Fall 2013 Instruction Workshop Series Now Available

The Carmichael Library would like to announce the Fall 2013 Instruction Workshop Series. We've hosted sessions like these in past semesters, and now we introduce an expanded lineup on topics like blogging, using Twitter for information management, crafting online presentations, and more.

Fall 2013 Instruction Workshop Series at Carmichael Library from Carmichael Library DML

Instruction workshops are hands-on experiences where you learn how to create projects or manage information with online tools. You can come and ask questions, work on your own class assignments, or just observe. And because the sessions are informal, there's no need to make reservations. Arrive late or leave early. We don't mind! 

Earn Badges

Some professors may offer extra credit if you attend an instruction workshop session, but more often than not, you may want to come and learn simply because you're interested. However, you may also want to earn badges. If you attend a workshop, you are entitled to earn a badge (see the lineup on the above slideshow), and you may also opt in to our semester long badges competition. Those who accumulate the most badges will receive prizes, which may include print cards to be used in the library. We'll keep track on a leaderboard, which is displayed on the Instruction Workshop Series homepage.



This first session is Informed Blogging this Wednesday, September 11 at 4:00 PM in the EBSCO classroom on the ground floor of the library. If you're in a class that requires blogging, or if you're generally interested in using blogs to organize information or share content with a public audience, you are welcome to come to this workshop. We hope to see you this fall at Carmichael.

Fall 2013 Instruction Workshop Series

Wednesday, September 11, 4:00-5:00 PM Are you taking a class that requires you to write on a blog? Are you interested in writing for an online audience? This workshop will help you understand the Wordpress blogging platform. Andrew Battista will explain the conventions and technical skills needed to blog effectively.

Citation Management with Zotero - Monday, September 16, 5:00 PM-6:00 PM  Zotero is the only research tool that automatically senses content, allowing you to add it to your personal library with a single click. Learn how to use Zotero to organize research, generate citations, and collaborate with other people.

Apps for Research - Tuesday, September 24, 5:00-6:00 PM How can you make the most of your iPhone or iPad to succeed academically? Lauren Wallis workshops some apps and shares ideas on how to increase productivity.

Curating with ARTstor - September 25, 3:30 PM-4:30 PM Catherine Walsh helps us use ARTstor to organize information and image collections for teaching and personal research.

Curating with Twitter - Thursday, September 26, 3:00-4:00 PM In this session, Andrew Battista will demonstrate how to organize and consume information via Twitter, a microblogging platform that limits user contributions to 140 characters. We will cover the skills of attention management and will explore supplementary Twitter apps and platforms.

Building Archives with Omeka - Thursday, September 26, 5:00 PM - 6:00 PM Omeka is a content management system that allows users to digitize resources and display them in collections. Learn about Dublin Core and other elements of archival creation with Omeka.

Charting History with Timeline JS - Wednesday, October 2, 3:00-4:00 PM Do you want to tell a story about how ideas or things develop over time? Timeline JS is a tool that allows you to display data as a linear, interactive narrative. All you need is a Google Account. In this workshop, Andrew Battista will share ideas about incorporating creative media sources into Timeline JS projects.

Technology for Presentations - Tuesday, October 8, 5:00-6:00 PM Learn how to use free online resources to enhance your next class presentation. Lauren Wallis will demonstrate using Prezi, Glogster, Storify, and Pic Monkey to support engaging presentations.

Developing GIS Projects - Wednesday, October 9, 3:00-4:00 PM GIS projects are visual representations on maps of complex social, economic, natural, and cultural patterns. GIS projects help students form questions about people and places and translate them into a map that represents data that shows some kind of change over time. In this workshop Andrew Battista will explore GIS projects with Google Fusion Tables.

Life after Google Reader - October 22, 4:00 PM-5:00 PM Now that Google Reader is no longer supported by Google, users have to find an RSS alternative. Andrew Battista and Lauren Wallis co-lead a session on mastering RSS readers. We will explore the process of creating journal alerts, following podcasts, and organizing popular publications.

Podcast Editing with Audacity - Monday, November 4, 3:00-4:00 PM  Learn to create and produce audio projects with Audacity, a free editing software. Andrew Battista will facilitate a hands-on editing workshop. You are encouraged to bring your own laptop.

Advanced Googling - November 5, 5:00 PM - 6:00 PM Explore how to use Google for research. Lauren Wallis will talk about the usual suspects, Google Books and Google Scholar, but we'll also explore keeping current with specialized current events and scholarship through Google News and RSS alerts.

Editing and Producing with iMovie - Thursday, November 7, 4:00 - 5:00 PM Involved in a movie or video project? Mike Price of the Digital Media Lab shows us how to edit videos and produce content with Apple's iMovie software.

Navigating WorldCat Local - Wednesday, November 13, 4:00-5:00 PM  Learn smarter organization strategies and search better with WorldCat Local.

Introducing Credo Reference

Have you ever wished you could have a reference book collection at home (other than that dusty World Book set from 1988)?  You're in luck!  Carmichael Library now subscribes to Credo Reference, an electronic collection of over 600 encyclopedias and dictionaries.

Credo allows you to search for a term in the entire book collection--but it can do a lot more to help you learn about a topic.  If you like to browse the library shelves, try the Find a Book link.  You'll be able to choose a book based on academic discipline like you would in a print reference collection. Many terms have Topic Pages, which are compilations of encyclopedia and dictionary entries, scholarly and popular articles from library databases, related images, and more.  Or if you're a visual learner, you can create a Concept Map to learn more about your term and related topics.

Once you've gotten background information about a topic, Credo helps you launch into the next phase of research.  Choose from the dropdown menu to continue searching your topic in the WorldCat Local Catalog or a library database.

We hope you enjoy researching with Credo Reference!  Please contact Lauren Wallis or Jason Cooper with questions.

Can't get enough of electronic reference?  Find more titles on Carmichael's Virtual Reference Shelf!

Spring 2013 Instruction Workshop Series

It's back. Last Fall, the Carmichael Library introduced an Instruction Workshop Series, informal sessions where students and faculty learn about a tool, software, or social media platform.  Often, these workshops correspond with classes at the University of Montevallo, but anyone is welcome to attend.  Next week is our first session, entitled Informed Blogging.  In it, we'll explore the mechanics of Wordpress and talk about writing for an online audience.  If you are taking a class that requires you to blog, you will want to attend this session.  Later in the semester, there will be sessions on Twitter, RSS Readers, Geographic Information Systems projects, and advanced Googling.

Also, this semester there's a new wrinkle! For each session you attend, you'll earn a badge (yes, a literal badge) to represent your achievement.  In all, there are nine total sessions, and you are invited to attend as many sessions and earn as many badges as you'd like. There's no need to make a reservation; just come and learn.

You can always see the lineup of sessions on our library homepage, but here is an overview of the schedule:

Informed Blogging - January 17, 5-7 PM
Advanced Googling - January 22, 5-6 PM
Organizing the Internet with RSS Readers - January 29, 5-7 PM
Curating with Twitter - February 7, 5-7 PM
Developing GIS Projects - February 14, 5-7 PM
Mapping Concepts with Mindmeister - February 21, 5-7 PM
Producing Videos with SlideRocket - March 7, 5-7 PM
Managing Research with Zotero - March 26, 5-7 PM 

Contact Andrew Battista or Lauren Wallis if you have any questions about any of the sessions.

Fall 2012 Technology Workshop Instruction Series Announced

The Carmichael Library would like to announce the Fall 2012 Technology Workshop Instruction Series.  Visit the Initiatives section of our new website to find the full schedule of events and learn more about what we'll do.  The first event is Wednesday, September 12, at 5:30 PM.  Andrew Battista will lead a session on Informed Blogging:  Basics of Wordpress and Blogger.  There's no need to make a reservation; simply come, learn, and practice.

Instruction in the EBSCO Classroom

At the University of Montevallo, many instructors are beginning to bring blogs and online writing into the classroom experience in new ways.  Now, more than ever, writing for an online audience is a fundamental literacy that is expected of students in almost every quarter of the liberal arts curriculum.  Here's just a sample of blogs done by students in UM classes:

• Curation Culture
• Digital Rhetoric
• National Parks, Wilderness and the American Imagination
• Sabotage Novel
• Montevallo Summer Harvest

These blogs each feature a complex technical approach to digital rhetoric and writing. If you've been asked to write for an online audience, present work on a blog, or if you are just interested in formulating ideas for a blog of your own. You'll want to come to this workshop.  Direct all questions to Andrew Battista.

Workshop: "How to Use Audacity"

Workshop:  "How to use Audacity"
Leader:  Andrew Battista
When:  Wed., January 25, 4:30-6:30 PM
Where:  Carmichael Library EBSCO Computer Lab


Welcome back to a new semester at the University of Montevallo!  This spring, several classes will engage in podcasting, "audio tweeting," and other forms of creativity that involve capturing and editing sound.  To support students working on these assignments, the Carmichael Library will host a hands-on workshop that will introduce people to Audacity.  The workshop is Wednesday, January 25 (4:30-6:30 PM) in the EBSCO classroom.

Audacity is one of several popular free, open-source software programs that anyone can use to record, edit, and produce sounds.  If you're interested in podcasting or audio creativity of any kind, you will want to attend this workshop.  We will learn how to import audio files, mix and produce tracks, incorporate content, and export work to .MP3 files.  Anyone is welcome to attend.

It is not required that you have your own computer.  However, you may want to download a copy of Audacity on your laptop and bring it to the workshop to try out some editing techniques.  Please get in touch with Andrew Battista if you have any questions.