Monthly Archives: February 2019

Cut to the Chase! Topic Collections

Gale Topic Collections (listed under General Reference on the county database page) breaks down the sources offered from Gale’s primary databases into specialty sub-collections, offering many practical uses.

A More Focused Search:

These smaller collections allow for you and your patrons to perform a more focused search, exploring only the top journals in a specific field.  If the larger databases are overwhelming, Gale Topic Collections will help narrow the search and yield more relevant results.

Inspiring to Browse:

Take a look below and see the variety of topics!  Patrons may be surprised to find out how much quality, commercial-free content is covered!

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Extra Features:

Gale makes research easy!  Check out these three key features offered in each Gale Topic Collection:

  • Send articles directly to your cloud (Google Drive and/or OneDrive)
  • Citation Tools to download MLA, APA, and Chicago formats
  • Highlight text and make notes right in the article

 

Rob Kalchthaler – Bethel Park Public Library

 

 

 

 

 

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Heart This Resource

It’s that time of year. Roses abound, Cupid’s bow is drawn, and hundreds of pounds of chocolates will be consumed.

But nothing says love more like heart health, am I right?

Thankfully, there is a great resource for all things health related in Gale’s Health and Wellness Resource Center (which we will call HWRC – because who doesn’t love more acronyms?). With information on diseases, drugs, diagnostics, therapies and more, this database is a one-stop-shop for your health-related questions.

Searching for information in the HWRC is straight forward. There is a basic search bar at the top, which can automatically propagate suggested search topics.

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There is also an advanced search feature that lets your search get wild! You can search by subject guide, publication, or even use the topic finder to break down different subject areas into further categories. This feature is exceptionally helpful if your knowledge of a specific health topic is limited – offering other search areas you may want to explore.

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Furthermore, results include reference materials, academic journals, videos/pictures, audio, and news/magazine articles – with easy to use filters to limit results to relevant information.

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Go ahead and find out what’s more to love about the Gale Health and Wellness Resource Center! <3

 

 

Richelle – Sewickley Public Library

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Preserving Family Heirlooms

There are many options and factors when it comes to preserving family heirlooms, when you know the right places to look. If you have ever wondered where to direct a patron looking for local preservation resources, the following list will hopefully prove informative and helpful:

Local Binderies (Book restoration and binding services) 

Conservation Services (Objects, Paintings, Frames and Gold Leaf) 

Conservation Services (Books, Paper, Photographs and Textile)     

Audio, Video & Film Transfer Services 

There are also many web resources and local organizations with plenty of preservation information.  

Community Preservation and Disaster Recovery Organizations 

Web Resources 

You may always contact Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh’s Conservation, Preservation and Access Department (CP&A) for questions and guidance as well!  

  • preservation@carnegielibrary.org 
  • Preservation Lab: 412-622-5785 (Tara Walsh, Preservation Librarian) 
  • Preservation Office: 412-622-5599 (Jackie Mignogna, Coordinator) 

Happy Conserving!  

Emma Pyle, Conservation Technician, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh 

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FAKESPOT

FAKESPOTOnline shopping has become the preferred method of shopping for many of us. But according to the Government Accountability Office, 42% of the brand-name products that we purchased were counterfeit. Consumer Reports has a good article on how to avoid buying fake products online, and how to claim a refund if you do get a counterfeit. (To read that article, go to our Database page, click on “Consumer Reports”, and have your library card number handy.)

Another way to avoid buying a counterfeit product is to use Fakespot.com. Fakespot is a data analytics company that attempts to prevent misleading content from deceiving consumers. Its algorithms look for suspicious patterns that identify unreliable reviews on Amazon™, TripAdvisor™, Walmart™, and Yelp™.

The site is free. You just copy the product or business link from the URL of your browser. Paste the copied link into the “FAKESPOT Analyzer”, click “Analyze Reviews” and wait a few seconds for the results. The results will provide a letter grade reflecting the trustworthiness of the reviews, and might say things like “Our engine has profiled the reviewer patterns and has determined that there is high deception involved.”

Happy, and safe, shopping!

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