Reference at Newman Library

Year: 2014

Finding Your Way Around the New Value Line Interface

Value Line updated the interface recently. One of the biggest changes is that the data from the Investment Survey has been broken up and scattered across the site. If you want to get a report on company, here’s how. When you first connect to Value Line, you see a screen like this:

Value Line--dashboard

To find a company, use the search box in the top right:

Value Line--search

Once you’ve found the company page, you’ll see all sorts of interactive content. If you want to the familiar PDF company reports  from the Value Line Investment Survey, you’ll find them over on the right where it says “PDF Reports.”

Value Line--company data and reports

Our subscription is limited to just some of the content on the site. If you go to the “Dashboard” from the top level navigation, you can go to the “Quick Links” box on the right side to get to other portions of the content we have access to. In this screenshot of that Quick Links box, I’ve highlighted in green the content we have access to and in pink what we don’t have access to:

Value Line--content we have access to in Quick Links

Those portions are:

  • VLIS Current Issue
  • Summary & Index
  • Selection & Opinion
  • SMC Summary & Index
  • VLIS Rank Changes
  • Supplementary Reports

If  you want to delve deeper into what’s changed and how to find stuff in the new platform, here are some useful links:

If there is some content you still can’t find that you remember from the old platform, please let me know here.

Library Website Not Working Within Blackboard (see update)

Update (25 August 2014) This problem is now resolved.

 

If you log into Blackboard, one of the main navigation options you see is for the “Baruch Library.”

Blackboard--Baruch Library display

Today, when tried that option in various browsers, I had all sorts of trouble:

Google Chrome

• library home page doesn’t load at all

Firefox
• library home page loads but none of the links work

Internet Explorer
• Text of the library home page loads at the top, then all the graphics/images are pushed to the bottom

If you visit the library website directly (i.e., not through the Blackboard interface), there are no problems at all, though.

I’ve submitted a ticket to BCTC about this.

Update on the Catalog Upgrade

As a follow up to the post a few weeks ago about what would be affected by the upgrade to the catalog software, here’s where we are now.

Searching in the Baruch catalog

Searches can now be run from the yellow search bar, from the search widgets some of you have added to research guides, or by going directly to the catalog URL.

Searching in the union catalog

In the union view, if more than one library owns a book, you’ll see each copy listed as separate item in your search (previously, those common holdings would be aggregated together in one record display). This problem should be sorted out soon.

Renewals in the catalog

Fine

Requests in the catalog

Fine

My Account feature in the catalog

Fine (and there’s a new design for the login page)

Self-checkout machine

Fine

Laptops-to-Go kiosk

Fine

New URL for the catalog

The catalog now has a new URL: http://libsearch.cuny.edu/F

If for some reason have found yourself unable to view the results of a search you tried running from the Books search on the library’s website, you probably need to go back to the library home page and then refresh the page (just hit the F5 button on the keyboard when you’re back to the library home page). That will clear the browser cache of the older version of the page and load the updated version of the page that has the updated Books search code.

Books Search Not Working in the Yellow Search Bar (updated)

UPDATE: As of 9:30 am, the Books search is now working again.

In the yellow search bar on the library website, the Books search feature isn’t working at the moment. BCTC staff are working on updating the code for this (the URL for the catalog changed as part of the software upgrade). Most of the links elsewhere on the website to the catalog have been updated (except those in the sidebars and supermenus, which BCTC is working on as well).

This is the new URL for the catalog:

http://libsearch.cuny.edu/F?func=find-b-0&local_base=baruch

This is the old URL for the catalog that has been retired:

http://apps.appl.cuny.edu:83/F?func=find-b-0&local_base=baruch

CUNY OLS had promised that there would be a system in place yesterday evening that would redirect anyone who went to the old address to the new address; that redirect doesn’t seem to be working yet.

I’ll send out an update as soon as the Books search function in the yellow search bar is working again. In the meanwhile, plus go to the catalog directly at the new URL, where searching is fine:

http://libsearch.cuny.edu/F?func=find-b-0&local_base=baruch

Trial to ProfitCents from Sageworks

Trial access to ProfitCents until August 31, 2014.

ProfitCents is a SageWorks product providing industry data, financial analysis, and benchmarking data for private companies. Provides access to 60 ratios and metrics from 1,400 U.S. and Canadian industries.

Login credentials must be provided to interested faculty. Please contact me if you have any questions. ryan.phillips (at) baruch.cuny.edu 

Services and Functions Affected by the Library Catalog Upgrade (updated)

UPDATE: See the 24 July 2014 post for an update on the status of the catalog.

With the coming upgrade of the software for the library catalog (Aleph), access and functionality will be limited as follows:

Search

  • The catalog can’t be searched at all from 4pm on July 10 through July 12
  • Search WorldCat instead with the understanding that you won’t be able to tell if the item is actually on the shelf

Renewals

  • Patrons will not be able to use the catalog to renew items from 4pm on July 10 through July 24
  • If patrons want to renew or check out an item, they can stop by the circulation desk

Requests

  • Patrons will not be able to use the catalog to request items from 4pm on July 10 through July 24
  • Any requests for books, even those that might be at other CUNY campuses, can be handled via interlibrary loan (ILLIAD)

Access to Online Resources

  • The catalog outages will have no effect on access to online resources (e.g., ebooks can still be found and accessed by going to relevant ebook databases linked to on our databases page)

Laptops Kiosk

  • The self-checkout kiosk for laptops by the reference desk will be offline.

Checking Out and Checking In Items

  • The circulation and laptop desks will still be able to check items out and in during the upgrade period

Self-Checkout Machine for Books

  • The self-checkout machine by the elevators be will offline

Fines and Account Blocks

  • Because patron accounts will be inaccessible, no fines can be paid during the upgrade period
  • If patrons have blocks, they can be removed for a 48 hour period to allow for changes in registration
  • If patrons have a block and are requesting a transcript, they will need to wait until Aleph is back online

New library research guide on New York’s Non-Profit Revitalization Act

I’ve created a library research guide on New York’s Non-Profit Revitalization Act, 2013, with a 2014 amendment, which is available at http://guides.newman.baruch.cuny.edu/nynonprofit2014. (You can also find it on the Newman Library homepage, and click Students, then Research Guides and search nonprofits.)

Most provisions of this act became effective July 1. Publications, non-profit organizations, law firms and cpa firms are offering explanations of the act. The act is the first major revision of the New York’s non-profit act in 40 years.