Photo from Flickr user Matt McGee

Welcome everyone to the 2012-2013 academic year at SMCM!  In the library we were hard at work all summer so that now, you can work smarter!  Below is a brief rundown of just a few of the new toys and services we’re offering in the SMCM Library.  If anyone has any questions, please don’t hesitate to let us know.

New photocopier: We have a brand new photocopier!  It does full color and has an automatic feeder for those long documents.  Prices are 10 cents per black & white copy, 25 cents per color copy.  Please note that the photocopier on the 2nd floor (in the periodicals) is no longer there – there is only the first floor photocopier, which is in the same location.

New scanner: Returning students, staff, and faculty may remember the touchscreen-operated scanner that we had on a trial basis toward the end of the Spring 2012 semester.  It is now a permanent addition to the SMCM Library.  It scans in color or black & white and your scanned images can be printed (print in black & white only), saved to a thumb drive, or emailed immediately to you as a PDF, JPG, PNG, or RTF (MS Word) file.  It also has a leading edge – this makes it very easy to photocopy books & journals without pressing down on the item to get that hard-to-read text in the center!

Kindles: We now circulate Kindles!  We have three Kindle Fires, two Kindle Touches, and a Kindle Keyboard that can be checked out for two weeks (one renewal allowed).  They come preloaded with several e-books for your reading pleasure, including the Hunger Games trilogy, Prisoner of Heaven, and more!  We are actively soliciting requests for new titles for our Kindles, so let us know if you have a request.

Overdue fines: The rumors are true: the SMCM Library has eliminated almost all of our daily overdue fines.  Daily overdue fines remain in effect for:

• All course reserve items (not e-reserves)
• All media center items (3^rd floor)
• Anything that comes from another library (Interlibrary Loan/ILLiad or USMAI)
• Items that have been recalled

Nothing else, I repeat: nothing else is subject to daily overdue fines, i.e. books, DVD’s, VHS, CD’s, laptops (yes, laptops!), headphones, extension cords, ethernet cords, thumb drives, Kindles, etc etc).  The complete new SMCM Library fine policy is available on our website here (or, from the Library home page, click on “about the library” then “policies”).

Group Study Room Booking: Now, you can reserve one of our group study rooms for up to three hours per day.  Use this link (or, from the Library home page, click on “library services” then “group study rooms”).  In addition, Group Study Room 221 has been outfitted with a 55” HDTV with a DVD player.  Group Study Rooms 215, 216, & 221 are available for booking.  Group Study Rooms 206 & 217 are open and available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Happy Librarying!!!!!