Reference Desk, 10/31/2012

[6-10 pm shift] Happy Halloween from the ref desk. We're giving out candy at the desk tonight. Let's hope nothing scary happens.

1. Looking for a book on music and trauma. Her friend had checked out a book on it but she couldn't remember the name. We tried several different searches but couldn't find what she was looking for. She said she'd email her friend to see if she remembers the name of it.
2. Question about how to print
3. Wanted to know what floor we are on
4. Wanted information about the book collecting contest
5. (Chat) Had a question about citing a website in APA
6. (Chat) Question about in-text citations in APA
7. Question about how to cite a newspaper article without an author in APA
8. Looking for change
9. (Chat) Wanted to know if you included degree abbreviations with the author's names in an APA reference
10. (Chat) Looking for article about the Christiansburg Food Bank
11. (Chat) Had a question about the reference list when citing in APA

Reference Questions, 10/29/2012

[2 pm shift]

1. Looking for the hole puncher
2. Needed to know where a book was located in the library. She had the call number.
3. (Chat) Had question about how they should format a journal title in their paper
4. Looking for the copier
5. Needed help printing a pdf document
6. (Chat) Needed to know how to cite an indirect source
7. (Phone) Professor having trouble accessing the Chicago Sun Times from LexisNexis. I suggested she try looking at newspapers in Newspaper Source Plus while I contact our e-resources librarian to see if we have access to it.

Reference Questions, 10/25/2012

[2 pm shift]

1. (Chat) Adjunct faculty wanted to know ho he could use a DOI to find a document. Google Scholar to the rescue!
2. Looking for books and articles on nightmares
3. Looking for the Norton edition of Othello. We didn't have it.

Reference Questions, 10/24/2012

[6-8 pm shift]

1. (Chat) Student was trying to access an ERIC document
2. Question about how printing worked in the library
3. Looking for an ATM
4. Looking for our criminal justice section
5. Needed help researching an industry for an business class. He had the industry name incorrect. That's why he was having so much trouble. Once we nailed down the industry name he was able to find lots of info.
6. (Chat) Was citing a book in APA, but the book had no city/state of publication. He could tell that it was published int he US and after much searching I determined that he should just use the United States as his place of publication
7. (Chat) Looking for articles on group dynamics
8. Question about how the Pay-for-Print works

Reference Questions, 10/22/2012

[2 pm shift]

1. Wanted to know which position in football gained rushing yards
2. Needed to know how to add money to his printing account
3. Having problems with his RU email account. It wouldn't let him send attachments. I had him try another browser and it worked.
4. Her professor sent her in to see if a book she (the professor) ordered had come in yet.
5. Wanted to know how to print double sided
6. (Email) Student sent an email to the ref desk that was meant for someone else.
7. Her paper wouldn't print. She didn't have enough money in her printing account

Reference Questions, 10/17/2012

[8 pm shift]

1. (Chat) Student wanted an online site that would help her write an annotated bibliography
2. Looking for lost and found
3. One of our public patrons wanted help listening to an album on some website I'd never heard of
4. Stapler needed more staples
5. One of our public patrons had lost his mouse pointer on the screen
6. Needed help using his H drive

Reference Questions, 10/15/2012

[5 pm shift]

1. Needed to fax something
2. Looking for a copier
3. Looking for the play Harvey
4. (Chat) Looking for articles about university cost vs. community college costs
5. (Chat) How to cite a dissertation in MLA
6. (Chat) How to cite a poem in APA
7. Looking for a specific article. We did not have access to it.
8. Needed to fax something
9. Needed to add money to his RU Express
10. Looking for articles on reviews of Glidden paint

Reference Questions, 10/14/2012

[Sunday shift] This is my first Sunday of the semester on the desk. These all day shifts are always busy.

1. (Phone) Having trouble logging into the databases from off campus. It was a message left yesterday. I contacted the student and she had figured out what the problem was.
2. (Email) Having trouble locating a specific article. We had the article in print here at the library.
3. (Chat) Having trouble accessing an article. We didn't have access tot he particular article she was trying to get. I explained how to use ILL.
4. (Chat) Looking for scholarly articles
5. Needed help using the scanner and printing what she had scanned
6. Looking for the restrooms. She then asked how far a walk it was [?]
7. (Email) Question about getting article we owned a hard copy of scanned. She wanted to know if we could hold the copy of it in the library for her. I explained that it would be made available to her online.
8. Scanner stopped working. I had her restart the computer.
9. Instructor had questions about reserving a class and then scheduling CORE 102 library instruction for next semester. I gave him our Head of Instruction's card
10. (Email) Looking for books/articles on insane asylums
11. Was looking for a specific article. I showed her how to use Google Scholar to find it.
12. (Chat) Needed to know how to create an in-text citation for a poem
13. Looking for some headphones
14. Needed to search Business Source Complete but had no idea what her assignment or topic was. I told her to email her professor.
15. Needed help with the scanner
16. (Phone) Wanted to know if we have Maple software in the library. We do not, but they they have it in Young and Walker.
17. (Chat) Looking for company information
18. Looking for company information
19. Looking for company information
20. Looking for his lost flash drive
21. Looking for company information
22. (Chat) Had a question but found the answer
23. (Chat) Wanted to know if they should cite a website as a website

What a day/night.

Reference Questions, 10/10/2012

[12 pm shift]

1. (Chat) Looking for articles about WWII and its effects on soldiers and their families. Needed help with which database to search and what keywords to use.
2. Looking for articles on Ted Bundy. I went to 3 different databases before I found one that would work for him. I showed him how to find them on his own.
3. Wanted to know how to print an article. A librarian had printed an article for him at the desk before and he wanted me to do the same. I explained that we only do that in emergencies. I told him he should try to print the article himself, and let me know if he had any problems or questions with it.
4. (Chat) Had trouble finding an article. Left chat before I could help him
5. Looking for books on Jack the Ripper. I showed him how to search the catalog, how to access an ebook and I explained how to find books int he stacks.
6. Looking for books on serial killers. She had written down the ISBN for one of the books she wanted. I showed her where to find the book's call number in the catalog and then explained to her how to find the book in the stacks.
7. Looking for circulation
8. (Chat) Needed help finding articles on teaching environmental education to special education students
9. (Chat) Wanted to know our hours during Thanksgiving break

[3 pm shift]

1. Looking for his textbook, American Government and Politics. We did not have it.
2. (Chat) Looking for the Occupational Outlook Handbook
3. Needed help using databases, and had questions about how to format in APA. I walked him through how to use 2 different EBSCO databases and I walked him through how to use our APA LibGuide.
4. Looking for books on advertising and alcohol
5. Wanted to know where to find the DOI number on a scholarly article
6. Needed to put more money on his RU Express
7. (Chat) Needed to know how to cite different pages from the same website

Reference Questions, 10/9/12

[12 pm shift]

1. Looking for the book Earth Unaware
2. Needed a guest username and password
3. (Phone) Looking for an intro to psychology book
4. Needed to know how to attach a PDF to an email
5. Student needed help finding a microfilm and using the microfilm machine

Reference Questions, 10/8/2012

[6-8 pm shift] A rare Monday night on the desk for me...

1. (Chat) Having trouble accessing an article in an EBSCO database. I suggested she switch browsers. She was able to access the article then.
2. (Chat) Needed to know how to cite a YouTube video in APA format
3. Looking for the book The Perks of Being a Wallflower. We have a copy of it, but it's checked out.

Reference Questions, 10/4/2012

[12 pm shift]

1. Wanted to know if there was a card catalog she could use
2. Wanted to know how to put money on his RU Express account
3. Looking for some headphones
4. Needed to know how to print single sided

Reference Questions, 10/3/2012

[8 pm, 2 hour shift] WooHoo, night shift. :)

1. (Chat) Question about how to format an annotated bibliography in APA
2. Looking for lost and found
3. Needed help using the scanner
4. (Chat) Question about citing dictionary.com in APA
5. (Chat) Question about citing dictionary.com in APA
6.  Needed help using the RU Express machine
7. Needed help with printing
8. Student was looking for the movie Beetlejuice

Reference Questions, 10/2/2012

[3 pm shift] It's October. I am ready for the cool weather and fall colors. I'm also ready for some reference questions.

1. Wanted to know how to embed a pdf in a Word doc
2. Looking for Classroom A
3. Wanted to know where to check out books
4. Having trouble accessing an article in an EBSCO database. We did not have access to the article.