Category Archives: How to…

Instructions and advice on how to do things in the library e.g. migrate your RefWorks account, apply for an ILL, top up print credit

Updated Harvard Referencing Guidance

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Cite Them Right Logo

Cite Them Right Harvard is now the 12th edition.

The changes to the referencing style is minor – the way to reference books has been simplified.

Books

You now reference most ebooks and print books in the same way – if an online book looks exactly like the printed book, it has a cover, title page and page numbers, then use the printed book guidance.

If a book is online only and doesn’t have page numbers then use the ebook guidance.

New Guidance and Examples

The new edition has expanded guidance on the key principles of referencing and avoiding plagiarism, including new sections on collecting evidence to use in your work; reading, listening and taking notes; and using other people’s work in your writing.

There are new reference examples to follow for Tik Tok, blog posts, Zoom and Teams, recorded lectures and online seminars.

RefWorks

You will need to update your selected style in RefWorks. If you are unsure how to do this you can watch our Getting Started with RefWorks video here (jump to the Citation View Settings section).

Search for Cite Them Right, 12th ed – Harvard (GCU:CTR) or find it in the Institutional styles list.

If you need help with this or anything else in the library please email us library@gcu.ac.uk

Resource List Drop In Sessions – Tri C

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The Resource List team will be running a series of drop in sessions for staff in the run up to Trimester C resource list submission deadline (6 April).

Resource Lists at GCU Drop in sessions, Come and ask us a question, We can help with: Creating and updating your resource list Duplicating your list Updating your module codes

If you have any questions about using the resource list platform, creating or updating your resource lists or would like to know more about how the library can help, please drop by. The sessions will be held on MS Teams and will run at the following dates and times:

  • Tuesday 7th March at 10am – 10:30am
  • Monday 13th March at 2pm – 2:30pm
  • Thursday 23rd March at 11am – 11:30am
  • Friday 31st March at 1pm – 1:30pm
  • Wednesday 5th April at 12pm – 12:30pm

You can join the drop in here: join the drop in now

If you would like to learn more about the Resource Lists at GCU service, please visit our website. Alternatively, you can contact the resource list team directly at resourcelists@gcu.ac.uk

Lexis Plus – how to migrate your personal account

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LexisLibrary have recently upgraded GCU to their new Lexis Plus UK platform.

Any users who may have had saved searches, bookmarks or alerts set up in the older version of LexisLibrary can migrate their preferences to the new platform. Please follow the instructions below if you wish to migrate any personal preferences. Continue reading →

British Standards Online – FileOpen plug in

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We’re aware of an issue downloading standards from the BSI website. This is due to new digital security requirements put in place by the publisher.

For Academic Staff:

To download standards on a GCU computer you’ll now need to install a special plugin called FileOpen. You’ll find the plugin by searching for the Software Centre app on your computer and downloading Install BSOL plugin for Adobe Reader. You need to be signed into the Cisco AnyConnect VPN if you’re off campus. Please restart your machine before attempting to download any files. Files can only be opened in PDF readers such as Adobe Acrobat or Adobe Reader, they can’t be opened in-browser.

You will also need an internet connection to open the documents for the first time. Once your documents have been authenticated, you will be able to access the documents offline.

Please let us know if you have any problems installing the plugin by contacting the team at ertenq@gcu.ac.uk

For students:

If you are using your own device, you will be able to download the FileOpen plug in directly from the BSI platform. You may not need to restart your machine before downloading.

If you are using a machine on campus, the FileOpen plug in will already be installed on your machine. If you have having any problems opening documents, please contact the team at ertenq@gcu.ac.uk

Apologies for any inconvenience.

Dawson Books in administration; how to save your notes

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Dawson Books, one of our main ebook suppliers, has sadly gone into administration. We are currently working to transfer our ebooks on the Dawsonera platform to another provider.

Unfortunately this means that any notes you have made in Dawsonera ebooks will be lost, unless you export them. This must be done by 31 July 2020 at the latest.

To export your notes from the platform, please follow these steps:

  • Search for the book in Dawsonera, or otherwise select My Account, My Bookshelf or Recently Viewed.
  • Select Read Online under the book title.
  • Select the Notes tab in the left-hand bar.
  • Select Export; your notes will be transferred to a Word document.

Alternatively, if you have used referencing software to save books, you can access the title via RefWorks then complete the final two steps above.

If you encounter any issues accessing an ebook please email: ertenq@gcu.ac.uk

High demand ebooks

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At this time of year we see a peak in ebook use. You may notice that your usual link to an ebook won’t let you access the full text due to this increased demand. What can you do?

First wait and try the ebook later. It could be that too many people are trying to use the ebook at the same time.

Next search for the ebook on Discover:

Screen shot of ebook record on Discover showing two available links for an ebook.

1.Click on the title and check if the ebook is available from more than one place

 

Screen shot of Discover results list showing several previous editions of an ebook.

2. Look at the results lists for previous editions of the same book

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For a reminder of how to find and use ebooks check out our video.

Academic Librarian Drop-in sessions resume 1st of October 2019

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Beginning 1st Oct 2019

Did you know that Monday to Friday you can drop-in to get help from an Academic Librarian between 11am and 3pm?

What to expect?
The drop-in session is for quick questions – like needing help to find resources on a topic or getting started with a database or RefWorks.

Where?
The drop-in desk is the first desk in the Library Ask & Learn space on Level 1 of the Saltire Centre.

Need more help?
Make an appointment with your subject specialist academic librarian.  Appointments can be for a group and you can request an online appointment too.

 

Inter-library loan service update

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If you need an item to support your research, teaching or coursework and we don’t have it in stock you can request it through our inter-library loan service.  We have now introduced a quicker, easier method of placing requests through Discover and you can track the progress via your library account.

To place a request, either:

  • Carry out your search and select Expand My Results Beyond GCU Library Collections;

choose the Get it tab where available and sign in;

click Inter-library loan request, you will be taken to the request form which will be automatically populated with the information about your chosen item.

or

For a trial period, we are extending this service to all GCU staff and students.

Full information is available on our web pages.

Please let us know what you think of this service by completing our feedback form.