Need a diversion you can still call an academic pursuit? -- Underground Comix and Graphic Novels

Need a little relief from the end-of-semester crush?

Take a peek at the Underground & Independent Comics, Comix and Graphic Novels database



A treasure trove of alternative comics from the 1960s to today.



More than 100,000 pages including:
75,000 pages of primary materials (the comics themselves).
25,000 pages of interviews, commentary, theory, and criticism—from The Comics Journal and other publications.

It's a Library database:  CHECK IT OUT!  Underground & Independent Comics, Comix and Graphic Novels

Questions? 
http://ask.colum.edu
 (We promise not to laugh.)

New Electronic Resources in the Library

The Library has recently added some exciting new resources to its electronic collection.  Here are some of the new tools you can use in your online information gathering:

SimplyMap is an award-winning, web-based mapping application that changes the way you use and interact with complex data. SimplyMap enables non-technical and advanced users to quickly create professional thematic maps and reports using powerful demographic, business, and marketing data.  SimplyMap has all the data you need to answer key research questions, make sound business decisions, and understand the socio-demographic and economic conditions of any geographic area in the United States. The database currently offers more than 75,000 data variables related to demographics, employment, housing, market segments, businesses, consumer spending, brand preferences, and public health.

For more information about how to use SimplyMap, click here:  SimplyMap Research Guide

State Stats is a new database from CQ Press that delivers a dynamic and engaging user experience that is unmatched in other resources. Featuring data from more than 80 different government and non-government sources and backed by a rich collection of more than 2,000 current and historical data series on popular topics of research interest, State Stats uniquely allows users to discover, view, and export key information measures for the 50 states and the District of Columbia.

State Stats makes research easy by providing in one place annual measures dating back more than 15 years. Data series are displayed in a clear and consistent format with detailed source information. Numerous topics are covered in categories including: Agriculture; Crime and Law Enforcement; Defense; Demographic; Economics; Education; Employment and Labor; Geography, Energy, and the Environment; Health and Medicine; Social Welfare; Taxes and Government Finance; Teaching and Education; Transportation.

For more information about how to use State Stats, click here: StateStats Research Guide

The Vast: Academic Video Online database from Alexander Street Press currently provides faculty with over 13,000 video titles from a wide range of disciplines, with new titles being added on a regular basis.  By 2013 VAST expects to have over 20,000 films available for faculty and students.

Faculty can easily provide links to high-quality video in their syllabus and embed links or video clips in their Moodle class.  Disciplines covered in VAAST include:  American History; Area Studies; Art and Architecture; Business and Economics; Counseling and Therapy; dance; Education; Ethnic Studies; Ethnograph; Health; Law & Criminal Justice; Opera; Politics and Current Affairs; Psychology; Religion & Philosophy; Science; Theatre; Women  Gender Studies; World History; World Language & Literature.

For more information about how to use the VAST: Academic Video Online Database click here:  VAST Research Guide

Technology help when you need it

Having trouble editing that video you just shot? Want to know how to retouch photos like the pros? Want to redesign your website so it’s mobile-friendly? We can help! There are two great resources available to assist you with your technology questions, both of which can be accessed with your OASIS login.

Lynda.com
This College resource features video tutorials on a wide array of topics, complete with screen caps and visual examples of demonstrations. Lynda is a wonderful resource for those who don't learn well through books, and can help you gain an overview of a familiar topic or learn a totally new skill. Videos lead you through the process or program step by step, teaching you the technical skills and the core concepts behind them.

Safari Tech Books
This Library resource consists of more than 12,000 online e-books, and is a great reference for those who don’t learn well through video or who need to look up specific facts. E-books are presented much the same way as paper books, complete with chapters, indices, screen caps, and diagrams. The main advantage of an e-book, however, is the ability to keyword search. You can find the specific tool, trick, skill, or shortcut to meet your needs quickly and efficiently.

Lynda + Safari Tech Books... Figuring out technology, so you don't have to on your own.

New Comics & Graphic Novels Database!

Underground and Independent Comics - a new resource from the Library.

Underground and Independent Comics includes more than 100,000 pages of materials, 75,000 pages of primary materials (the comics themselves), and more than 25,000 pages of materials about comics—interviews, commentary, theory, and criticism—from The Comics Journal and other secondary sources.

Browse and search by character, genre, people, publisher, series and titles. 

Questions? Ask a Librarian, we're always happy to help!

Berg Fashion Library Database - New!

The Library has added Berg Fashion Library to our list of databases available to Columbia College Chicago students.

You can scroll through the slideshow of designers...

...explore fashion and textile by Place...

...or by Time...

...and Search the image collection ...

...and Browse by topic...

... all through the Berg Fashion Library!

Trouble with PDFs?

Do you have Adobe Reader on your Mac? If you're using Safari or Firefox on a Mac, you may have trouble downloading PDFs articles from library databases. The solution is simple - just download Adobe Reader:
• It’s free
• It just takes a few minutes,
• and you just have to do it once

Click the Download Adobe Reader button on the library website and follow the steps to install.




The brief video below outlines the process.



Still having trouble?





Contact us via email or chat (http://lib.colum.edu), phone (312-369-7153) or in person (624 S. Michigan Ave.)

Library Search - It’s in the box!

Finding books and articles at the Library just got easier!
There’s a new way to search for them on the Library website.
What is it? How do you get to it? Piece of cake…it’s in the box! The one that says “Books & Articles”. You can now search for both at once - simply enter a search term into the box and away you go!


Need help? Stop by and see a Reference Librarian at the 2nd floor reference desk. For a quick question, use Chat Reference featured on the Library front page (as well as throughout the Library website) or send us an email for in-depth or after hours requests.

Music Online's Jazz Music Library adds MORE content

Jazz Music Library recently released more than 2,000 albums (over 30,000 tracks!) of great jazz recordings from Verve, Impulse! Records, GRP, A&M Records, Blue Thumb Records, Geffen, Decca, Universal Classics & Jazz, Marsalis Music, and more.


Notable artists/ensembles included in this release:

• Alice Coltrane
• Anita O'Day
• Billie Holiday
• Bing Crosby
• Branford Marsalis
• Cassandra Wilson
• Diana Krall
• Dinah Washington
• Duke Ellington
• Ella Fitzgerald
• Glenn Miller Orchestra
• Herbie Hancock
• John Coltrane
• Lionel Hampton
• Louis Armstrong & His Orchestra
• Nina Simone
• Sarah Vaughan
• Shirley Horn
• Spyro Gyra

Live recordings from legendary venues such as the Village Vanguard, Newport Jazz Festival, The Jazz Workshop, Montreux Jazz Festival, The Swing Cat's Ball, Pep's, Birdland, and La Bonbonniere


Recordings from JAZZ AT THE PHILHARMONIC, featuring Charlie Parker, Billie Holiday, and concerts from the 1940's

Recordings from the JAZZ MASTERS SERIES, featuring compilations from artists such as Cannonball Adderley, Jimmy Smith, Stan Getz & Dizzy Gillespie, Billy Eckstine

Recordings from the MARSALIS MUSIC HONORS SERIES, featuring music from Michael Carvin, Jimmy Cobb, Bob French, and Alvin Batiste

COMPLETE LABEL RECORDINGS from artists such as Bill Evans (The Complete Bill Evans on Verve), John Coltrane (The Complete 1961 Village Vanguard Recordings), Count Basie (The Complete Decca Recordings), Sarah Vaughan (The Complete Sarah Vaughan on Mercury), and more

This release brings Jazz Music Library to 60,000 tracks and makes it the largest resource for streaming audio in jazz.

Music Online - Listening & Reference Database

The library added a great new music database this year.

Promoted as "the most comprehensive database in streaming audio, video, reference, and scores on the web," Music Online Database is the best resource for students interested in researching or listening to music.

Included in Music Online are the following resources - all searchable individually or as one (BIG) database.

Music Online Listening

• American Song
• Classical Music Library
• Contemporary World Music
• Jazz Music Library
• Smithsonan Global Sound

Music Online Reference

• African American Music Reference
• Classical Music Reference Library
• Garland Encyclopedia of World Music Online
• Classical Scores Library

Some additional features worth noting...

• Browse - so many ways to browse either the listening or reference collection. Just to name a few: Albums, Composers, Cultural Groups, Genres, Instruments, Scores, Song Titles, etc...
• Playlists -create your own playlist of music by simply creating an account in Music Online. You can create playlists containing whole works, segments, and/or other items such as links to any URL. Playlists can be annotated, edited, copied, shared, and all playlists contain their own unique static URL. Playlists can be used as lists of personal favorites, class viewing/listening assignments, or as a teaching resource for in-class use.
• Discography - for those artists you can't get enough of;
  
• Chronology - timeline of music from 1900 to present;
  
• Biography - for the life's story of your favorite musicians and performers;
  
• Images/Cover Art - to see the variations for different pressings of the same album;
  
• Liner Notes - for reading all of the fascinating details about your favorite recording...
  
• and so much more!
  

The well-wired use the Library

An article from this week's New York Times reports that those with faster internet connections at home or at work are more likely to have used the Library recently. Read the whole article HERE Read the Pew Internet: Libraries Report that this article refers to.

Company Dossier database in LexisNexis

Check out the new Company Dossier database in LexisNexis! Use Company Dossier to find company snapshots, news and legal information, corporate hierarchies and more!

Complement your Company Dossier research with one or two of our other proprietary business research databases, like Business & Company Resource Center or Business Source Elite.

Company and industry research is a complex process--ask for help anytime by using our service.

LexisNexis has a new look!

LexisNexis has officially launched their newly redesigned interface! What does this mean for you? While the search screen looks a little different, you can still access the same robust News, Legal and Business content and then some.

From the Library's home page, click on Databases A to Z to get to this list:

LexisNexis Academic:

• Accounting Research


• BBC Worldwide Monitoring Country Reports


• Business News Publications


• Business Digests


• Company Profiles


• Federal & State Cases


• Federal & State Codes


• Illinois Newspapers


• Industry News Publications


• Law Review Journals
  Legal News Publications


• Legal News Group File


• Markets & Industry News


• News Search


• Patent Search


• Roper Public Opinion Polls


• SEC Filings


• Shepard Citation Search


• TV & Radio Broadcast Transcripts

Interested in learning more about how the new LexisNexis works? Training webinars are offered by LexisNexis about twice a week. Go to this website for more info:
http://www.lexisnexis.com/academicwebseminars/

LexisNexis is a powerful database and there's a lot in there! Don't hesitate to ask for help with LexisNexis or with any of our other subscription databases. Just click

New database! Black Studies Center

The Library is pleased to announce that thanks to a generous contribution from Dr. Sam Floyd and the Center for Black Music Research we have recently added the Black Studies Center database to our growing collection of online scholarly resources.

The Black Studies Center is linked from our Databases A to Z page. You can also access the three main components of the Black Studies Center on our Find Articles--African American Studies, --Chicago, --Journalism, and --Literature pages.

The three main components of the Black Studies Center are:

Schomburg Studies on the Black Experience
A unique database detailing the rich tapestry of the African experience throughout the Americas, comprising interdisciplinary essays written by leading scholars on the Black Experience accompanied by a timeline, images, video clips, and other selected research materials.

Chicago Defender Historical Archive (1910-1975)
Robert Sengstacke Abbott founded the Defender in May 1905 and by the outbreak of the First World War it had become the most widely-read black newspaper in the country, with more than two thirds of its readership based outside Chicago.

Black Literature Index (1827-1940)
This searches over 70,000 bibliographic citations for fiction, poetry and literary reviews published in 110 black periodicals and newspapers.

Need help using the Black Studies Center? Just click

New database: Biography Reference Bank

The Library has recently acquired the Biography Reference Bank!

Did you know...

• that Martha Graham was born in 1894 and continued to choreograph her dance company until she died a month before her 97th birthday?
• that Barack means "blessed" in Swahili?
• that David Bowie's life was changed by reading Jack Kerouac's On the Road and that he has a son named Zowie Bowie?
• that Georgia O'Keefe lived in Chicago briefly in the early 1900's and did free-lance commercial art work?

Well, now you do! You can find out about these famous people and more using Biography Reference Bank, just one of the many databases the Library offers featuring all kinds of interesting biographical information from reputable reference sources!

Have questions? Need help? Just click