librarynewsSPRING 2011

The Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.Library represents a unique col-laboration between San JoséState University and the City of San José. Since 2003, the library has combined academicand public services in the nation’slargest joint library. Serving asboth the university library forSan José State and the mainbranch of the San José PublicLibrary System, the King Libraryprovides resources and servicesfor a lifetime of learning.

I N T H I S I S S U E

Library goes mobile 1

Message from the dean 2

Get new book & event alerts 2

Coming events & exhibits 3

New library databases 4

Digital collections grow 5

Recognize local photos? 5

Acceleration campaign news 6

Discover open access 7

NEH challenge grant update 7

You can make a difference 8

LibraryNews is published by theSJSU King Library. For more infor-mation, visit the library website atlibrary.sjsu.edu.

Editors: Elisabeth Thomas andCynthia McCarthy

Contributors: Celia Bakke, SteveHigaki, Christine Holmes, BridgetKowalczyk, Candice McGee,Danelle Moon, Mary Nino, Rae AnnStahl, John Wenzler

University library goes mobileLibrary website now accessible on smartphones and other mobile devices

A new mobile website allows patronsto use their smartphones to access theuniversity library while they are on theroad, in class, at the local coffee shopor on the other side of the world. Fromlibrary.sjsu.edu, any mobile device willautomatically direct users to the mo-bile version of the university library’swebsite at library.sjsu.edu/m, which isspecially designed for display on asmall screen.

The library’s web team built the mobile siteon an open source content managementsystem and optimized it for use with smart-phones and other wireless devices. Fromthe mobile site, users can check libraryhours, conduct research, find books in thecatalog and manage their library accounts.Library users can also connect to one of thelibrary’s research subject guides or call thereference desk to talk to a librarian.

The new mobile website complements theuniversity library’s growing suite of elec-tronic resources available to researchersanywhere in the world, 24 hours a day. Hav-ing access to the library website on a smart-phone adds value and convenience to the library’s services by making them availableto users when and where they need them.

Try the new mobile site on a smartphoneand visit library.sjsu.edu/contact-us to makecomments or suggestions. u

DID YOU KNOW? With any smartphone, you canuse a QR-code reader to scan theSJSU library’s mobile barcode toaccess the library website faster.

LIBRARY CODE

FOR SMARTPHONES

S A N J O S É S T A T E U N I V E R S I T Y K I N G L I B R A R Y | S P R I N G 2 0 1 1 | 1

MESSAGE FROM THE DEAN

This academic year has proven to be a challenging one for the library, theuniversity and the state of California.In spite of reductions in funding, thelibrary has continued to provide ex-cellent academic support for all ofthe colleges within the university andmoved further along on the digitalspectrum. The university library web-site is now available for students and

other library users on handheld smartphones, Special Collec-tions has continued to digitize unique images and docu-ments, new information databases have been added to theacademic collection and open access journals are being pro-moted to our library users.

In this issue of LibraryNews, you will find articles describingthese initiatives plus updates on library fundraising activi-ties. The University Library Acceleration Campaign Commit-tee has met twice this academic year and will be reachingout to our community of library supporters as the campaignmoves forward. The third year of the National Endowmentfor the Humanities (NEH) challenge grant will conclude atthe end of July and we still need local donations in order to meet this year’s goal to receive the full NEH match. Formore information regarding progress on the NEH grant orthe library’s role in the SJSU Acceleration campaign, pleasecontact Lina Melkonian, University Advancement, at 408-924-1154, or me in the Dean’s Office.

The annual University Library Dean’s List event was held on June 3, and I hope all who attended have warm memoriesof the event. A special thank you goes out to emeriti facultyArlene Okerlund and Thomas Layton for providing the pro-gram for the evening. Both discussed their ongoing researchand how the university library continues to provide state-of-the-art support for their work. Thank you to all who attended.

Finally, the library is happy to preview a new collection endowment bookplate on the back cover of this issue. Thefirst collection endowment in the sciences, the GenevieveCaputo Rolla Chemistry Collection Endowment, has re-cently been created. Please take a look at the striking book-plate that will be placed in every book purchased with theendowment funds.

—Ruth Kifer, SJSU Library Dean408-808-2419ruth.kifer@sjsu.edu

Receive updates on events and new books fromuniversity library

Learn when theuniversity libraryadds an item to its collection by subscribing to oneor more of the library’s electronic news feeds. Pa-trons can receive online alerts about new additionsto the library’s catalog or upcoming events and ex-hibits by clicking any of the dozen orange icons atlibrary.sjsu.edu/rss-feeds.

News feeds use RSS, short for “really simple syndication”or “rich site summary,” which provides a quick and easyway to retrieve online content without having to searchwebsites for updates. Through RSS news feeds, patrons arequickly alerted to the latest materials added to the univer-sity library’s collections, or new events and exhibits addedto the library’s calendar. The library’s feeds are divided intogeneral subject areas such as language and literature, busi-ness and economics, and health and life sciences. Updateson new music CDs, Cultural Heritage Collections materi-als, and SJSU Special Collections materials are also available.

Many website publishers offer RSS feeds as a way to helptheir readers stay informed about recent developments onselected topics or to deliver regularly changing contentsuch as news, weather, blog posts, technical updates and financial information. Called a “pull” technology, in con-trast to a “push” technology like email, RSS allows users toretrieve information when and how they choose.

RSS feeds can be gathered in a “feed reader,” the fastestway to find and track the latest content from favorite websites and blogs on your desktop. A variety of free feedreaders is available for downloading. Some popular feedreaders include Google Reader, My Yahoo, Bloglines, Feed-Demon (for Windows users), and NetNewsGator (for Mac

users). Once a reader has been installed, findingsites that syndicate content is fairly easy. Mostwebsites use the orange RSS symbol (shown atleft) to indicate that a feed is available. u

DID YOU KNOW? Currently the university library has 71,000 e-journals available in

370 electronic databases.

S A N J O S É S T A T E U N I V E R S I T Y K I N G L I B R A R Y | S P R I N G 2 0 1 1 | 2

Events and exhibits@ King Library

For more information about these andother public events, visit the King Librarywebsite at library.sjsu.edu/events/.

Tours of the King Library

Every Thursday, 11:30 am–12:45 pmWelcome Desk, first floor

Drop-in tours covering theKing Library building’s de-sign, collections, and art areoffered every Thursday at11:30 am on a first-come,first-served basis. Where elsecan you see a revolving secretdoor, a low-rider table com-

plete with hydraulic lifts, or a set of tablesshaped like the seven continents? Thesepieces and more comprise 34 public art in-stallations designed to provoke curiosity andencourage exploration throughout the KingLibrary. Sign up for a tour at the WelcomeDesk on the library’s ground floor. For moreinformation, call 408-808-2181.

Friends of the KingLibrary book sale

June 25–26July 30–31August 27–28Library bookstorepatio

One weekend eachmonth, the Friends of the Dr. Martin LutherKing, Jr. Library host a book sale in the book-store patio at the university entrance to theKing Library. Saturday sales run from 10 amto 5 pm, and Sunday sales run from 1 to 5 pm. Revenues from the sales are donated to the library for a variety of programs thatbenefit the community. For more informa-tion, call 408-808-2681.

“From Our Land”

Through June 29Second floor exhibit area

Set against California’s bucolic agriculturalscene, this exhibit celebrates Nikkei farmersand relates their experience from the turn of the twentieth century to the present day.It also examines the Nikkei’s response to thechanging political climate both before the1900s and after the passage of ExecutiveOrder 9066 in 1942. The hope is that “FromOur Land” will shed new light on the firstNikkei, who came to call America home, theNikkei’s struggle to become citizens, and thedescendants who are recognized as Ameri-cans because of that struggle.

“Prodigy to Progeny: Beethoven as Pupil, Teacher and Paradigm”

Through June 30Room 580, fifth floor

This exhibit draws on the collections of theBeethoven Center to trace Beethoven’s pathas student, teacher and paradigm. On displayare portraits, rare books and manuscriptsfrom Beethoven’s time, and original programsand autographs of some of the leadingBeethoven interpreters from the nineteenthand early twentieth centuries. Visitors willsee pages from a handwritten piano methodbook from ca. 1790, autographed documentswith Beethoven quotations by Hans vonBülow and Eugene d’Albert, an early pianoroll featuring Wilhelm Backhaus performingthe “Hammerklavier” Sonata and much more.Audio guides will be available to listen to selections featured in the exhibit, includingexcerpts from Beethoven’s own sonatas andpiano works by Beethoven’s teachers andstudents.

“Interpretations in Watermedia” by Santa Clara Valley Watercolor Society

July 10–August 27Second floor exhibit area

Original water media paintings, including watercolor, acrylic and mixed media works,make up this summer exhibit by the SantaClara Valley Watercolor Society. The subjectmatter ranges from landscapes and still lifesto figures and abstracts. Each painting is in-spired by a favorite quote, poem or piece ofprose from the artist’s own work.

A reception will be held with the more than40 exhibiting artists on July 17 from 2 to 4 pm in rooms 255–257. The reception is freeand open to the public; light refreshmentswill be served.

“A Chinese-American Odyssey throughWords and Images”

September 1–29Second floor exhibit area

This exhibit features images from artist-author Belle Yang’s books for adults and chil-dren, paired with corresponding text andpaintings. On the evening of September 13,Yang will appear at the King Library (seebelow for details).

James Murray photography

September 1–30Fourth floor exhibit area

James Murray’s photography brings intofocus eclectic perspectives on the ordinary,ubiquitous, and subliminal objects andsceneries of our daily journey through life.Murray’s unique vision reminds us that anabundance of surprisingly abstract, mysteri-ous and often delightful tableaux surroundsus, when we look. Treat yourself to a newway of seeing offered by his imagery.

Forget Sorrow: AuthorBelle Yang

September 13, 6–8 pmRooms 255–257, secondfloor

Belle Yang, author andartist of the graphicmemoir Forget Sorrow:An Ancestral Tale, willspeak about her 20-year

artistic journey to learn about her culturaland historical background through travel andinterviews with her parents.

S A N J O S É S T A T E U N I V E R S I T Y K I N G L I B R A R Y | S P R I N G 2 0 1 1 | 3

Library adds new online research databases

Databases aggregate content on a subjectand make it available electronically. Theuniversity library subscribes to hundreds ofdatabases on a variety of topics, includingthe arts and humanities, companies and in-dustries, and science, engineering and tech-nology. Most of the databases provide thefull text of articles, while others provide abstracts and citations that point users toward the original sources. Still othershouse image, sound or video files.

NEW LIBRARY DATABASESThe following new databases can be foundboth in the library’s online catalog and on thelibrary’s Articles & Databases web page atlibguides.sjsu.edu/a-z. Community users mayaccess these resources when visiting the KingLibrary.

Aerospace and High Technology covers research in aeronautics, astronau-tics, space sciencesand complementaryfields. In addition tomore than 3,000 peri-

odicals, this databaseincludes technical reports, con-ference proceedings, trade jour-nal and newsletter items, patents,books and press releases.

ArchiveGrid searches historical documents,personal papers and family histories held in archives around the world. Thousands oflibraries, museums and archives have con-tributed collection descriptions to the data-base. Through ArchiveGrid, researchers canlearn about the items in these collections,contact an archivist to arrange a visit to examine materials and order copies of documents.

Black Short Fiction and Folklore from Africaand the African Diaspora is a comprehensivecollection of short stories and folklore fromAfrica and the African Diaspora as well as se-lected literary magazines. Themes range fromoral traditions that date back many hundredsof years to contemporary tales of modern life.

With CAMIO, researchers can access fine and decorative artimages from leading museumsthat are rights-cleared for ed-ucational use. The collectionincludes more than 95,000 art images, including photo-graphs, paintings, sculpture,decorative and utilitarianobjects, prints, drawingsand watercolors, textiles, architecture, jewelry andcostumes.

Caribbean Literature is a searchable collec-tion of poetry and fiction produced in the region during the nineteenth and twentiethcenturies. Titles include numerous rare andhard-to-find works written in English,French, Spanish, Dutch and various Creolelanguages. Future releases will also featurejournals, reference works and interviews withkey writers.

European Views of theAmericas: 1493–1750 is a comprehensive guide to printed records about the Americas written inEurope before 1750. Containing more than32,000 entries, this data-base covers the history of European explorationas well as portrayals ofNative American peoples.

Oral History Online provides in-depth indexing to more than 2,700 collections oforal history materials in English from aroundthe world. The database also provides key-word searching of almost 281,000 pages offull text by nearly 10,000 individuals from allwalks of life. It also contains pointers tomore than 4,100 audio and video files andnearly 19,000 bibliographic records.

SocINDEX with Full Text provides full-textarticles from core journals in sociology andrelated disciplines, including criminology, demography, gender and ethnic studies, so-cial psychology, socio-cultural anthropology,social work and education.

Teacher Reference Center indexes more than260 titles from the most popular teacher andadministrator trade journals, periodicals andbooks. Topics include assessment, continuingeducation, current pedagogical research, cur-riculum development, instructional media,language arts, literacy standards, science andmathematics.

Theatre in Videocontains stream-ing video of morethan 250 per-formances of theworld’s leadingplays and morethan 100 filmdocumentaries.

With live television broadcasts of New Yorkproductions from the 1950s, revivals of clas-sical works and experimental performancesfrom the ‘60s and ‘70s, and contemporaryperformances, Theatre in Video covers awide range of twentieth-century theater history.

World History: The Modern Era covers his-tory from the Renaissance to the present in a reference format. Eras include: The Emer-gence of Modern Europe, 1500–1700; TheWorld Beyond Europe, 1500–1776; The Ageof Reason, 1700–1800; and A Time of Revolu-tions, 1776–1825. Also included are peer-reviewed essays by scholars and experts thataddress questions such as, “Was Marxism themotivating factor behind the Russian Revolu-tion?” and “Was the Congress of Vienna aSuccess?”

FOR MORE INFORMATIONTo learn more about these and other onlineresources, or to make an appointment tocome to the library for a demonstration,contact Sue Kendall, the university library’shead of collection development, at 408-808-2039 or susan.kendall@sjsu.edu.

S A N J O S É S T A T E U N I V E R S I T Y K I N G L I B R A R Y | S P R I N G 2 0 1 1 | 4

Local collections grow onlineTwo new digital collections offerKing Library users a more completehistory of Santa Clara County. The library’s Special Collections &Archives now includes The NormalPennant Collection, making availablean early twentieth-century studentpublication, and the John C. GordonPanoramic Collection, a group of his-torical local photographs. Both areavailable to the public through the library’s Digital Collections website at digitalcollections.sjlibrary.org/.

The Normal Pennant collection

Published monthly from 1898 to 1909,The Normal Pennant features humorouliterary tales, book reviews, poems, lyrics,updates on clubs andsocieties, campus activ-ities, jokes and adver-tisements from localbusinesses. BecauseSan José NormalSchool was a teachertraining college, TheNormal Pennant alsocovers teacher train-ing on campus andaround the state.Each of the

42 volumes is beautifully illustratedwith woodcut designs, photographsand line drawings created by the stu-dent body.

The Normal Pennant is part of the SJSUStudent Publications Collection,which includes student-created guides,magazines, newsletters, newspapers,pamphlets and yearbooks. Publica-tions range from 1880 to 2004, withthe bulk of the collection dating from1960 to 1990.

Panoramic photography collection

The John C. Gordon Panoramic Collection documents Santa Clara

sCounty from the 1920s through the1960s. Funded by a grant from the

National Historical Publi-cations & Records Com-mission, 526 panoramicimages taken by Gordon,

a commercial photographer whoworked in San José from 1910 to 1963,are being digitized and published on thelibrary’s Digital Collections website.

Panoramic images are created using a wide-angle lens, a technique some-times referred to as “wide-format pho-tography.” Panoramas in the GordonCollection depict ordinary life in thevalley, including views of local agricul-tural operations, business organiza-tions, churches, storefronts and imagesof downtown San José. The library’sdigital collections contain a represen-tative selection of the contact printsin the Gordon Collection, includingimages of hotels, water parks, wed-dings and funerals.

Expanding collections online

The Normal Pennant Collection and theGordon Panoramic Collection are thenewest of the growing local collectionsbeing digitized at the King Library. Toview all of the library’s digital collec-tions, visit digitalcollections.sjlibrary.org/. For more information, contactDanelle Moon at 408-808-2061 ordanelle.moon@sjsu.edu. u

RECOGNIZELOCAL PHOTOS? Add your knowledge to library’s digital collections

As the King Library’s digital collections continue to grow, sodo the mysteries surroundingpeople and places in old photosand documents.

The library’s digital collectionscontain images and publicationsthat have been hidden inarchives for years, and many ofthe people and places in thosematerials are unidentified. Thelibrary’s Technical Services de-partment has created a way for

library users to add their knowl-edge to the university’s store of information. When viewersclick on images on the DigitalCollections website, a link atthe bottom of the page promptsthem to “Tell us about thisitem.” The link leads to a formwhere people can share whatthey know about the image.

To view the images and sharewhat you know about local history, visit the library’s Digital

Collections website at digitalcollections.sjlibrary.org.

To keep abreast of new materi-als and collections as they areadded to the site, such as therecently added photos from theYWCA of Silicon Valley Collec-tion, subscribe to one or moreof the library’s RSS feeds at digitalcollections.sjlibrary.org/cdm4/ourcollections.php. u

S A N J O S É S T A T E U N I V E R S I T Y K I N G L I B R A R Y | S P R I N G 2 0 1 1 | 5

Acceleration campaign gains speedAcceleration: The Campaign for San José StateUniversity, the university’s first-ever comprehen-sive fundraising campaign, is well under way andthe university library is an integral part of the ef-fort. The campaign theme is about accelerating thelives of the extraordinary students we educate, en-ergizing our region and expanding our reach. Mostof all, Acceleration is about reengaging you wholove San José State and asking you to partner withus as we invest in what promises to be a dynamicand exciting tomorrow.

The university and the library have been in the silentphase of the fundraising campaign for three years, and inOctober 2010 the public phase launched. The UniversityLibrary Acceleration Campaign Committee has had twopreliminary planning meetings as members prepare tolead the campaign for the library. The committee includesJanifer M. Burns (alumna), Jennifer diNapoli (communityleader), Bernadine M. Goularte (alumna), Lionel Goularte(alumnus), W. Richard Roth (CEO, San José Water Com-pany) and Nancy R. Wiener (alumna). There is still roomon the campaign committee for additional members. Ifyou are interested in joining the library campaign com-mittee, please contact SJSU Library Dean Ruth Kifer at408-808-2419 or ruth.kifer@sjsu.edu.

The library’s campaign goal is to raise $3 million. Priori-ties are to support an outstanding educational experience,a commitment to students, and a university for San Joséand beyond.

An outstanding educational experience

Goal: Raise $1 million to support the digitization of theuniversity’s Special Collections materials. Funds raisedwill provide resources that will enable the library to digi-tize the unique historical collection currently housed inthe SJSU Special Collections & Archives. Funds will also

establish an institutional digital repository of SJSU fac-ulty and student scholarship and research and make itavailable to scholars worldwide.

Commitment to students—campus life and future success

Goal: Raise $1 million to support learning and researchspaces. Funds raised will create physical spaces within thelibrary that meet the needs of our users. Planned spacesinclude a learning and information commons equippedwith cutting-edge technology, embedded with compre-hensive digital resources, and providing access to in-depthresearch materials; expert consultants for faculty and stu-dents; and a twenty-first century electronic journals read-ing area.

A university for San José, Silicon Valley and the world

Goal: Raise $100,000 in named and subject endowments.Funds produced from various named and subject area en-dowments will provide critical support for enhancementand growth of specific subject collections in the library,both digital information and print resources.

Goal: Raise $900,000 in matching funds for the NationalEndowment for the Humanities (NEH) challenge grant.Funds raised to match the NEH challenge grant will pro-vide a robust humanities collection of digital informationresources in music, art, history, religion, philosophy andother humanities subject areas in support of the univer-sity’s core education requirements.

Join us

All are welcome to join us in the Acceleration campaign.To learn more about the library’s fundraising prioritiesand how you can participate in the program, contact SJSULibrary Dean Ruth Kifer. u

S A N J O S É S T A T E U N I V E R S I T Y K I N G L I B R A R Y | S P R I N G 2 0 1 1 | 6

Discover open accesspublishingSan José State University joins numerousuniversities, organizations and govern-ments that embrace the free dissemina-tion of scholarship and informationknown as the “open access movement.”

“Open access” refers to the free availability onthe Internet of scholarly research, includingjournals that meet the teaching, learning and re-search needs of an institution. In the open accessenvironment, authors commonly retain copyrightand also allow others to download and freely use theirwork as long as the author and publication are cited. Thisis all made possible by issuing the work under a licensesuch as a Creative Commons license. More information onthese licenses is available at creativecommons.org.

One of the university library’s primary goals is to expandaccess to and use of digital resources, particularly throughthe electronic journals and databases the library subscribes

to as well as links to open access resources. For a list of open access journal siteswith corresponding hyper-links and brief descriptionsof the sites, see SJSU OpenAccess Journals & Databases(library.sjsu.edu/files/documents/oajournallist.pdf).

These journals are also indexedon the SJSU Electronic Journals

Index web page and listed in the library’s online catalog.

To discover whether open access resources exist in yourarea of interest, contact Crystal Goldman at 408-808-2015or crystal.goldman@sjsu.edu. For more information onopen access, see the library’s subject guide at libguides.sjsu.edu/open_access. u

NEH third-year goal needs additional support now

The university library is ap-proaching the end of the thirdyear of the National Endowmentfor the Humanities (NEH) chal-lenge grant. With the continuedgenerous support of our librarycommunity, more than $100,000was raised during the past year.The NEH will match this amountby one-third, bringing the totalto $133,000.

Special thanks go to our individualand corporate sponsors. Four of oursponsors recently achieved Platinumlevel status for contributing morethan $10,000 each to the grant: Alexan-der Street Press, the Friends of theKing Library, Innovative Interfaces,Inc., and the San José Water Company.To learn more about sponsorships,visit library.sjsu.edu/giving-library/sponsorship-opportunities.

The third year of the challenge grantwill come to a close on July 31, 2011.In order to receive the maximummatch from the NEH for this year—$100,000—we need to raise approxi-mately $200,000 by the end of July.

It is critical that support for the hu-manities remains a priority. Knowledgeof the humanities improves all aspectsof our lives. It contributes to both per-sonal growth and expansion of the in-tellect. It makes possible discoveriesand solutions for researchers and schol-ars across all the disciplines, includingengineering, business, education, healthsciences and the pure sciences.

The NEH matching grant has allowedthe university library to establish apermanent endowment to support

the licensing of humanities databasesin perpetuity. Scholarly databases pro-vide both up-to-date and historical information, allowing humanities re-searchers a broader view of their field’sknowledge base. A gift to the library’sNEH fund will build our endowmentand ensure the licensing of quality dig-ital resources in literature, history,music, dance, poetry, drama, religion,philosophy and other subjects.

If you have not made a contributionto the NEH grant fund recently, pleaseconsider doing so at this time. Yourgift will have a direct and positive im-pact on the lives of students, facultyand the greater community well intothe future. To learn more, contactSJSU Library Dean Ruth Kifer at 408-808-2419 or ruth.kifer@sjsu.edu. u

S A N J O S É S T A T E U N I V E R S I T Y K I N G L I B R A R Y | S P R I N G 2 0 1 1 | 7

One Washington SquareSan José, CA 95192-0028

RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED

NONprOfit OrgaNizatiONU.S. pOStage

paidSaN jOSé, ca

permit NO. 816

ABOVE: The bookplate created for the Genevieve CaputoRolla Chemistry Collection Endowment.

Make a differenceSupport a vital field of studywith a library endowmentEndowments help fund library programs and collections that are

vital to the university’s educational mission. By providing funds for

the library in perpetuity, endowments provide an annual income to

enhance library services and resources in ways that go far beyond

base budgets. In addition, honorary bookplates provide opportuni-

ties to commemorate a special person or event, a heritage or an area

of interest in a way that benefits everyone who uses the library.

The Genevieve Caputo Rolla Chemistry Collection Endowment

was established to enrich and enlarge the university library’s chem-

istry collection for teaching, learning and research. Funds will sup-

port acquisition of print and electronic chemistry books as well as

digital resources such as chemistry databases.

To learn more about adding to or creating one of these important

endowments, visit library.sjsu.edu/giving-library/ or contact King

Library Dean Ruth Kifer at 408-808-2419 or ruth.kifer@sjsu.edu. u