Getting the Most Out of Google

Google Translate offers a package of free, online language tools that can assist in daily use and in your online research. Translations are produced by state-of-the-art technology, without the intervention of human translators. Automatic translation is also often referred to as machine translation. You can translate phrases or Web pages in over 30 languages; search in your native language and find results in others; and use the multitude of language dictionaries.

These tools are great for students, researchers and travelers. Find out more about Google Translate.

Important notification Regarding LearningExpress Update

In January 2009 LearningExpress will release a new version of their existing product called LearningExpress Library Version 2.0. Version2.0 will include significant enhancements to the user interface, making navigation and search for content easier than ever. Most notably, Version 2.0 incorporates "Learning Centers" as a means to logically group related courses, tests, and e-books all in one place, based on various criteria such as grade level, stage of life, and carreer interests or goals. In addition to improved navigation, users will benefit from new search functionality, online help, improved account management, and additional topic-related content adding value for your patrons.

How will this release impact you and your library system?

Although the LearningExpress Library(TM) Version 2.0 is extremely easy-to-use, it does have a new look and feel that may require some getting used to for current users. LearningExpress is developing a full suite of training materials, including online presentations and demonstrations, getting-started guides and tutorials, comparison charts, and more to make the transition as effortless as possible. Once I receive notification that these materials are available I will be passing that onto staff. So stay tuned for more to come!

Surname Frequency in the US Census

The New York Times online has done an article about the recent US Census Bureau's analysis of surnames in America. You can visit the article and search a database of the 5000 most common last names.

"The number of Hispanics living in the United States grew by 58 percent in the 1990s to nearly 13 percent of the total population, and cracking the list of top 10 names suggests just how pervasively the Latino migration has permeated everyday American culture.
Garcia moved to No. 8 in 2000, up from No. 18, and Rodriguez jumped to No. 9 from 22nd place. The number of Hispanic surnames among the top 25 doubled, to 6.
Compiling the rankings is a cumbersome task, in part because of confidentiality and accuracy issues, according to the Census Bureau, and it is only the second time it has prepared such a list. While the historical record is sketchy, several demographers said it was probably the first time that any non-Anglo name was among the 10 most common in the nation. "

Where are you on the list?

Getting the Most Out of Google

With the holidays coming fast upon us, wouldn't it be nice to track all of our packages from one place?

You can track packages by typing the tracking number for your UPS, Fedex or USPS package directly into the Google search box. They’ll return results that include quick links to easily track the status of your shipment.

Getting the Most Out of Google

To find a current stock quote or additional market data for a given company or fund, type the ticker symbol into the search box. On the results page, you can click the link to see more data from Google Finance, or other finance Web sites listed.



If you don't know the stock ticker symbol, you can go directly to Google Finance for detailed stock market and investing information.

Google News Archives - Historical Newspapers

Google has launched additional services with their Google News site – indexing and archiving of many of America’s newspapers – full-text, keyword searchable and …full-page digital images.

This initiative makes more old newspapers accessible and searchable online by partnering with newspaper publishers to digitize millions of pages of news archives. Let's say you want to learn more about the first years of the Gandy Bridge. Try a search for [gandy bridge] on Google News Archive Search, and you'll be able to find and read an original article from 1924 through the late 1980s in a digital edition of the St. Petersburg Times. Nationally, the newspaper archives goes back more than 200 years into America’s past.

This will be a great resource for student – and anyone else – doing historical research through some of America’s best known newspapers.

Give it a try:
(1) go to Google
(2) select News from the options at the top left of the page
(3) select the “News archive search” option
You can search nationally or choose the advanced search feature to limit to a specific newspaper. The St. Petersburg Times is the only local paper currently included.

Auto Repair Reference Center Free Online Training

Did you know that EBSCO Publishing offers online, one-hour training sessions on our Auto Repair Reference Center each month, free to EBSCO customers? Because training reinforces product knowledge and stimulates interest, this training will help you to get the most from our EBSCO databases.
Auto Repair Reference Center training is available at the following times:

Thursday, June 12, 2008 from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m., Eastern Time
Tuesday, July 8, 2008 from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m., Eastern Time
Wednesday, August 20, 2008 from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m., Eastern Time

TO REGISTER, go to:
http://training.ebsco.com/training_request.asp
select the desired class from the "Which service?"drop-down list, and complete the form.

National Archives Makes Some Passenger Arrival Records Available Online

For the first time, the National Archives and Records Administration has made available online more than 5.2 million records of some passengers who arrived during the last half of the 19th century at the ports of Baltimore, Boston, New Orleans, New York, and Philadelphia. The records were transcribed from original ship manifests into electronic databases by Temple University’s Center for Immigration Research at The Balch Institute. The Center donated the digital records to the National Archives. The records are known as Data Files Relating to the Immigration of Germans to the United States, 1850-1897; Data Files Relating to the Immigration of Italians to the United States, 1855-1900; and Data Files Relating to the Immigration of Russians to the United States, 1834-1897.




There are more than 100 unique “country” codes used in these records. In about 93 percent of them, passengers identified their country of origin or nationality as Germany, Italy, or Russia, or cities or regions of those countries. Passenger records typically include name, age, town of last residence, destination, and codes for the passenger’s sex, occupation, literacy, country of origin, transit and/or travel compartment, and the manifest identification number for the ship. Information on each ship is in a separate file and includes the ship manifest identification number, the name of the ship, the code for its port of departure, and date of arrival. The ship manifest identification number indicates the port of arrival.

Access to these new electronic records is available through the National Archives Access to Archival Databases (AAD) system, a research tool that makes a selection of the National Archives’ most popular electronic records available to the public over the Internet. The AAD system currently includes almost 80 million electronic records from 50 records series in 30 record groups, and four collections of donated historical materials. AAD highlights include records of passengers who arrived at the Port of New York during the Irish Famine, World War II Army enlistment and Prisoners of War, records of Japanese-American internment, and Central Foreign Policy Files from the Department of State.


Reposted from NARA Press Release [February 28, 2008].

Free Credit Report? Make Sure You're Getting The Real Thing

If the thought of identity theft scares you like it does me, or you're looking to make a major purchase and you need to check your credit rating, those ads for companies that promise you "free credit reports" may have caught your attention. Truth is, you don't need those guys. You can get a copy of your credit report for free, all by yourself.

The Federal Trade Commission requires the three major credit bureaus, Equifax, Experian (formerly called TRW) and Trans Union to give you a free copy of your credit report once a year. The credit bureaus are not part of the government; they're companies that keep track of your borrowing and debt records so lenders can get an idea of how good a risk you are when you apply for credit or for certain services.

It's really easy to get your free credit report and it's available from only one central place: AnnualCreditReport.com. There are companies that have websites with similar names. And they may offer you a "free" copy of your credit report but you'll have to buy other services from them first to get it. AnnualCreditReport.com is the only official site where you can get a genuinely free copy of your credit report from all three reporting agencies. And if you'd rather order your free credit report by phone or by mail, you can do that too.

You can choose whether you want to get your credit report from just one of the credit bureaus at a time or if you want to get a report that has the information of all three combined. I like to get my reports one at a time, spread out over the course of a year. I stop back at AnnualCreditReport.com every four months for a report—Trans Union in January, Equifax in May and Experian in September, for example. Since all three agencies have very similar information, this allows me to check my credit for free more than just once a year.

When you're on the AnnualCreditReport.com site, you'll be asked some identifying information including your Social Security number. Normally, you wouldn't share that with anybody—especially online—but because this is the official place to get your free credit report, and it's a secure website, it's safe to share the personal information they need to make sure you're you, and to get you the right credit report.

If you've never seen a copy of a credit report or you're not sure how to read one, here's a good sample from Experian. (If you can't see the sample report, you'll need to download the free Adobe Acrobat Reader onto your computer.)

Re-posted from Gov Gab: Your US Government Blog.

Online Training Videos

Did you know that you can watch training and instructional videos online through the Databases & Websites section of the library's Webpage?

The Auto Repair Reference Center (in the Home & Auto subject guide) has hundreds of car repair and mantenance videos. Click the AutoIQ tab for a complete list.

The Health & Wellness Resource Center ( in the Health & Medicine subject guide) has brief information al videos on health and medical provided by Healthology. You can get a complete list by clicking Related Topics in the Health Highlights section.

eLibrary (in the Fast Facts subject guide) also has many video and audio clips from educational and news broadcasts on a wide variety of topics. Make sure to have the Audio/Video box checked before you do a search.

You can also find plenty of "how to" instructional videos on the Web. Some of the best sites include: Expert Village, Wonder How To, eHow and TeacherTube.

Take a look at Mashable.com's list of the 10 Best Palces to Find How-To Videos.

Financing College

Many students in their last semester of high school have the same question, “Where do you want to go to college?” Parents are usually asking, "How are we going to pay for this?"

In the last ten years the average cost of tuition and fees has risen by 57% at private four-year colleges and 69% at four-year public colleges These figures from the College Board may have you feeling a little light-headed, but the costs can be managed thanks to the power of compounding interest.

Since every family’s situation is different, you’ll need to find a savings method that works for you. In doing so, you’ll want to consider factors like your tax bracket, child’s age, how much financial aid you expect to receive, etc. Then, you can use these helpful college financing calculators to figure out how much you’ll need to save.

Once you’ve determined this figure, you need to decide on a savings vehicle. In addition to mutual funds, brokerage accounts, and bank savings accounts, there are also some tax-advantaged alternatives available to help.

Here are some options:
-529 Plans
-Prepaid Tuition Plans
-College Savings Plans
-Coverdell Education Savings Accounts
-Custodial Accounts
-Savings Bonds

And remember you don’t necessarily have to save for the entire four years. Grants, loans, and scholarships can help make affording college a little easier.

Here are some resources to get you started:

For Students
-Studentaid.ed.gov
-Students.gov
-Student Educational Resources from USA.gov
-FastWeb.com

For Parents
-Parents’ Educational Resources from USA.gov
-Fact Sheet: College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007

Don't forget to check out the Education subject guide on the Databases & Websites section of the Library's Web page - hcplc.org. Also, check out some of these books at your local library on financing college and scholarships.

This information was reposted from Gov Gab: Your U.S. Government Blog.

The Top 10s of 2007

How about some information fun to finish out the year?


Here are some top 10 and best of 2007 lists from around the Web:

• Top 10 Quotes of 2007 from the Yale Book of Quotations.
• New York Times 100 Notable Books of 2007.
• Billboard Magazine’s 2007 Year End Charts covering all genres of music.
• How about the Top 10 Baby Names of 2007 from the BabyCenter. (You can also get previous year's names from the Social Security Administration.)
• CNET’s Top 10 Games of 2007. See all of CNET's year end lists and reviews.
• Time Magazine's 50 Top 10 Lists of 2007 - the year in news, entertainment, science, business and pop culture.
• Lifehacker’s 2007 Guide to Free Software & Webapps.
• Teens’ Top 10 ( books chosen by teens, ALA)
• The Top Internet Searches of the year courtesy of Google's year-End ZeitGeist)
  

Didn't get enough of 2007? Hungry for more?

Try ResourceShelf's Lists and Rankings Section or your can do a Google Search for "Top 10 of 2007".

Government Statistics - Hot Off The Press!

Several new editions of major US Government statistical handbooks have been released:

Statistical Abstract of the United States, 2008: The National Data Book

The Statistical Abstract of the United States, published since 1878, is the authoritative and comprehensive summary of statistics on the social, political, and economic organization of the United States.

Use the Abstract as a convenient volume for statistical reference, and as a guide to sources of more information both in print and on the Web

Sources of data include the Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Bureau of Economic Analysis, and many other Federal agencies and private organizations.

This year’s Statistical Abstract includes 64 new tables covering a variety of currently relevant topics, including:

-Components of Population Change by Race and Hispanic Origin
-Estimated Unauthorized Immigrants
-Public Schools Reporting Crime Incidents
-Selected Security Measures in Place in Public Schools
-Internet Service Providers
-Tobacco consumption by Country and Sex
-Top 20 U.S. Gateways for Nonstop International Air Travel
-Life Expectancy at Birth and at 65 Years of Age, by Sex
-Percent of Household Final consumption Expenditures Spent on food, alcohol, and Tobacco

Occupational Outlook Handbook (OOH), 2008-09 Edition

For hundreds of different types of jobs—such as teacher, lawyer, and nurse—the Occupational Outlook Handbook tells you:

-the training and education needed
-earnings
-expected job prospects
-what workers do on the job
-working conditions

In addition, the Handbook gives you job search tips, links to information about the job market in each State, and more.

Ways to use the Occupational Outlook Handbook site: (1) To find out about a specific occupation or topic, use the Search box that is on every page—enter your search term in the box. (2) To find out about many occupations, browse through listings using the Occupations links that are on the right side of each page. (3) For a listing of all occupations in alphabetical order, go to the A-Z Index and select a letter.

The Occupational Outlook Handbook is a nationally recognized source of career information, designed to provide valuable assistance to individuals making decisions about their future work lives. The Handbook is revised every two years.

Career Guide to Industries (CGI), 2008-09 Edition

For dozens of different kinds of industries—such as educational services, health care, and motor vehicle and parts manufacturing —the Career Guide to Industries tells you about:

-occupations in the industry
-training and advancement
-earnings
-expected job prospects
-working conditions

In addition, the Career Guide gives you links to information about the job market in each State and more.

Ways to use the Career Guide to Industries site: (1) To find out about a specific industry or topic, use the Search box that is on every page—enter your search term in the box. (2) To find out about many industries, browse through listings using the Industries links that are on the right side of each page. (3) For a listing of all industries in alphabetical order, go to the A-Z Index and select a letter.

The Career Guide to Industries is a companion to the Occupational Outlook Handbook, which provides information on careers from an occupational perspective.

American Folklife Center: Traditional Music and Spoken Word Catalog

Traditional Music and Spoken Word Catalog

from the American Memory Project at the Library of Concress.

This searchable database provides bibliographic information on approximately 34,000 ethnographic sound recordings. Most were recorded between 1933 and 1950… The majority of these are lacquer and aluminum-based instantaneous disc recordings made between 1933 and 1950. The handful of collections that fall outside this date range is described at the end of this page.

The card catalog represented in this online database was first created by Work Projects Administration (WPA) workers in the late 1930s and early 1940s, and continued by the Archive of Folk Song (now part of the American Folklife Center) staff into the early 1960s. Its purpose was to provide the public with access to the thousands of individual songs, tunes, folk tales, sermons, monologues, and life stories in the Archive’s collections.

Included are the seminal field recordings associated with John A. Lomax and Alan Lomax’s Library of Congress collecting work (Leadbelly, Woody Guthrie, Jelly Roll Morton), and Alan Lomax’s less well-known field collections in Haiti in 1936 to 1937 and in the upper Midwest of the United States in 1938. There are hundreds of well-known and lesser-known treasures by other notable collectors including Herbert Halpert, Zora Neale Hurston, Henrietta Yurchenco, Vance Randolph, and Helen Creighton, among many others. The catalog also reflects exchange projects with institutions outside the United States, notably the Discoteca Pública Municipal de São Paulo Collection (1938-1943) of field recordings from Brazil; and field recordings collected in Oceania.

You can find the American Memory Project as a linked website on the Library's Databases & Websites under the Subject Guide for History.

2007 National Book Awards Announced!

The National Book Foundation has announced this year's National Book Award winners.

See a complete list of 2007 finalists.

FICTION
WINNER: Denis Johnson, Tree of Smoke (Farrar, Straus & Giroux) - Interview

NONFICTION
WINNER: Tim Weiner, Legacy of Ashes: The History of the CIA (Doubleday) - Interview

POETRY
WINNER: Robert Hass, Time and Materials (Ecco/HarperCollins) - Interview

YOUNG PEOPLE'S LITERATURE
WINNER: Sherman Alexie, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian (Little, Brown & Company) - Interview

Find the complete list of National Book Award winners for previous years, and more bestsellers and award winners for children, teens and adults @ Find a Good Book on the Library's Website.

Dietary Supplements Database

National Library of Medicine launches “Dietary Supplements Labels Database”.

The Dietary Supplements Labels Database offers information about ingredients in more than two thousand selected brands of dietary supplements. It enables users to determine what ingredients are in specific brands and to compare ingredients in different brands. Information is also provided on the health benefits claimed by manufacturers. These claims by manufacturers have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. Companies may not market as dietary supplements any products that are intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.

Ingredients of dietary supplements in this database are linked to other National Library of Medicine databases such as MedlinePlus® and PubMed® to allow users to understand the characteristics of ingredients and view the results of research pertaining to them, including the following characteristics:

-Uses in humans
-Adverse effects
-Mechanism of action

The Database can be searched by brand names, uses noted on product labels, specific active ingredients, and manufacturers.
Warnings and Recalls from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), related to specific ingredients and supplement brands have also been provided.

The database is designed to help both the general public and health care providers find information about ingredients in brand-name products, including name, form, active and inactive ingredients, amount of active ingredient/unit, manufacturer/distributor information, suggested dose, label claims, warnings, percentage of daily value, and further label information.

When you are looking for quality, published health & medical information, visit the "Health & Medicine" section of the library's Databases & Websites.

For more information about dietary supplements and herbal treatments, take a look at the Drug & Herb Finder and the Alternative Health Encyclopedia that are part of the Health & Wellness Information Center.

PC Magazine's Top 100 Web Sites of 2007

Here is PC Magazine's list of the Top 100 Classic Web Sites in 2007. You'll see a lot of familiar URLs on this list, and we hope there are also quite a few that you haven't heard of before. These sites are established and generally best-of-breed in their respective categories.

Also get their picks for the top new or under-the-radar sites of 2007. You may not know many of the sites on this list, but you should! See the full list of Top 100 Undiscovered Web Sites of 2007.

Check out some of the top Info & Reference sites.

Illinois Civil War Muster and Descriptive Rolls Database

The Illinois Civil War Muster and Descriptive Rolls database is a transcription of each soldier's entry in the record series, Muster and Descriptive Rolls. The database contains information about over 285,000 soldiers from Illinois who served in the Union Army during the War of the Rebellion. Each entry includes all of the information that was recorded by the Illinois Adjutant General in the original Muster and Descriptive Rolls. Entries for each roll include soldier's name; rank; age; height; colors of eyes, hair, and complexion; occupation; marital status; birthplace; residence; date, place, and term of enrollment; name

Grand Army of the Republic (G.A.R.) Civil War Veterans' Memorial at Oak Ridge Cemetery in Springfield of individual who enrolled soldier; date and place of muster into service; name of mustering officer; date and place of muster out; name of mustering-out officer; and remarks concerning transfers, promotions, injuries, or special duty.

You can find this website - and other Illinois Civil War information - at the Illinois State Archives website.