Van Pelt and Opie Library Blog

The University Archives will be increasing its fees for our duplication services due to increasing costs. These increases will go into effect February 1. Details may be found on our duplication services information page.

Recalls: For Van Pelt and Opie Library books, a patron may recall a loaned item. The current borrower has 21 days to return the item although we welcome feedback about this timeframe. When the returned item is not returned by 22 days, our fine will increase to $5.00/day from $1.00/day. The high demand on recalled items has made it necessary for us to study practices and fine levels at other research universities who are successful in obtaining prompt returns. The library staff is also studying the potential need for increasing the overdue fines on our convenience items (cameras, calculators, laptops) due to the high demand and high level of overdue items. The increase in the recall fine for books will go into effect on February 15th.

Recalls: Beginning February 15, all interlibrary loan borrowers will be charged $5.00/day for any items they fail to return after receiving a Recall Notice from the library. The fine will go into effect three days after the borrower is sent the recall notice. Recall dates may vary by lending library. In most cases, a borrowed item can be renewed before the due date. This policy and the amount charged is customary at other research universities in Michigan. Delays in returning borrowed materials jeopardizes a lending library’s willingness to continue to lend to us.

Lost or damaged item processing fee: A $25.00 processing fee has historically been added to any charges associated with lost or damaged items from the Van Pelt and Opie Library collections or those borrowed and lost via ILL. This fee has been reduced to $10.00 effective now.

For questions, concerns or additional suggestions, please contact Ellen Marks, University Librarian ebmarks@mtu.edu

Computers are available in the library instruction rooms (library 242, 244) when they aren’t in use for instruction.

These computers are installed with the common campus core software and the library login.

Just use your HuskyCard to swipe in.

The Experimental Education Environment (E3) is a new space meant to support all Michigan Tech instructors’ experimentation with instructional designs, use of instructional technology or educational media and room or furniture arrangement. As a collaboration among the staff of the Jackson Center for Teaching and Learning, Information Technology’s Media Services and the Van Pelt and Opie Library staff, instructors interested in using this space for formal instruction or informal student groups will receive support for their pedagogical ideas or challenges from the Center for Teaching and Learning’s instructional designers or technology idea support from IT’s Media Services.

For more information on scheduling or to register for upcoming orientation sessions, click here.

The Van Pelt and Opie Library has introduced expanded hours.

The new Library Overnight Services are midnight to 8 a.m. every day for current Michigan Tech students, faculty and staff. Hours for guests, visitors and members of the community have also been increased from 8 a.m. to midnight daily.

Entry into the library for overnight services will be at the library’s main door with an active HuskyCard.

New version of BrowZine, 1.2.1, is now available in the Apple App Store. In this new version we fix a pesky iOS7 bug and speeds up the loading of your holdings data. If you’ve already installed iO7, this new version has likely already automatically downloaded and installed. If you have not yet installed iOS7, please find the new version in the App Store. Thank you!

For updates about Browzine from Third Iron, check out their Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/thirdiron