Discards

Good Afternoon,

With the discard items, please remove them from the system first before they are stamped. If we stamp them first, it may put us in a bind if there is a hold on the item or some other similar issue.

Also, if they are stamped and placed back on the shelves, then it is hard to figure out which ones have been taken out of the system and which ones have not. They get mixed in with newly weeded items that are also put on the shelf.

It is probably best to just get them out of the system first, then stamp and box them immediately afterwards.

Thanks,

Patrick

Book Club

Hey All,

Here is the information for the Book Clubs in the New Year.

January 20-Biography: Into The Wild by Jon Krakauer

February 17-Mystery: American Rust by Philipp Meyer

March 17-Adventure: Pirate Latitudes by Michael Crichton

The meetings will be on the third Thursday of the month at 6:30Pm and will last about an hour.

Thanks, Tim

Non-HPL Item Binder

Hey All,

I've placed a binder with logsheets to record items that we receive but belong to other Library Systems (Harris County, Bellaire, School Libraries, etc.). It is located on the top shelf behind Renee's desk. Please check in Harris County and Montgomery Community College items through HCPL remote access. Please log items in this binder and place them in the Central Bin with a note attached to them. The most recent entries will be in the front of the binder.

Thanks, Tim

Upcoming events

All,

Please note the following things coming up next week:

•Monday (12/20) will be the annual holiday open house for the public, from 6 to 7:30.
•Tuesday (12/21) I would like to have our monthly staff meeting at 9:20-ish.
•Thursday (12/23) will be our staff holiday lunch. It will be potluck. We will have a sign-up sheet. I’m bringing cookies!

Thank you all for all you do!

John

AV material with problems

I have moved the shelf for problem AV material to a shelf behind my desk. Please put items on this shelf only that is clearly labeled. The other shelves are for me after I determine if the item is to be discarded or held for a month.

Please ask me if you have any questions.

Thanks
Renee

Defective earphones

All,

If a customer purchases a set of earphones and they do not work, please give the customer another set and send the defective set to Financial Services.

Thanks,
John

P Count

Good Morning,

As a reminder, the P Count number entered into the spreadsheet should be what the P Count meter reads at the end of the day, not in the morning. If you take it in the morning, then this number should go in the spreadsheet for the previous day. If I look this morning, December 1, then I should enter that P number into the spreadsheet for the November 30 cell if someone had not already gotten the number the previous night and put it in the November 30 cell.

November 30 and December 1 will not have the same number in them.

The only two consecutive cells that should absolutely have the same number are Saturday and Sunday as we are not open on Sunday. We will just assume the P count reads the same number at the end of the day Saturday and end of the day Sunday.

It is imperative that the P number is recorded each day.

Thanks,

Patrick

Voter's Registration

All,

A reminder, when a customer gives us a voter's registration card, please accept it and put it in our outgoing mail box.

Most of our customers live in Harris County, so the city and ZIP Code for the address would be Houston, TX 77002.

In case the customer lives in another county, here are the cities and ZIP Codes for nearby counties:

Brazoria: Angleton, TX 77515
Chambers: Anahuac, TX 77514
Fort Bend: Richmond, TX 77469
Galveston: Galveston, TX 77552
Liberty: Liberty, TX 77575
Montgomery: Conroe, TX 77305
Waller: Hempstead, TX 77445

Thanks,
John

Next Week

Hi everyone,

I would like to have the November staff meeting next Tuesday morning, the 23rd, at about 9:25 or so. Please let me know if you have anything for the agenda.

Also, some of us talked briefly about having a Thanksgiving lunch on Wednesday, the 24th. If you're interested in coordinating this, please see me. I may be persuaded to bake some cookies for the occasion.

Thank you all for all you do.

John

Vietnamese books

All,

If we receive any books in Vietnamese, please forward them to Park Place, to Suzanne's attention.

Thanks,
John

Coin Copiers

All,

If there is a problem with any of the new Coin Copiers equipment or cards, please call them at 281-776-9882. This number is now on the side of the blog, right beneath the "Stella Link Staff" links.

If there is a problem with the computer at the print release station, please call the IT Help Desk at 31570.

Thanks,
John

Building Carts

There are several problems on a daily basis with building carts that need to be addressed. We know the sorting machine A.K.A. Bertha isn’t perfect. Please be mindful of building carts and look at the items you are putting on the carts:

• If several copies of an item has had holds and one is in the bin to be shelved, check it in and make sure it doesn’t have a hold. (I have found several of these recently). If these get shelved by mistake, we have to look for them or/and list them as a missing hold. This takes time and effort which is frustrating when simply scanning the item would fix it.
• Does the item have a dot on the call number label? Central items have dots on them so they are easily identified. Check in these items to see if they are in transit to Central or are a hold to be placed on our hold shelf. I have found several of these recently and again, misplaced items are frustrating.
• Books – Is the spine intact? Is it molded, sticky or water damaged? Media - Does the case fall apart in your hands when you open it? Is the correct disc in the case?

The items to be shelved should be in good condition, do not belong to Central, or do not belong on the hold shelf. The sorting machine makes mistakes and can’t determine if an item is in poor shape or outdated.

If you have any questions about any of this, please ask someone.

Thanks,

Renee

New printing/copying service

All,

Please note that the replacement of our public printer and copier is now scheduled for Tuesday, November 9th. A staff member from Financial Services will come by to collect all remaining funds in the value-add machine. At that time the printers and copiers will be unavailable. When IT comes to install the new equipment all public computers will be unavailable until such time as they have had a chance to connect them all to the new system. We anticipate that the whole process should take no more than a day and a half.

The new vendor, Coin Copiers, will allow customers to make photocopies with cash, but they must buy a printing card in order to print from the computers.

Thank you all for your assistance during the transition.

John

Election stuff

All,

Please note that Early Voting runs through Friday, the 29th. The nearest Early Voting site is the Fiesta store at 8130 Kirby, at South Main, near Reliant Stadium.

On Election Day, Tuesday, November 2nd, voters must vote in their home precinct. Polls are open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

For our two immediate precincts, precinct 175 votes at Twain Elementary and precinct 232 votes at Pershing Middle.

If a customer has their precinct number, their Election Day polling place is listed here.

If they don't know their precinct number, it can be found here.

Thanks!

John

Volunteers

I am accepting applications for volunteers.

Applications are in the green folder in the drawer under the printer at the reference desk
A few reminders:

• If the volunteer time is court ordered, they need to contact Marlana Mitchell (832-393-1481)
• The age cutoff is 12.
• Adults must have a TX drivers license, local numbers for themselves and references, and a resume attached to the application

Orientation dates (all are at noon and last about 1 hour):

• October 23
• November 6
• November 20

Thanks

Renee

Children's Book Kits

Hello everyone,

ALL book kits will now be on Aisle 5B (same side as Spanish picture books). They are divided as follows: Picture books/beginning reader kits, math kits, reading (phonics) kits, non-fiction kits, and Spanish kits. The space for the Spanish flimsies is also labeled.

If you have any questions, comments, or complaints, please let me know ;)

Carol

Voter guides

I have requested more voter guides from Vick Martinez at Central. I also asked for sample ballots.

Thanks
Renee

October Staff Meeting

All,

Greetings from Vacationland! :)

I'd like to have October's staff meeting Tuesday morning, the 26th, around 9:20 a.m.

Thanks and see you Monday!
John

CHILDREN'S HOLIDAY BOOKS

The top of Aisle 3 is now where we are putting Thanksgiving, Hannukah, Christmas, Kwanzaa, and Diwali books. If you have any questions, please let me know.

Thanks!

Carol

Door Count

All,

Please note that Door Count will run from October 18th to October 23rd. I promise that had nothing to do with my being on vacation! :)

We will have the daily in-house materials count and the visitor count sheets on the circ side and the early childhood computer count on the ref side. All stats will be entered into the spreadsheets on the G Drive at:
G:\Statistics\DOOR COUNT\SW District\STE - DC.xls

Please see Nina if you have any questions about Door Count.

Thanks and I'll see everyone on October 25th!

John

Outgoing phone calls

All,

Please remember when calling customers on the phone to make sure the phone is calling out on the main (2630) line unless you specifically want them to call on a different line. If they receive a call from one of the other lines, they may assume that is our main number and try to call it regularly. This can be particularly difficult if it is a line that rings on only one phone.

Thank you all for all your hard work in making this the coolest library in explored space.

John

Thank You!

Hi everyone,

I just wanted to tell you all how grateful I am for your participation today in the Silly Dance Contest!! We need to decide which charity the money we raise benefits. If you have a suggestion, please let me know. We can vote on the choices. Perhaps the Cancer Research and Prevention Foundation, Kids' Meals Inc., Houston READ Commision, etc.

I love working with y'all!

Carol

Silly Dance Tomorrow!!

Hello everyone,

Tomorrow is the big day! I would like to start filming at 9:00 am. Remember, we're doing this for charity, so it's meant to be fun! If you would like to listen to the song today, let me know and I'll be happy to play it for you. You don't have to be in the whole thing-- you can do 1 or more "rounds." If you have a dance move you would like to teach the group beforehand, that would be awesome! I am planning on wearing my fairy wings-- so feel to accessorize how you wish.

Thank you STE!!! You ROCK!!!!!

Carol

Telephone reminder

All,

Please remember that, when we are open to the public and you are in the back, if the telephone rings three times, please answer it. Usually this means the folks on the desk are busy helping in-person customers. Please remember to use the standard greeting when you answer the phone.

Thank you,
John

New magnetic book ends

Good Morning,

We came into some brand new magnetic book ends over the weekend. There were a little less than 500 of them. So far, we have put out the new ones and took away the old ones in the juvenile fiction, juvenile non-fiction, biography and young adult sections. There are not enough left to cover the Adult sections at the moment.

The remainder of the magnetic book ends are now being housed in the bookdrop room. The older bookends are also being kept there for now. We are going to try and get enough more new ones for the remainder of the library before we put any more out.

Patrick

Harris County Items

All,

A reminder: Customers may return HCPL items to HPL locations and vice-versa. If they return them through Bertha, they will get an "unknown item" message and the item will go into the exceptions bin. If anyone asks if they can do this, please tell them that they can. It is a courtesy both systems offer to their customers.

If you are unsure how to check in HCPL items, please see Nina. If you have any other questions, please see me.

Thank you all for all you do.

John

January Room Reservations

All,

We are still scheduled to be closed for renovations for the month of December. At this time, we have not be given a date for reopening, which looks to be in January. For the moment, please do not take any room reservations beyond November. When we have firm dates, we can start taking reservations for the period after we reopen.

Thanks,
John

New Sign-In Procedure

All,

Neighborhood Libraries Administration has asked that all locations transition to a new method of daily sign-in and sign-out. Instead of the customary paper sign-in sheet by the door, we will be signing in online. It will give a timestamp for when you sign in and out.

The sign-in page may be found on the right side of this blog, on the Stella Link Staff links. I will also make sure it is bookmarked on all the workroom computers.
If you have your own computer, please bookmark it.

We will begin signing in and out following this method on Saturday, October 9th.

Thank you all for your cooperation and for being, as the Houston Press has noted, the best library team in Houston.

Best,
John

September staff meeting

All,

Let's have our September staff meeting on Tuesday, the 28th, around 9:25 a.m.

Thanks,
John

Reference terminal

All,

The reference terminal on the left ("driver's") side is not working. There is a problem with the port. IT has been notified. There is also no phone service on that side. In the meantime, there is a laptop there for Internet searches. Obviously, there is no MilCirc or reservation queue access on that side.

***Update***
It has been fixed! Yay!


Thanks,
John

Update on #23

Workstation #23 now has Office on the desktop and can be used normally again.

Thanks,
John

October Calendar

Good Morning,

I made a blunder and forgot to reserve the meeting room for the book club on the third Thursday of the month. I had already sent in the template(with book club listed on the 21st of October) to print shop to have the 600 copies of it printed out. Tim and I have decided to have it on the 4th Thursday. This will be on the 28th of October. When the calendars come in from the print shop, please just give them to me so that I can correct them before we put them out.

Thanks,

Patrick

Workstation #23

All,

Workstation #23 in the Igloo does not have Microsoft Office icons appearing on the screen. It has been reported, but in the meantime, we can still use it. Office products are still accessible if one has a documents on a flash drive and opens them. Otherwise, it is available for Internet access only for the moment.

Thanks,
John

Meeting Room Reminders

All,

Please remember the following when taking meeting room reservations:

*Always get the person's phone number so we can contact them if there is a problem.
*Write down the information on the note pad, so it can be entered in Program Registration.
*Write down cancellations on the same pad, noting that is a cancellation
*We are taking reservations through November because of our scheduled closure in December. It's fine to tell people why we can't take reservations for December.

If you have any questions, please see me.

Thanks,
John

Earphones for sale

We now have earphones for sale for $2.00 a set. They are rung up on Smart Money under "Miscellaneous" and then "Earphones".

The actual earphones will be kept in a box in the cabinet under the old cash register.

I have asked Mike and they are looking into our having HPL tote bags for sale as well. Stay tuned.

Thanks.
John

FLIP Kits - Everyone please read

Hello,

I know John mentioned these in the meeting yesterday, but I wanted to put the info on the blog for those who were unable to attend. These new kits are from the Children's Museum. They include a book and an activity, and are in yellow/black mesh bags. Each kit is color-coded by age group from infant to 2nd grade. They are to be placed on hooks on the yellow house in the children's area.

Important: When a patron returns the kit, all we do is check it in. We DO NOT have to do an inventory of the items; please just make sure the book is in the kit. After the kits are checked in for the patron, they are to go back to the Children's Museum to be replenished. When we receive the kits from CMH, they will have a "replenished" or "refurbished" sticker on them to let us know we can put them out. If you have any questions, please let me know.

CR

August Staff Meeting

All,

Squeaking it in just before month's end, I would like to have the August staff meeting on Tuesday, the 31st, at 9:20 a.m.

Thanks,
John

More Computer Stuff

All,

First, please note that the laptops have been taken in for the upgrade to Windows 7. Tri will return them on Monday, the 23rd.

Also, please do not shut down the public workstations. At the end of the night, just turn off the monitors. If they are shut down, they may ask for a password, which we do not have.

Thanks,
John

New public computer configuration

All,

Please note that we are reconfiguring the public computers (revised 8/19/10):

The station that formerly was the sign-in for the research room is now a regular workstation. Station #16 (in the mesh area) will be removed leaving a table suitable for laptops. Station #22 will also be removed, so laptops can be plugged in there as well.

The catalog/database terminals are now on the opposite side of juvenile paperbacks from where they were (formerly #12, #13 and #14). There will now be three.

The new numbering will be as follows:

The wall by the sign-in kiosk will have #1 - #6.

The arc near adult fiction will have #7 - #11.

The small arc opposite language learning (formerly catalog computers) will have #12 and #13.

Stations #14 and #15 will be flanking the three catalog computers.

The tables in the teen area will have #16 - #20.

The research room will have #21 - #26.

Confused? Let me know and I'll be glad to explain it.

Thanks!
John

The CMC logo

Here is the logo Carol was talking about. It was designed by Monique and Amanda from Meyer.

The link for CMC T-shirt

The link I gave you in the previous post is from an email, so you will have to sign onto your account to view the link. I will also print out a copy in color for everyone that will be at my desk.

Thanks,
CR

Combined Municipal Campaign 2011 - Please Read!

Hello everyone,

I am one of HPL's co-coordinators for the 2011 Combined Municipal Campaign (CMC), which is an annual drive to raise funds from city employees to be contributed to various charitable organizations of their choice. It begins in August and continues through October. The slogan this year is "Find Your Cause." T-shirts are only $5.00!! Click on the link to see what the t-shirts look like (I think they will appeal to men and women). I MUST TURN IN THE T-SHIRT ORDER AND MONEY BY AUGUST 30, so please give me your order/money ASAP.

On the link you can also see from what charities there are to choose. Even a dollar or two every paycheck can make a difference to your favorite charity.

Thanks so much for your time,
Carol R.
https://cohowa.houstontx.gov/owa/?ae=Item&a=Open&t=IPM.Note&id=RgAAAACVJnpHr5hJQK4ROVW8t8XnBwCHKRnWc1dvTKFzlflnjTfyAABoQiX9AABRiFOd2VuRRItmJ5Yvdws7AHoTVnp9AAAJ

Special staff meeting about after school

All,

I would like to have a special staff meeting to discuss after-school issues on Wednesday, August 11th at 9:20 a.m. This will be in addition to our regular August staff meeting that will be held later in the month.

Thanks!
John

New Categories

Since we are getting miscellaneous languages, there are 2 shelves on 10 B between Spanish and Chinese for these books.

Also, I have created a new category for classic audio books below the oversize music CDs.

Thanks
Renee

Adult SRP Prize in my office

One of our patrons won a prize in the adult SRP.

It is in a manila folder in my(Patrick's) office by my printer. Her name is Yolanda McIntosh. Feel free to come in my office and grab it for her if she shows up.

Patrick

Monthly meeting

All,

I know this is short notice, but my vacation threw things off a bit. I'd like to have our July staff meeting tomorrow morning at about 9:20.

Thanks,
John

Door Count

All,

Please note that we will have Door Count beginning Monday, July 19th, and ending on Saturday, July 24th.

We will be counting:
*Visitors (Via the gate counter).
*In-House Materials Use.
*Early Childhood Literacy Station Use.

Figures will be entered on the G Drive at:
G:\Statistics\DOOR COUNT\SW District\STE - DC on the Jul-10 tab.

I have printed out sheets to keep track before figures are entered.

Thank you all for your help with this. I'll see you all when I get back from my trip.

John

New Look!

Hi everyone!

I thought I'd try a new look for our blog. Please let me know what you think. We can always go back to to the old one or try another.

Thanks!
John

We now have passes to Moody Gardens for SRP!

Hello everyone,

If customers ask, we now have passes to Palm Beach @ Moody Gardens. Reference Staff: If customers who have already received their prizes wish to trade in Astros, BounceU, or circus tickets for Moody Gardens, please allow them to do so.

Thank you,
Carol

Employee Assistance Program

Anika from the City’s Employee Assistance Program will be here at 9:30 tomorrow morning (7/7/10) to discuss our recent loss. I believe she will also be available for one-on-one talks if needed. I will be at a meeting at Central, so she knows to report to Patrick.


Thanks,

John

Folder for ID/Library Cards held for periodicals

Hey all,
We decided to change the location where IDs/Library Cards are placed when we hold them for newspapers and magazines. There is a manilla folder with slots inside the lost and found drawer. Please ask the patron their name before giving the ID/Library Card back.

Thanks,
Tim

UPDATED Juvenile Shelving Info-Please Read!

Hello All,

Just a reminder on a few juvenile items that go in special places. I've put up a "cheat sheet" on Bertha to make remembering a bit easier. The newest addition is the Children's World Language materials. Please review the info below. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask. Thank you all for your hard work. I know shelving juvenile items ain't no picnic!!

• Current Bluebonnets ('10 - '11) go on top of Aisle 5
• ABC, 123, Shapes/Colors go on Aisle 5A
• Graphic Novels (+741.5) go on Aisle 5A (DO NOT include books on how to draw; these go in regular JUV non-fiction)
• Picture Book Kits go on Aisle 5A. These have a blue spine sticker that says "KIT." (DO NOT include language kits) see below.
• All Children's Language Learning materials now go with the Adult World Language Materials on the curvy shelves next to computers 6 - 10. This includes books, dictionaries, kits.

Carol

Discards

The discards are now sorted and labeled:

ADU fiction/non-fiction on left side of discards
JUV fiction
Easy readers/picture books
non-fiction lower shelves including below media

YA top shelf above JUV
Foreign Language and Biography are on bottom shelf below media and JUV non-fiction

This will help locate books that are missing from the shelves. I did not sort them numerically or alphabetically. Feel free to do so.

Thanks
Renee

Book Club

Hey All,

The next book club meeting will be held on Thursday July 15 at 6:30PM. We will be discussing Night Passage by Robert Parker.

Thanks, Tim

Google Docs

All,

To lessen confusion over the various Google Docs we use, I have changed the editing privileges on some of them. Those who may need to edit one of the scheduling documents have supplied me with a personal Google account. The mcgovern.stellalink account will no longer be used. We will still use the stestaff account on shared terminals for editing documents such as the ILL log and the days off calendar.

Please see me if you have any questions or concerns.

Thanks,
John

Directories

In order to make even more room for the holds, the Cole Directories and phone books are now located behind the front desk. The Cole directories are in the right hand cabinet lower shelf.

Renee

Beginning Reader and Picture Book Kits

Hello everyone,

These kits include a book and a CD, and are labeled on the spine with a blue sticker that says "KIT." From now on, please shelve these kits on Aisle 5A after the beginning readers. I have the shelf labeled. The language and math kits should be in clear bags and continue to be hung on Aisle 5B. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask.

Thank you,

Carol

CHILDREN'S AUDIO BOOKS

The children's audio books are now at the beginning of aisle 5A, followed by the beginning readers, the ABCs, 123's, Shapes/Colors, Graphic Novels, and flimsies. Everything will be labeled. If you have any questions, please let me know.

Thanks!
CR

YA audiobooks and reference

In order to make more room for the holds, the YA audiobooks have been moved to the YA section next to the manga series.
The reference will be shelved back over with the other reference material on 22A.

Thanks
Renee

NEW SRP PRIZE

We now have a coupon for a free Houston Aeros ticket that we will give away at the 5 book level, beginning today, June 9. If you have any questions, please let me know.

Thanks!

Carol

Volunteers

I am not accepting applications for volunteers until further notice. I have given out 20 and will still do one more orientation June 19. There is no waiting list.

Thanks
Renee

Teen Program Sign-up Sheet

Hello,

There are 2 teen programs that have limited space: art class and acting camp. There are 12 spaces for each program. The sign-up sheet is at the reference desk under the clipboard. If you have any questions, please let me know. Thanks!

CR

Calendars

Remember to update your calendars when necessary.

Any time you are changing any hours in your schedule(training, coming in late, off, leaving early, etc.) they should be reflected on the full or part time schedule somewhere. That way, if we notice you are not here and forget why that might be the case, we can look on one of the calendars and remind ourselves that you have already scheduled to change those hours. Again, this is for full and part time.

Thank you,

Patrick

Volunteer Orientation

The volunteer orientations will be at noon from now on. This is the only time I can get the computer lab.
Orientations this month:
June 5
June 19

Summer Reading Prizes

We will begin giving out prizes tomorrow, June 2.

You can access the official list of prizes on our website by clicking on "kids," then "summer reading program." On the left side of the screen you will see "incentives (prizes)." Click on this link.

http://www.houstonlibrary.org/family-and-youth

IMPORTANT: Our supplies our limited! CEN has asked that we ask patrons to choose only TWO prizes for the 10 book and 20 book levels. Bounce-U and the Astros tickets have age limits! We will have lists available at the reference desk. If someone demands all the prizes, please give them out. However, groups of 20 or larger definitely MUST choose 2 prizes from each level (if this is a problem, refer them to Heidi Daniel). If you have questions, please see me.

As of today, June 1, we have not received the reading certificates. I will keep you posted.

Thank you!

CR

Meeting room clarification

Just to allay confusion about how far advance we can book the meeting rooms, this being June 1st, we may now book through the month of September.

Thanks,
John

June Calendar

Good Afternoon,

Please fill out the June time off and part-time calendar when you get the chance.

If you already have done so, then thanks ahead of time.

Patrick

Staff Meeting

All,

With our new schedule, staff meetings are going to be a challenge, but I would like to have this month's meeting on Tuesday, May 25th, at 9:25 a.m. Please let me know if you have any agenda items.

Thanks,
John

YA collection

Most of you are aware of my attempts with Melissa and Carol R. to organize the YA collection. These are the changes so far:

The shelf on the north wall between the windows starting from far upper left:
1st column:
YA fiction W-Z
Lone Star books 2010-2011 are at the end of YA fiction.
New YA books (last 2 months) are under Lone Star books.

2nd – 3rd column:
Non fiction excluding Marvel/DC comics and Manga series.

The Marvel and DC comics are on the south shelf between the windows on the upper left shelves. The Manga series are in alphabetical order after the DC comics.

I am still working on the rest and will keep you informed.

Thanks
Renee

Census workers

All,

We will have some Census workers meeting here on a regular basis for the next few weeks. They mostly will be caucusing in the Internet café area, but may request a meeting room some days. Please be as accommodating as possible, but enforce rules as need be.

Thank you for assisting in this very important process for our whole nation.

John

Workroom remider

All,

One of the best things about working here at Stella Link is that we have some great conversations while we work, but please remember two things: Some of your colleagues in the workroom may need to concentrate on what they are doing and we do work in a library, and we need to set the example for the public, even in the workroom.

Please respect your colleagues by keeping your voice to a normal conversational tone.

Thank you,
John

Lexile Searching

All,

This is from an e-mail Syma sent out about Lexile searching. I think it would be useful to have this on the blog.

With the start of SRP, everyone should become familiar with searching for Lexiles in the online catalog as well as finding Lexile information from Novelist and from Lexile.com.

To search our catalog, do a Word Search using the Lexile score you are looking for and the word Lexile. Put your search in quotations. For instance, if a student says they are looking for a book with a Lexile of 900, do a word search of "900 lexile". You should get 39 results. Unfortunately, there is no way to enter a range such as 900-950. Lexiles are by 10's so you would need to do separate searches for 900, 910, 920, etc.

To search for Lexile information in Novelist Plus or Novelist K - 8 Plus, go to the Advanced Search. There you have the option of limiting your results to a Lexile range or to a specific Lexile number. At that point, you can simply do a search without filling in any other fields. Novelist recommends that you also select a Reading Level. This will more likely being up results that take into consideration the age of the student. For example, a teen may have a relatively low Lexile score. By searching on that score and selecting Teen as the reading level, you should get results a teen would be more interested in reading as compared to a 4th grader with the same Lexile score. For more detailed information, go into either version of Novelist, select Help, and under Viewing Results you will see a section on Lexiles.

You can also search at the Lexile Find a Book website http://www.lexile.com/fab/. This offers a guided search by Lexile level or grade level and by subject matter. The title results link over to HPL on Worldcat.org which can bring you directly into our catalog to see location, shelf status, and to place a hold.

Adult SRP

Some basic info about the adult summer reading program.

• Sign up in the same place as children's SRP sign up
• Adult SRP for patrons 18 and up
• Starts June 1 - Ends August 1
• Weekly random drawing for $50 gift card to local bookstore
• July 1 and August 1 drawing for a Sony eReader, pocket edition
• Every participant is eligible for weekly drawing.
• Participants with more books logged get more chances for the eReader
  
  

Summer Reading Program

Hi everyone!

It's that time again.... As of May 1, children 0 - 18 can register for the "From Fables to Fantasy" summer reading program. We have a laptop on the circ side countertop for patrons to do so. Also, there is a table in the lobby that has the reading logs, bookmarks, info in Spanish, and the Stella Link June/July children's calendar. The prizes are listed on the banner on the wall above the table. We begin awarding prizes JUNE 1; I will let you know when they have arrived. If you are at the desk and an opportunity arises to promote the program to our patrons, I'd really appreciate it!! If you have any questions, please let me know.

ALSO: We have an adult summer reading program as well as one for the staff. Sign up today!

Thank you for all your help during the busy, busy summer season!

Carol

Discarding items

Good afternoon,

Excellent job with the discards lately. We are really staying on top of it.
The COMS training has given me an idea to better keep track of the holes we may have in the collection with the discarded items being removed.
There is an option on putty cat to e-mail the list of discarded items to someone.
This comes up after you hit enter when you are done scanning items. It will ask you print or quit. Select print. This will give you an option to e-mail.
Choose that option. Put my e-mail in, and just give it subject of discards.

This will make it much easier to keep track of what item we have removed and which ones we may need to request to fill the vacancy.

Thank you.

Patrick

May Schedules

Please fill out the part time calendar for May, all part time staff.
If you are full time and have time away from the branch for any reason, please fill in the staff off calendar on the blog.

Thank you.

Patrick

Afternoon All,

The Book Club will meet on Thursday May 20, 2010 at 6:30 PM to discuss Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt.

Thanks, Tim

Thank you everyone!

Summer volunteers

Please do not give out or accept any application for summer volunteering. I haven't been told of the date to start taking them. Just tell them that I will probably accept them around mid May. I will probably number them as in the past. I'll keep you informed.

Thanks
Renee

Annual Friends Book Sale Passes

All,

If anyone would like a pass to the Annual Friends of the Library Book Sale for Friday, April 23rd, please let me know by close of business Monday.

Thanks,
John

Meeting Room Scheduling

We are going to try out a new system to see how it goes.
I have inserted some sheets behind the reference count forms.



Any reservations that you make on Google Docs over the phone, please make notation of them on these sheets. If a person comes in person and fills out the reservation paperwork then just place those forms in the front of the reservation paperwork binder. I have talked to Renee and she feels that this will make it easier on her for inputting the room reservations into Program Registration.


So, to sum up, over the phone reservations - mark them down on the sheets behind the reference count forms.
In person reservation when they fill out the sheet, place the sheets in the front pocket of the binder.
Renee will come along daily and put these into the Program Registration system.

Thank you.

Saturday shift

All,

A reminder, this Saturday begins the new Saturday schedule. The standard shift for Saturdays will be 8:15 a.m. to 5:15 p.m. I know that's early, but we will be getting out an hour earlier. Please see me if you have any questions or concerns.

Thanks,
John

Lemonade Day!

Lemonade Day is upon us. I have made a stand in the lobby that has applications. Customers turn them in at the ref desk. Under the ref desk is a box full of backpacks and an envelope to put the completed applications. Lemonade day is May 2nd. Thank you!

Current Fliers

Friends Book Sale - April 23-25 at George R Brown Convention Center

An evening with series
4/21 Nick Flynn 6pm Central
5/3 Barbara Graham 6pm Central
5/13 Francis Ray 6pm Smith

Texas History Comes Alive - San Jacinto Day Festival & Battle Reenactment, April 24, 10am-6pm

Job Search Workshops - Central Library 10am
Rebranding your skills - 4/5, 5/3, 6/7
Creating a Resume part 1 - 4/6, 5/4, 6/8
Creating a Resume part 2 - 4/7, 5/5, 6/9
Interviewing - 5/6, 6/10

Financial Advice Consultations - Central, 4-7 pm, 5/6, 6/3

Exercise & Fitness
Reggies Workout - Central - Tuesdays 5:30pm
Stress Buster - Blue Ridge, Central, Kendall, Vinson(check flier for times)
Stress Relief - Central, Kendall(check flier for details)

Financial Fitness Festival
Central Library - Saturday, May 1, 10am-5pm

Citizenship Classes
Carnegie and Alief Library - started in February

Travel Smart(Central Library)
Women Traveling solo - Wednesday, April 28 @ 6 pm
Travel USA - Wednesday, May 19 @ 6pm
A Map for Saturday - Wednesday, May 26 @ 6pm

Clayton Genealogical Library Programs
Look at flier for details, programs start in October

Small Business Series

Starting a business in Houston workshop - 4/22, 6pm @ Hilledahl
Starting a business in Houston workshop - 5/20, 6pm @ Kendall
Starting a business in Houston workshop - 6/23, 6:30@Scenic Woods

Children's Book Celebration Contest
May 8 - May 15 @ Central Library

Jazz Appreciation Month
Programs throughout the month of April at different libraries

Crafts & Hobbies ( Check Flier for Times)
Crocheting at Central
DIY activities @ Kendall and Central
Scrapbooking @ Kendall
Paper Crafting @ Vinson ans Central

April Staff Meeting

Hi everyone,

I'd like to have the April Staff Meeting this Thursday, April 15th, at 11:20 a.m. This will be the last time we will have that slot available for the meeting. Please let me know if you have anything for the agenda. I'll send out an Outlook invitation as a reminder.

Thanks,
John

HOLIDAY BOOKS

Now that the Easter holiday has passed, please put these books in the back room with the other holiday books. We don't have anything to put on the holiday shelf at this time.

Thanks!
CR

Eliminating E-books and Gov Docs from Searches

A reminder:

When searching in the catalog by keyword, you can eliminate unwanted results for e-materials and government documents with the following limiters:

and not branch:branchhou (for e-materials)

and not branch:branchigov (for gov docs)

Thanks!

The new books I just wrote about

They are called "BOB" books. Not sure why, but they many parents have been asking for them.

NEW JUVENILE SHELVING INFO

Hi everyone,

Some books that are new to the system have just arrived. They are little flimsy-type books, about 6" X 5" whose covers include purple, red, blue, yellow, and green. They have beginning reader labels on them. Please put them at the end of the beginning readers on Aisle 5A.

Thank you!
CR

New Wimpy Kid & Percy Jackson Books

Jeff Kinney and Rick Riordan fans rejoice! We have received several cataloged copies of Diary of a Wimpy Kid - books #2 & #3, as well as uncataloged paperbacks of some of the Percy Jackson & the Olympians series, i.e., Battle of the Labyrinth.

CR

Chinese Class

There will be no Chinese Class on March 29, April 5 or April 12.

Thanks.

Adult volunteers & Orientations

Here are the following orientation dates for April & May:

April 10
April 24
May 8
May 22

Adult Volunteers need the following:
TX drivers license
local phone numbers for contact and references
resume attached to application

Thanks
Renee

Monthly Meeting

All,

I would like to have our monthly staff meeting this Thursday, March 25th, at 11:20 a.m. I'll send out an Outlook invitation as a reminder.

Thanks,
John

Staff Off Days and Part Time Calendar

Good afternoon everyone,

Please fill out the part time calendar for the month of April if you are a part time worker.
If you are full time, please take the time to input any off days or schedule changes you may have for the month of April.

Thank you.
Patrick

STE Book Club

Afternoon,

The next book club will meet on April 15, 2010 at 6:30 PM. We will be discussing Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom. Thanks, Tim.

Newspapers

All,

Per Nina, please ask for a driver's license or state ID when a customer requests a current newspaper. Customers are less likely to leave their ID behind than their library card. This is the preferred practice, but if a customer would rather give their library card instead, that should be honored.

Thanks,
John

Census

All,

We will have a person from the US Census in one of the meeting rooms from 12 to 3 Tuesdays through Saturdays through the middle of April. If anyone asks for help with the Census forms, please direct them to these folks.

The Census materials are behind the reference desk. Please make sure the Census folks get them each day.

Thanks,
John

Printing for Customers

All,

We all have customers who come to the desk wanting to have items printed for them, instead of having them print them from the computer. Please regard each one on a case-by-case basis. Printing a page or two for a customer is often the best customer service. Some people will take advantage of this and, again, please use your best judgment (e.g., "Mrs. Smith, I've gone ahead and printed this one. Let me show you how to print for yourself."). Again, each case is different and sometimes, it's best for all parties concerned for us to print something. Please see me if you have any questions.

Thanks,
John

A Visit from Suzy

All,

Suzy Benton is the Interim Team Leader in Neighborhood Libraries with responsibility for Stella Link. She is trying to meet with the staff at all her locations. She will be here on Tuesday, the 23rd, in the morning to meet with small groups of our staff.

Thanks,
John

SAT testing

If anyone should ask/call, we are having a Princeston Review Test this Saturday (March 6th). There is no sign up. Thanks, E

Large Print items

I have made a small permanent display on 1A of large print. Please continue to shelf large print on the back shelves across from 15B. Remember, do not stuff shelves. If books don't fit and shifting isn't an option, tell one of the reference staff.

Thanks,

Renee

Primary polling places

All,

Please note the polling places for the two precincts in our immediate area for the March 2nd primary:

Precinct 175:
Democratic Primary - Twain Elementary School
Republican Primary - Twain Elementary School

Precinct 232:
Democratic Primary - Twain Elementary School
Republican Primary - Pershing Middle School

For more information, see www.harrisvotes.com
Thanks,
John

Oops- Correction to Holiday Books

The current holiday books are located under the 1 2 3 books on Aisle 5A, not under the graphic novels. Sorry!

CR

HOLIDAY BOOKS

Hello everyone,

I have labeled the bottom shelf on Aisle 5A "CURRENT HOLIDAY BOOKS." This section is directly below the juvenile graphic novels. Please shelve all juvenile Easter books (they will have a yellow Easter sticker on them) on this shelf. Also, please continue putting other holiday books in the storage room where the safe is.

Thanks so much!
CR

Parking

A reminder: All full-time and part-time staff members should now be parking in the new section of the parking lot (on the site of the former fire station).

Thanks,
John

Emergency number

All,

Remember the library's emergency number, 832-393-1550. Call this number during weather emergencies to see if there are any changes in library hours.

In case we do close or delay opening, I will remind everyone of our phone tree: I will call Patrick and Nina first; I call the full-time reference staff; Patrick calls part-timers; Nina calls full-time circ staff.

Thanks,
John

Meeting room reminder

All,

A reminder: Library-sponsored programs always take precedence in meeting room use. When scheduling an outside meeting, please make sure it does not overlap one of our programs.

Thanks,
John

February Meeting

All,

I know it's short notice and not everyone will be able to make it, but I would like to have our February meeting tomorrow, Thursday, February 18th, at 11:20 a.m.

Thanks,
John

Bowling Night - This Saturday!!

Hi everyone!

Patrick and I are planning an STE "Bowling Night" at Palace Bowling Lanes - 4191 Bellaire Blvd. It's happening this Saturday, February 20 at 6:00 pm. It's $4.50 per game, and $2.95 for shoe rental. Please let Patrick or I know if you're coming and if you're bringing a guest(s) so that we know how many lanes to get.
Looking forward to seeing you there!

Carol

From the World of Y.A.

Hello! Two things to note please:
1. Only YA books are allowed on the YA cart. On the cart we have found Juv books, Adu books, Large Print, Spanish, and even other branches materials. Please if it DOES NOT have a YA sticker, please do not place it on the cart. I know many of the juv graphic novels look like YA but are not.
2. YA FIC is now open to be shelved by who ever is free during shelving. There is no special place for FIC, except for the lone star books.
Thank you for helping!

Give-away Books for Gordon Elementary Students

I gave out about 10 -12 coupons to students that they can exchange for a book to keep. These give-away books are located under the reference desk in a box. Please let the children choose a book in exchange for their coupon. If you have any questions, please let me know.

Thanks!

CR

Congratulations, Nina and Erik!

Congratulations to Nina and Erik for being named HPL's Outstanding Employee for 2009 and 2010, respectively. In honor of them--and my other 12 outstanding employees--lunch will be on me on Tuesday, February 16th. :)

Congrats again!

John

New Locks on Sliding Doors

We have new locks on both sliding doors. They are located in the center of the door frame so, we don't need the ladder to close or open. Yeah!! The keys are located in the reference desk on the green key chain. The white mark on the lock is straight up when we are open and all the way to the left when closed. There is also an option at closing which is between the closing and opening position. This lets patrons out but not in.

Renee

Puppet Pizzazz Performance

Hi everyone,

We will be having a special performance of Puppet Pizzazz next Wednesday, February 18, at 11:00. The show is for all ages and features life-size puppets. We will NOT be having our regular storytime that day.

Thank you for helping to keep our patrons informed!

CR

BLUEBONNET UPDATE - PLEASE READ!

Hi everyone,

From now on, please put ONLY the 2010-2011 Bluebonnets on top of Aisle 5. The 2009-2010 can now be shelved within the collection.

Thank you!

Carol

P Count

The P Count stat sheet has been having some issues.
The P Count number that you put in for the specified day in the stats sheet on the blog is the P count number on the END of the day for that date.
Nina and Tim are going to be in charge of getting these numbers from this point forward.

Thank you,
Patrick

Volunteer Orientation

I will be holding volunteer orientations every 2 weeks starting this Saturday. It will be at 11:00 on an as needed basis. I've listed the dates below.

January 30
February 13
February 27
March 13
March 27

Thanks
Renee

Juvenile Graphic Novels - New Shelving Info

Hello everyone,

I have moved the juvenile graphic novels to Aisle 5 B, next to the flimsies. These are both non-fiction and fiction titles. The non-fiction is mainly 741.5, 741.597. The books moved DO NOT INCLUDE the drawing books, some of which are also in 741.5.

The fiction books were formerly housed in JUV FIC, and include titles by Hapka, Lawler, and Maddox, to name a few. They all are the same size and the covers are very similar. All Baby Mouse, whether fiction or non-fiction, will now be on this aisle as well.

Please shelve these books as you would any other non-fiction books: by call number. The fiction books go immediately before non-fiction in alpha order. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask.

Thank you!
Carol

New Juvenile Math and Reading Kits Shelving Info

Hello everyone,

We have received some new math and reading kits (book with CD). Some are 8" X 5" and are titled Funky Phonics, Multiplication Unplugged, and Multiplication Rock. Others are 8 1/2" X 11"; titles include Phonics and Teach Me Everyday Spanish. They all have a blue spine lablel "KIT." Please place these kits on the bottom of aisle 5 B with the hanging kits. I am putting them in a plastic multi-tiered shelf with a label "Math and Reading Kits." If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask.

Carol

Storytime for the rest of January

I know we've had patrons asking about storytime; here is the schedule for the remainder of January:

1-25 11:00 Babytime
1-26 11:00 Toddler Playgroup
1-27 11:00 Storytime
1-30 11:00 Storytime

Thank you all for helping me keep our customers informed. The February calendar will arrive soon.

Carol

NEW BLUEBONNETS

Hello everyone,

The 2010-2011 Bluebonnet books are arriving. Please continue putting the 2009-2010 on the top of shelf 5 as well as the new 2010-2011. At the end of January we will just put the 2010-2011 on shelf 5; I'll send a reminder notice at that time.

Thank you all so much!

Carol

Princeston Review SAT test

Hello all, Saturday Feb 6th we are having a free SAT test for all teens interested. It is at 10:00. The following Saturday the 11th will be when the results are given. Thanks.