
Errors corrected in the previous assignment appear in the next assessment.

Are you confused about plagiarism?

2011-02-09T13:59:00.000+02:00

If your answer is affirmative, then have a look at the Plagiarism Tutorial that was produced by the Skills@library of the University of Leeds. The tutorial explains what plagiarism is and how to avoid it; it also explains paraphrasing and referencing. Please note that you will need an earphone..

Meeting first year students

2011-02-08T08:38:00.000+02:00

Yesterday I went to meet and introduce myself as the Faculty Librarian to two groups of first year students of the School of ICT. I presented a very brief library orientation session to them due to the limited available time. Here are photographs of the students:

There was a slight problem with the venue in meeting first year students of the Department of Mechanical Engineering and so I invited them to the Training Room in the library at North Campus which they filled to capacity:

They assured me at the end that the library orientation that I presented to them was worth their while!

Do you need a checklist when reading for research purposes?

2011-02-07T08:29:00.000+02:00

In order to help you thinking critically at what you are reading in your research, I recommend that you read the piece that the Universityblog published recently called 10 things to check when reading for research purposes.

Briefly the main points are:

Who wrote the piece
When it was written
The methodology Any obvious bias
References & sources used
Missing links & blind spots
Lack of references, generalisation and stating points as if they are facts (but are not)
Your own understanding & opinion
Other works by the same author(s)
Reception within the academic community

Do you need more full text articles? Try the Taylor & Francis (Informaworld) database that is now available

2011-02-04T15:53:00.000+02:00

The NMMU LIS now subscribe to the database of journals available from Taylor & Francis (Informaworld). The database covers journals dealing with computer science, the built environment as well as engineering and technology. Recent articles in the database are all available in full text.

At last! Inspec available through EbscoHost

2011-02-03T08:50:00.000+02:00

Inspec is available through EbscoHost.

EbscoHost gives the following description of Inspec: "Inspec®, created by the Institution of Engineering and Technology, is the leading bibliographic database providing abstracts and indexing to the world's scientific and technical papers in physics, electrical engineering, electronics, communications, control engineering, computing, information technology, manufacturing, production, and mechanical engineering."

Visitor from New Zealand

2011-02-02T08:22:00.000+02:00

For staff and students who have been at the NMMU for more than 3 years, you may be interested to know that Mrs Debbie Hogan-Illenberger, who is an Academic Leader at the Waikato Institute of Technology in New Zealand, visited our library and the faculty on 18 January 2011. She is a former head of the Department of Civil Engineering at NMMU.

Welcome!

2011-01-19T15:04:00.000+02:00

Welcome back to all staff and returning students of the Faculty of Engineering, the Built Environment and Information Technology. I also want to extend a special greeting to new students and first year students. I hope that you all enjoyed the holidays and that 2011 will be an exciting year for you. I look forward to being of service to you as your faculty librarian.

After the registration period, first year students may be interested in reading 10 Reasons to Graduate in 3 Years. The library has computers on the first floor that you may use once you have registered with the library.

And so...

2010-12-06T09:43:00.000+02:00

We have come to the end of the academic year and I shall be starting a month's leave towards the end of the week.

Next week on Wednesday, 15 December, when the NMMU will be closing for the year, the the November examination results will also be published. Students who have completed their studies, may be interested to read the advice set out in 10 Bad Habits You Need to Shake After College!

I want to wish staff and students in the faculty a very happy holiday! Drive carefully and stay safe! If you get bored during the holiday, perhaps you may want to look at some of the movies listed in the site: 200 Free Movies Online: Great Classics, Indies, Film Noir & More!

10 Essential Books Every College Student Should Read

2010-11-24T12:01:00.001+02:00

College Cruch has published the list of 10 Essential Books Every College Student Should Read. This may give students an idea of what to read on windy days during the long summer holidays that will follow after Friday when you finish writing examinations!

The list include summaries of each book. The titles are:

Tuesdays with Morrie: An Old Man, a Young Man, and Life's Greatest Lesson, by Mitch Albom. (Available at Missionvale Campus library. Shelf no: LD571.B418S383 1997)
The Last Lecture, by professor Randy Pausch. (Available at South Campus Library. Shelf no: QA76.2.P38A3 2008 )
Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck. (Available at South Campus and Missionvale Campus libraries. Shelf no: PS3537.T3234 O 3 2000)
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, by Stephen R Covey. (Available at North Campus, South Campus, 2nd Ave Campus and Missionvale Campus libraries. Shelf no: BF637.S8C68 1992)
The Alchemist, by Paulo Coelho. (Both copies are missing from NMMU libraries)
Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury. (Available at South Campus and Missionvale Campus libraries. Shelf no: PS3503.R167F3 2003)
The Secret Life of Bees, by Sue Monk Kidd. (Not available in NMMU libraries)
The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini.(Available at North Campus and South Campus libraries. Shelf no: PS3608.O 525K58 2003)
Life of Pi, by Yann Martel. (Available at South Campus, North Campus and Missionvale Campus libraries. Shelf No: PR9199.3.M3855 2003)
Slaughterhouse- Five: A novel, by Kurt Vonnegut. (Available at both South Campus and Missionvale Campus libraries. Shelf no: PS3572.O 5S55 1971)

Are you looking for a similar word?

2010-11-17T09:56:00.000+02:00

Makeuseof.com have published a list of 10 Online Synonym Dictionaries That Help You Find A Similar Word. Here is the list:

Free eBook for Web Designers: 5 Tips for Better Sites

2010-11-12T11:15:00.000+02:00

Webvanta has made this ebook, 5 Tips for Better Sites by Michael Slater, available. "This free ebook distills what we have learned from working with dozens of designers about how you can:

Create sites that are more effective
Realize your creative vision
Not get bogged down in technology details
Have more fun
Have happier clients
Make more money"

Do you need help with writing skills?

2010-11-08T15:10:00.000+02:00

There are web sites that can help. Writing 101: 10 Free Online Writing Classes have a long list of various courses. Perhaps some of you might want to explore the courses on Technical Writing or Proposal Writing.

Makeuseof.com published a list of 4 Quick & Easy Ways To Review Your Writing Online. Here you can find a link to a Word Counter, The Passivator (that will highlight words written in passive voice) and Ginger Online Grammar Checker (that can assist you in finding grammatical errors in specific sentences). Or if you want to read a novel but want a different kind of review, try the Page99Test.

Have you ever wanted Google to be a little more specific?

2010-11-05T08:58:00.000+02:00

Then try Suggestion Chain: For when you want Google to be a little more specific! Phil Bradley reported: "This is quite fun.Type in a vague or random term and this application will refine it using Google search suggestions. It will then choose one of those and refine further, and will continue doing this until it runs out of terms. It's all automated so you simply type in your term then sit back and watch."

To all students writing examinations

2010-11-01T14:34:00.002+02:00

Wishing you all the best with the end of year examinations! May you stay calm during the examination period and I hope you will do well!

Students: Do you have a problem with Mathematics, Calculus, Differential Equations, etc.?

2010-10-29T15:40:00.001+02:00

If your answer is yes, then explore the thousands of educational videos that Salman Khan of the Khan Academy have made available. The Khan Academy is "a not-for-profit organization with the mission of providing a world-class education to anyone, anywhere." You can access the total archive on the Kahn Academy web site as well as on Khan Academy on YouTube.

Information Technology Innovation Day

2010-10-27T12:08:00.000+02:00

I went to visit the annual Information Technology Innovation Day where 3rd year students display the information technology systems that they have created.

Mr Sivile Mnyamana, Ms Noluxolo Kortjan and Mr Asho Tshweza displayed a school library management system that they had developed. Ms Kortjan demonstrated the different functions of the system and I am very impressed!

Top 10 Strategic Technologies for 2011 from Gartner

2010-10-26T12:01:00.000+02:00

Staff and students in the School of ICT may be interested in the following top 10 strategic technologies for 2011 that Garner has identified:

1. Cloud Computing
2. Mobile Applications and Media Tablets
3. Social Communications and Collaboration
4. Video
5. Next Generation Analytics
6. Social Analytics
7. Context-Aware Computing
8. Storage Class Memory
9. Ubiquitous Computing
10. Fabric-Based Infrastructure and Computers

The Athena Forum Guide –Signposting Career Paths for Post Doctoral Researchers

2010-10-20T15:07:00.000+02:00

I found the following announcement on the STech Blog: "The Athena Forum has created a new guide, “Signposting Career Paths for Post Doctoral Researchers”. It contains useful advice for women engineers and scientists in forging a successful career."

Lessons I Learned When My Laptop Was Stolen

2010-10-15T11:42:00.000+02:00

If you have a laptop, read the article Lessons I Learned When My Laptop Was Stolen by Nikhil Kodilkar in Lifehacker. He shares what he has learnt from the experience after his laptop was stolen.

Glorious rain!

2010-10-14T09:06:00.000+02:00

Waking up this morning in our drought-stricken Eastern Cape was wonderful! It is raining lots!

Here you can see what the parking area between A and B block on North Campus looked like this morning when I drove in to park the car:

Free online courses from the world’s leading universities

2010-10-13T15:02:00.000+02:00

Open Culture has listed Free Online Courses from Top Universities." This collection includes over 250 free courses in the liberal arts and sciences. Download these audio & video courses straight to your computer or mp3 player."

For academic staff: creating e-notifications in Blackwell’s Collection Manager

2010-10-11T12:53:00.000+02:00

Would you be interested to be notified of new books that have been published in the US and the UK on a specific subject? If so, please let me know!

Blackwell's Collection Manager is a database that collects new title information from publishers and can be searched by subject, title, and author.

The alert service (e-notification service) will enable you to receive alerts describing new titles that fall within your subject interest profile. The alerts can be delivered to you at a frequency and in a method that best suit you. You can create as many subject interest profiles as you need.

I can provide you with a user name and password to Blackwell’s Collection Manager. Here are step-by-step instructions on how to create alerts for yourself.

Students in the Research Commons

2010-10-08T11:17:00.001+02:00

Debbie Wagenaar and Iaan Fourie are hard at work in the Research Commons finishing their research paper for the BTech degree in Quantity Surveying.

8 Awesome Websites to Take Free College Courses Online

2010-10-04T11:45:00.000+02:00

Makeuseof.com lists 8 Awesome Websites to Take Free College Courses Online "The sites ... offer free online college level classes to anyone willing to spend the time on them. Each differ – some have all of the materials online and some may want you to purchase (borrow?) a textbook to follow along with. Each of them offers complete courses with only one thing missing: the credit for the coursework to put towards a matriculated degree."

New alerts feature for JournalTOCs

2010-10-01T10:05:00.000+02:00

I blogged about JournalTOCs (the tables of contents of journals) on 6 April 2010. Roddy Macleod reported in his blog: "As well as being able to search for the latest Table of Contents (TOCs) for more than 14,000 journals collected from over 600 top publishers, and being able to search within those TOCs for the latest scholarly articles on topics of interest, you can now also get email alerts when new issues are published in one of your favourite journals. No need to register with multiple publishers to get TOC alerts in your inbox."

Most important databases currently available on free trial

2010-09-14T14:44:00.000+02:00

The following databases in ISI Web of Knowledge are currently available on a free trial until 26 October 2010:

Current Contents Connect® (1998-present)
Complete tables of contents and bibliographic information from the world's leading scholarly journals and books; also includes relevant, evaluated Web sites and documents.
* Access pre-published electronic journal articles
* Search more than articles with cover-to-cover indexing

Coverage:
* Agriculture, Biology & Environmental Sciences (1998-present)
* Social & Behavioral Sciences (1998-present)
* Physical, Chemical & Earth Sciences (1998-present)
* Engineering, Computing & Technology (1998-present)
* Business Collection (1998-present)
* Electronics & Telecommunications Collection (1998-present)

Derwent Innovations IndexSM (1963-present)
Value-added patent information from Derwent World Patent Index® as well as patent citation information from Patents Citation Index®.

* Use patent data to protect your ongoing work, discover the latest technological advances, monitor competitors’ progress, and formulate fresh ideas for research
* Get a comprehensive overview of inventions in the global marketplace in all categories: chemical, electrical, electronic, and mechanical engineering
* Patent coverage to 1963; citations to 1973

Coverage:
* Electrical and Electronic Section (1963-present)
* Engineering Section (1963-present)

Inspec® (1969-present)
Inspec covers the significant research and development literature in the fields of physics, electronics, communications, electrical engineering, control engineering, information technology, and the applications of computers to a wide variety of disciplines. Publications indexed for Inspec include over 3,850 journals, some 2,000 conference proceedings, and numerous books, technical reports, and dissertations. Notable features include a comprehensive thesaurus, a subject classification scheme, numerical indexing, and chemical indexing.

Journal Citation Reports®
Journal Citation Reports is a comprehensive and unique resource that allows you to evaluate and compare journals using citation data drawn from over 7,500 scholarly and technical journals from more than 3,300 publishers in over 60 countries. It is the only source of citation data on journals, and includes virtually all areas of science, technology, and social sciences.

As a research tool, Journal Citation Reports can show you the:
* Most frequently cited journals in a field
* Highest impact journals in a field
* Hottest journals in a field
* Leading journals in a field
* Related journals in a field
Citation and article counts are important indicators of how frequently current researchers are using individual journals. By tabulating and aggregating citation and article counts, Journal Citation Reports offers a unique perspective for journal evaluation and comparison.

Conference Proceedings Citation Index- Science (CPCI-S) --1990-present

Conference Proceedings Citation Index- Social Science & Humanities (CPCI-SSH) --1990-present

Hargraves Book Exhibition

2010-09-07T10:53:00.000+02:00

For the second time this year there is a Hargraves book exhibition being held in the library at Summerstrand Campus (South). Academic staff are invited to visit the book exhibition from today until Thursday (7 - 9 September 2010). The exhibition is held in the Buzz Room (just off the Entrance Hall) and is open between 07:00 – 16:00. Here is an opportunity to view books that can be purchased for the library.

Free trial to IEEE/ IET Electronic Library from 6-20 September 2010

2010-09-06T08:59:00.000+02:00

The NMMU LIS have a free trial to IEEE/ IET Electronic Library from 6-20 September 2010:

Search more than 2 million documents available through the IEEE Xplore® digital library. The trial access is IP authenticated, so please only search when on campus.

PRODUCT FEATURES & TIPS
* Full-text access to more than 2 million articles
* Peer-reviewed articles from the top-cited journals in the field
* Cutting-edge conference papers
* All IEEE published and approved standards
* Complete backfile to 1988, with select publications to 1893
* Over 20,000 new documents added each month, updated weekly
* Stay current with e-mail alerts and RSS feeds http://www.ieee.org/go/emailalerts
* Learn to search like a pro in minutes with our self-paced training modules: http://www.ieee.org/training

11 ways to find free classes online

2010-08-25T08:27:00.000+02:00

Geeksugar has published a list of 11 places where you can access free classes online.

Sad news - Dr Calvin Blignault

2010-08-23T14:37:00.000+02:00

On Saturday morning I received a call from a colleague whose son is a student in Mechanical Engineering. She told me the sad news that Dr Calvin Blignault had passed away tragically in a motor vehicle accident. Calvin had been a student at the former PE Technikon and was described as a brilliant lecturer. I want to extend my condolences to his family and friends.

A memorial service will be held tomorrow, 24 August, at the Gold Fields Auditorium, North Campus from 13:00 – 14:00, for staff and students.

Informit - Free trial

2010-08-17T15:56:00.001+02:00

The NMMU currently has access freely available to Informit until 11 September 2010. The database is a premier source of core research and professional resources from the Australasian region. Staff and students in the faculty might want to have a look at the Engineering Collection. Use the username: nmmu and password: trial to access the database.

SAOUG 2010

2010-07-31T08:38:00.001+02:00

I have not posted recently as I have been offering training to staff and postgraduate students last Saturday, this past Thursday and also today!

On Tuesday I will be flying to Gauteng to attend the SAOUG (South African Online Users Group) Conference in Pretoria. After the post-conference workshop on embedded librarianship I will be going to cousins in Johannesburg and visit the Cradle of Mankind for the first time!

Welcome back to staff and students! Good news about Inspec

2010-07-19T14:51:00.000+02:00

Welcome back to staff and students at the start of the second semester! I hope you all enjoyed the Soccer World Cup as much as I did!

The good news is that Inspec on Ovid is now available for searching until 31 July 2010. Although you will not be able to access the full text of an article, you can search and find bibliographic citations and abstracts. Subjects covered are Electronics and Electrical topics, Computing and Control, Information Technology, Manufacturing and Production, and Physics.

"The Inspec database contains over 11 million bibliographic abstracts and indexing to journal articles, conference proceedings, technical reports and other literature in the fields of science and technology.

The Inspec database is the world's largest and most comprehensive English-language bibliographic database, in physics, electronics and computing. Over 4000 scientific and technical journals and some 2200 conference proceedings, as well as numerous books, reports and dissertations are scanned each year by Inspec staff for relevant articles to abstract and index for inclusion in the Database. Of the 4000 journals, around 1600 are indexed cover-to-cover."

Different types of malware

2010-07-02T08:24:00.002+02:00

Lifehacker has published some information on different types of malware entitled What’s the Difference Between Viruses, Trojans, Worms, and Other Malware?

AECDP 2010

2010-06-29T08:39:00.003+02:00

Yesterday, 28 June, I presented a library orientation session to Grade 12 learners attending the 2010 Winter School of the AECDP (Automotive Experiential Career Development Programme). I took the learners on a tour of the library, gave an OPAC demonstration and an introduction to other electronic resources available through the LIS.

Royal Society : Proceedings A

2010-06-24T11:27:00.001+02:00

Proceedings A of the Royal Society "publishes research articles across the mathematical, physical and engineering sciences." "To celebrate a summer of Royal Society science festivities, all ... journal content is free to access until 30 July 2010."

Creating alerts in Google Scholar

2010-06-21T15:39:00.004+02:00

It is now possible to create an e-mail alert when you have searched Google Scholar. Click on the envelope that appears at the top of the search results page next to the word, Scholar. Then add your e-mail address in the text box that is provided: