Did You Know?

You can check out NU books and DVDs during the holiday break and intersession! These items will be due back on January 17, 2008.

Meet Your Librarians!

There is a reference librarian on duty whenever the Library is open, and we're here to help you! If you'd like to learn more about us, check out our individual web pages:

• Andy Bailey, Part-time Reference Librarian
  
• Jonathan Coe, Coordinator of Public Services
  
• Charles Dabkowski, Head of Acquisitions and Serials
  
• Samantha Gust, Reference/Interlibrary Loan Librarian & Webmaster
  
• Michael Lavin, Part-time Reference Librarian
  
• David Schoen, Library Director
  
• Joe Umhauer, Assistant Library Director for Technical Services
  

Check Your Library Account Online

A Library user recently sent us an email and wrote:

"Unless I am just unable to find it, it would be extremely useful to have something online which students can use to view their library account information to renew materials or see which materials they have checked out. All other institutions I've attended and even public libraries offer this."

Our response:

Look for the "My Account" tab in the Library Catalog and enter the 14 digit number located on the back of your NU ID card. You can review your checkouts and renew items online.

The 14 digit number also will let you place holds on items. Just look for the "Request Item" button when viewing a list of materials. *Please remember to make sure that we have your current email address on file at the Circulation Desk so that you receive messages from us in a timely manner.*

The History of Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day!

Learn more about this romantic observance in this entry from The Columbia Encylopedia.

Most Popular Recreational Books and DVDs

Reading books for fun and watching DVDs are two pastimes we support through our Recreational Reading and DVD Collections. Both collections are conveniently located on the first floor near the Circulation Desk. These books are shelved alphabetically by the author's last name, and DVDs are shelved alphabetically by title.

Here are our ten most popular recreational book titles:

1. Our Lady of the Forest - David Guterson
   
2. The DaVinci Code - Dan Brown
   
3. Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
   
4. Red Dragon by Thomas Harris
   
5. Girl Talk - Julianna Baggett
   
6. The Amityville Horror - Jay Anson
   
7. The Notebook - Nicholas Sparks
   
8. The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
   
9. The Wedding - Julie Garwood
   
10. The Five People You Meet in Heaven - Mitch Albom
    

These are our ten most popular recreational DVDs:

1. Garden State
   
2. Closer
   
3. Napoleon Dynamite
   
4. Traffic
   
5. Hotel Rwanda
   
6. The Incredibles
   
7. Mean Girls
   
8. Hitch
   
9. Crash
   
10. Finding Neverland
    

It's Tax Time Again!

Tax forms and instructions are available online and may be printed.

For United States (federal) forms, visit: http://www.irs.ustreas.gov/formspubs/index.html

For New York State forms, visit http://www.tax.state.ny.us/forms/default.htm

Did You Know? DVD Copyright Law

As you know, the Library is developing an extensive collection of DVDs.

One thing you may not know about is the copyright law governing the public showing of DVDs. The Library's DVDs generally don't come with public performance rights. They can be used personally or shown in a classroom setting but usually cannot be shown in other public community settings.

The Library web site provides some guidance: http://www.niagara.edu/library/copyright.html. (Disclaimer: The web site is for informational purposes only and does not represent legal advice).

Ever Wonder Why the Library Charges Fines?

The Library doesn't charge fines for the money -- it charges fines to increase the availability of materials!

On November 1, 2005, we analyzed overdue rates for our heavily used Recreational DVD Collection. 153 of the 302 titles in the collection were checked out on that day. Of the 153 DVDs checked out, 47 were overdue -- a 31% overdue rate.

At that time, we thought that increasing the fine from 25 cents per day to $1 per day might lessen overdue rates.

We were right.

On November 7, 2006, we did the same analysis. 272 of the 789 titles in the Recreational DVD Collection were checked out. Of the 272 DVDs checked out, 32 were overdue -- a 12% overdue rate.

Increasing the fine from 25 cents per day to $1 per day decreased the overdue rate and made more materials available to you!

Tip: Did you know that you can renew your DVDs online? Visit the Library Catalog and click on the "My Account" tab. If you renew the DVD before it is overdue, you can extend the due date by one week.