Dr. Dillinger’s Guide to the Martin Luther King Jr Library!

Here’s a quick (and incomplete) overview of what you’ll find in the library. I’ve underlined the things I think will be most useful for you.

On every floor, near the elevators, there’s a map that will help you find what’s there. They’re very useful.

Computers. You’re supposed to use a computer here, so there are computers, outlets, and network connections everywhere. Check the maps for the different study areas, because the pink network connections can only be used with laptops you borrow from the library; the green ones are for your own computer (bring your own Ethernet cable; the library’s not wireless yet). Of course, there are also public-use computers, especially on the second floor.

Photocopying. There are now photocopy machines on every floor (things get better every year!). Hint: buy copy cards on the Second Floor so that you don’t have to carry a lot of change. Besides, there are only a couple of machines that take coins, but all of them take copy cards. For materials that are not available on line, photocopying will become a way of life. You can use the same cards to print out things you find on line.

Where to start? ( www.sjlibrary.org )

1) Use an index like PsychInfo or PubMed. You can access them over the web or on the research computers on the second floor. You can also use the library catalog to search on key words. There’s a web page to get you started in Psychology, too: click on SJSU Research Topics (on the library homepage) and look for Psychology under P. That will take you to a list of places to look.

2) Once you know which articles you’re looking for, go to the Electronic Journals List (under Articles & Databases on the library homepage) or the Library Catalog (Library Catalog on the library homepage) to find out where they are. There are two main places that they can be: on line in a database or on paper in Bound Periodicals.

3) Then you can print or copy the articles, save them, or send them to your email account.

Basement

Student Computer Services Center. Borrow (for free) a laptop to use in the library. Rent memory sticks. Set up your wireless email account. The laptops have MS Office, some have SPSS, and most can burn CDs and/or DVDs. Only a few of the laptops can read floppy disks.

Bound Periodicals and Microforms. Newspapers, magazines, technical journals, government publications are all available for reading and/or photocopying. Microforms are miniature photographs of documents and are stored as rolls of film (microfilm) or as small sheets (microfiche) so you have to read them with the machines that are there.

Hard-copy technical journals are here and the ones from before 1990 are often not available on line. The bookshelves are on wheels so that you can move them, so be careful that no one is in the way (and bring in a footstool just in case!) – they’re extremely heavy.

First Floor

This is your entrance to the library, with the beautiful Koret atrium, where you can see up to the top floor ceiling.

The Children’s Library (books for kids) and Browsing Library (popular literature, music, and videos) are here. There’s also the Literacy Center that houses a project for teaching people in the community how to read – consider volunteering some of your time.

You’ll spend more time at the Reserves counter, where professors leave specific materials for you to read for each course, and at the do-it-yourself checkout machines. The Information desk is always a good place to start if you have a question.

I almost always go right to the terminals with the electronic catalog, unless I’ve looked up what I want at home.

Second Floor

This is the Reference Collection – the books that you can only read in the library. Look under BF for the psychology dictionaries, encyclopedias, manuals and general books. The Research Librarians are also here; they’re a big help to get you started!

The Center for Adaptive Technology has equipment and tutors for disabled students.

There are many research computers which are hooked up directly to the major indices of books and articles. You can print out copies of the references that you find with your copy card at the pay-to-print stations, just like a photocopy machine.

Third Floor

One of the unique things about this library is that it’s a joint project of the City libraries and the University libraries. This floor has the General Collection from the City library and the librarians here don’t know much about the research materials that you’ll be looking for. On the other hand, there’s an amazing collection of materials in some 60 languages and the Martin Luther King Civil Rights Collection, too.

Fourth Floor

Library Administration offices and the Educational Resource Center (focusing on K-12 textbooks) are here.

Fifth Floor

Special collections such as the Beethoven, Steinbeck and Africana collections are here.

Sixth Floor – “Home” A - HN

The research collections start on the sixth floor. This is where you’ll be camping out when you want to find books on Psychology, in the Bs, especially BF. Books on the other social sciences are here, too.

Seventh Floor HN - P

Sociology, Law, Art and Languages are here.

Eighth Floor Q-Z

Great views! All of the oversize books (“folios” in librarian-speak), including some on psychology, are here, along with all of the Science and Technology books.