1. About Your Library
Identify physical and virtual areas and
functions of the library
About Your Library is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 United States License.
2. What is a library?
From Oxford English Dictionary1:
A place set apart to contain books for reading,
study, or reference.
1library, n.1
Second edition, 1989; online version June 2012.
<http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/107923>; accessed 13 August 2012. Earlier version
first published in New English Dictionary, 1902.
9. Circulation Desk
@ the Circulation Desk:
Circulation Desk
check out and return materials
pay library fines
lost and found
pick up GIL Express books
course reserves items
borrow equipment
10. Return your items on time
Outside the UC entrance
Inside the library
Outside the Library
Building exit
(near UPS box)
12. Libraries love to share!
GIL Express Interlibrary Loan
Request books Request
from USG electronic copy of
universities an article
Request online or Request books
in-person with from libraries
LakerCard worldwide
17. Visiting the library
Keep noise level to a minimum
Help us maintain a clean environment
Silence cell phones
Return items to a service desk or
designated area
Return checked out items on time and in
good condition
23. About Your Library
Identify physical and virtual areas and
functions of the library
Home page: http://www.clayton.edu/library
LibGuides: http://clayton.libguides.com
My Profile: http://clayton.libguides.com/ErinNagel
Editor's Notes
Earlier, I asked you all to describe or define a library. Here is the “official” definition of a library from the Oxford English Dictionary and a word cloud created from your answers to the same question.
If a library is a building full of resources, then those resources are further divided into what we librarians call “collections”. Collections are described by their format, subject area, availability for lending, any number of things that make them similar. We’re going to start by talking about our physical collections, those you can touch.
Most of the books you find in the library are “Circulating” meaning they are eligible to be checked out and taken from the library. Circulating materials may be checked out for a period of 28 days, and you can renew them for two additional 28 day periods, as long as you don’t let them become overdue! Don’t forget about our popular reading collection for those days when you need a little escape from studying.
When you enter the library through the University Center entrance, the Circulation Desk is immediately to your left. Here you’ll find items available to check out for a shorter loan period.Course reserves are items placed in the library or set aside by your instructor that have a limited loan period. This can be anywhere from 2 hours to 7-days. Some reserve items may not leave the library. Audiovisual materials, such as audiobooks, music CDs, DVDs, and VHS (yes, we still have VHS cassettes) are loaned out for a period of 7 days. All of these collections are kept behind the Circulation Desk.
In addition to the circulating items, we also have newspapers, magazines, and scholarly journals available for use, but these materials are not to leave the library. Back issues are either bound together like books, or available on microfilm, which requires special equipment to view. The University Archives is a separate collection housed in the library building. Here you will find documents related to the university’s history. You must consult with the archivist or an archives intern in order to use the Archives.
Other materials that don’t leave the library are the books in the reference and ready reference collections and the legal research collection.
In addition to providing resources for your use, the library also provides a number of services to help you make the best use of those resources and enhance your learning.
This is where you will check out books, course reserves, and other materials using your LakerCard.At the Circ Desk, you can pay any library fines using LakerBucks on your LakerCard. We also keep lost and found items here, and, if you request books from another library, you will pick them up at the Circulation Desk. We also loan out headphones and calculators at the Circulation Desk.
There are 3 locations available to return your books. Two are located outside of the library so you can return items even when the library is closed. The most noticeable is outside the UC entrance to the library and is big and orange. We very creatively named it “Big Orange”. By the outside library building exit door there is a book depository in the brick wall. It’s hard to see, so look near the UPS drop-box. Inside the library, you can drop books off at the book return at the Circulation Desk or hand them to a Circulation Desk staff member.
The Reference Desk is by the lobby entrance. Come here for help with your research papers and projects or if you have any questions at all about using the library and its resources. Whenever the library is open, there is someone waiting to help you. If there is no one at the Reference Desk, ask for a librarian at the Circulation Desk and one of us will be right out to assist you. Remember, you can ask us anything! We won’t judge you, laugh at you, or tell your friends.
GIL Express is a service that links all of the libraries of Georgia’s public universities. So, as CSU students you have access not just to the books in our library, but in the libraries of all the 35 public universities in Georgia. In fact, you can walk into any public university library, not public library, and check out any circulating book using your LakerCard.InterLibrary Loan (ILL) is similar to GIL Express in that you are able to borrow from other libraries, but, through ILL you can borrow from libraries worldwide. Also, through ILL, you can request electronic copies of articles to be sent to your email. So, GIL Express is for requesting books from USG university libraries and ILL is for requesting books and article copies from libraries all over the world. Both of these services take time so it’s important to start your research early.
All of the services we’ve talked about so far are provided to you by the library and our staff. In addition to these we host some services of other departments.
In the Student Copier room, you can make copies for $0.10 a page using your LakerCard on copiers provided by Media Services. We also have LakerCard services such as SmartPrint and the AMC machine where you can add LakerBucks to your LakerCard. If you need help using any of these services, feel free to ask a library worker for help. While we are happy to provide a central location for these services where students can use them outside of regular business hours, we unfortunately do not have control over the equipment and services. Because of this, we may send you to the appropriate office contact to process refunds or to ask questions.
More than just resources and services, the library provides spaces to read, relax, research, and connect with other learners.
The kiosk tv’s provide important information about the library as well as campus reminders. On library computers, you can access the Internet to research, check email, log in to the SWAN, DUCK, or GA View. You can also send documents to the SmartPrint printers. However, you can not create or edit documents or do any advanced printing. For these tasks, you will need to use your laptop computer. Study carrels allow you to study with minimal interruption, and the quiet study area is a place to escape so you can fully concentrate on your studies. When it’s all too much to handle, take a break at the puzzle station.
We are currently planning an expansion and renovation of the library facility, but until that time, it’s a small space so it’s important that we work together to provide a welcoming and comfortable environment to all of our users.
In addition to all of the resources and services offered here in the library, we have numerous online resources and services available for you. Also, we have special services for our distance students enrolled at the Fayette Campus.
This is the library home page. This is your portal to everything the library has to offer. On the left are some quick start tools. You can dive right in to a catalog search of Clayton State library materials or start chatting right away with a librarian. The top center box links you to the most common library needs. On the right are helpful links to a number of library services. Find out more about the library and our services by clicking “Library Services” and “About the Library”. Last but not least, in the bottom half of the page are the our current semester hours and library announcements.
Here is the login page for your library account online. To access your account, you will need to know your Laker ID# and your Library PIN#. Ask at the Circulation Desk about getting your PIN and setting up your account for the first time. After you receive your PIN and log into your account, you are able to see what books you have checked out, what fines are currently on your account, and what books you have requested through GIL Express. When you are logged into your account, you can save catalog searches and mark items as favorites so that you can go back to them later.
In addition to stopping by the reference desk in the library, you can send us a question by email, chat with us online, call us over the phone, or leave us a comment on our Facebook page. You can even request an individual appointment with a librarian tailored to your specific needs. NOTE: Virtual reference services are available during regular operating hours. Use LibGuides to start your research. We have over 30 research guides tailored to specific majors, classes, and special topics, and we are still growing.
Fayette Campus students also have access to our regular online services such as online reference assistance and library account management are available to Fayette Campus students.
