Reference Point

with technology Enhanced information Robin Sabo is a health professions and reference librarian who believes electronic tools are enhancing student and faculty access to information available in books. "Google Books has digitized many books and made them widely available, It makes sense that searching online is the primary way that Dan Johns, who's majoring in information technology, locates his books in Park Library. But most times the junior from Livonia isn't looking for research materials. One recent Tuesday afternoon Johns was perusing the shelves for a book by Kurt Vonnegut to read for leisure. "I go online to see the reviews of the books. Then I'll come to the library to check out the book as well as browse to see what else is available, " he says. As a major in the ever-changing fi eld of technology, Johns says his academic-related research often is electronically based to ensure the information he's using is the most up-to-date. Still Johns is confi dent people in academic and cultural settings will continue utilizing printed books and information. "I do a lot of my book reading in the coff ee shop, and several times I've had people come up to me and say, 'Hey, I read that' or 'Have you ever read this other one?'" he says. "They'd never see what I was reading, and I'd never have this kind of interaction, if I were using an e-reader. "Print isn't dying. It's just changing." • Libraries' student employee Sam Strachan uses a cart to gather items requested through Documents on Demands. MeLCat, which is sponsored by the Library of Michigan, is the statewide union catalog and resource service designed to share materials among Michigan libraries. If a local library doesn't have the material in its collection, library patrons can access the item from another library in the state through MeLCat. "Librarians are concerned about helping people get and use information, and we're fortunate Michigan is among the very progressive states to have had librarians develop a patron-initiated borrowing system," says Richard Cochran, associate dean of CMU Libraries, adding that MeLCat is rapidly increasing in the number of people it serves. Visit library.cmich.edu to learn more about CMU's Documents on Demand and visit elibrary.mel.org to learn more about MeLCat. • catalogs are ways that help readers locate books that they can fi nd in the library. " Sabo says. "Using the Internet and online " Materials in demand Service tells story of popularity Sam Strachan can confi rm that students still use printed books for research and reading. The Libraries' student employee spends at least an hour during each of her shifts walking through the stacks and collecting materials – articles within books as well as entire books – for patrons who request them through the Documents on Demand service. The service is available to collect materials and coordinate their delivery for CMU on-campus, online and off -campus students and faculty. "We're usually pretty busy," says Strachan, a senior health fi tness major " from Harrison Township. "There's always somebody from Documents on Demand out here collecting the materials. In addition to gathering items for Documents on Demand, Strachan collects books, CDs, DVDs and other items as requested through the Michigan e-Library Catalog and Resource Sharing System (MeLCat). 9

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