Theses, Projects, and Africana Materials Management in Nigerian Academic Libraries: The Case of Hezekiah Oluwasanmi Library

This is a survey of the procurement, organization and use of unpublished projects, theses, and Africana mateials in Hezekiah Oluwasanmi Library, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria. The Africana section conserves knowledge, preserves cultural heritage, provides information, and supports education and research. This paper the location, mode of processing, circulation, and terms of availability of these materials. Recommendations are made on how to manage Africana materials in academic libraries where they constitute a vital component of collections.

The Use of the Library Catalogue by Undergraduate Students in Niger Delta University Library

This study investigated the use of library catalogue in Niger Delta University library. The study employed descriptive research method and questionnaire as a research instrument to generate the data. The analysis revealed that 168 (51 percent) of the users were not aware of library catalogue, and 160 (54 percent) had never used the catalogue. The study also showed that 209 (71.7 percent) encountered difficulties in using the catalogue because of lack of proper education and, as a result, 202 (68.7 percent) of the users resolved to used browsing/reading through the shelves method to locate books. The analysis also revealed that 202 (68.7 percent) of users indicated that proper user education was a means to easy catalogue use in the library. Recommendations were made to improve effective catalogue use, including user education, regular orientation programme, and preparation of guidelines on use of the library catalogue.

Challenges of Students’ Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES) in Library and Information Science in the ICT Environment

The ICT revolution has permeated every profession and all areas of human endeavour. Professions such as law, medicine , engineering, and library and information science are adjusting to the ICT environment through re-tooling, retraining, and curriculum revision. The purpose of this study is to explore the impact of ICT on the student industrial work experience scheme (SIWES) of library and information science students. It traces the historical development of the scheme, the ICT development trends in LIS, and the challenges this development brings to SIWES. Strategies to absorb this shock created by ICT are offered.

Academic Library Websites in Bangalore City, India: An Evaluative Study

This study evaluates the content and quality of academic library websites. An evaluation checklist is used as a tool for evaluation of academic library websites. The checklist is divided into five main parts followed by Rating Table. The quantitative pointing system (ten point scale) and five point rating scales are used to evaluate and rank the websites. The study reveals that very few (16 percent) websites provide information about the date of last updating. Similarly very few (20 percent) websites provide links to other web reference sites and a moderate number (40 percent) have feedback forms for comments. On the other side, a good number of websites (76 percent) are efficient in loading images, icons, and graphics, and a large number (80 percent) have incorporated a web OPAC. The study is limited to the evaluation of websites of five academic libraries located in Bangalore, India.

STATE REGISTRATION AND LICENSING REGULATIONS: A NEW PROGRAM (OHIO)

We enacted a bill in Ohio this year, Senate Bill 445, that has to do with the application of pesticides. It is a very wide bill as you would normally look at it with most of the meat going to come from the regulations that are presently being written into it. In other words, the framework was developed and accepted by the two houses in our state legislature and empowered the Director of Agriculture to establish the regulations or the so-called teeth to this bill. The governor signed the bill in June and it became effective in September. The committees as of this time are meeting to develop philosophies and regulations that will be promulgated and brought into hearings and sifted through, and eventually, with a target date of December of this year, (1970), brought to the Director of Agriculture's office for acceptance. There is a committee established for rodent and bird control which is very well represented by our industry here in Ohio. John Beck (Rose Exterminator Company) is the chairman of the committee, William B. Jackson (Bowling Green State University) and Robert Yaeger (Cincinnati) are also on the committee. The important feature of this new law, in terms of pest control operators, is the examinations that will be required. We operators and our service people will both be tested and licensed, if sufficient proficiency is demonstrated on the tests. For your information they use a little different terminology in the bill than we in the industry normally use. We think of an applicator in the industry as service people. In the bill an applicator is defined as an operator. Therefore in reading the law the word operator means the man who does the job, the service man. Just the reverse is true in the industry. We think of the operator as the man who owns or manages the company while these people are referred to in the bill as applicators. The Bill calls for the development of schools for the training of our people throughout the state. Those of us who are in bird control should begin to prepare ourselves to meet this request, to be available for the schooling, have our people available for the schooling, and give this program all the co-operation that we can.

What Business Reference Librarians Need to Know about Intellectual Property: Presentations sponsored by the Patent and Trademark Depository Library Association (PTDLA) at the American Library Association Annual Conference, New Orleans, June 25, 2006

Presentations sponsored by the Patent and Trademark Depository Library Association (PTDLA) at the American Library Association Annual Conference, New Orleans, June 25, 2006 Speaker #1: Nan Myers Associate Professor; Government Documents, Patents and Trademarks Librarian Wichita State University, Wichita, KS Title: Intellectual Property Roundup: Copyright, Trademarks, Trade Secrets, and Patents Abstract: This presentation provides a capsule overview of the distinctive coverage of the four types of intellectual property – What they are, why they are important, how to get them, what they cost, how long they last. Emphasis will be on what questions patrons ask most, along with the answers! Includes coverage of the mission of Patent & Trademark Depository Libraries (PTDLs) and other sources of business information outside of libraries, such as Small Business Development Centers. Speaker #2: Jan Comfort Government Information Reference Librarian Clemson University, Clemson, SC Title: Patents as a Source of Competitive Intelligence Information Abstract: Large corporations often have R&D departments, or large numbers of staff whose jobs are to monitor the activities of their competitors. This presentation will review strategies that small business owners can employ to do their own competitive intelligence analysis. The focus will be on features of the patent database that is available free of charge on the USPTO website, as well as commercial databases available at many public and academic libraries across the country. Speaker #3: Virginia Baldwin Professor; Engineering Librarian University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE Title: Mining Online Patent Data for Business Information Abstract: The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) website and websites of international databases contains information about granted patents and patent applications and the technologies they represent. Statistical information about patents, their technologies, geographical information, and patenting entities are compiled and available as reports on the USPTO website. Other valuable information from these websites can be obtained using data mining techniques. This presentation will provide the keys to opening these resources and obtaining valuable data. Speaker #4: Donna Hopkins Engineering Librarian Renssalaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY Title: Searching the USPTO Trademark Database for Wordmarks and Logos Abstract: This presentation provides an overview of wordmark searching in www.uspto.gov, followed by a review of the techniques of searching for non-word US trademarks using codes from the Design Search Code Manual. These codes are used in an electronic search, either on the uspto website or on CASSIS DVDs. The search is sometimes supplemented by consulting the Official Gazette. A specific example of using a section of the codes for searching is included. Similar searches on the Madrid Express database of WIPO, using the Vienna Classification, will also be briefly described.