New Books in Reference - 10/8/09

TheStreet.com Ratings' Guide to Life and Annuity Insurers, Fall 2009 (368.32)

2010 Standard Catalog of Baseball Cards, 19th ed. (769.49796)

Contemporary Authors, v. 188 (920)

International Vital Records Handbook (929.1072073)  Contains application forms and ordering information for various vital records, including driver's licenses, passports, jobs, social security, and proof of identity.

Two copies are also in the Genealogy Department if the copy in Reference is being used.

In addition, links to the various states' vital records offices can also be found online at VitalRec.

Google Chrome

You may have noticed that there is a funny little icon on the Ask Here desk monitors, or saw a strange looking page left open from a previous user, but you're not quite sure what it is.  Chances are, it's Google Chrome - an alternate web browser to Microsoft's Internet Explorer (IE).

Of course, it's totally optional to use and IE is still the default browser.  However, if you'd like to give it a shot, there are a couple of features that I'd like to point out that make Chrome unique (at least compared to our older version of IE).

First, Chrome uses tabs.  This allows the user to go to a new page or site, without having to open up an entirely new window. Simply click on the + to the right of the current tab, and a new page is opened.  Simply type in the desired URL, choose a bookmark link, or click on one of the icons on the newly opened page (these are frequently viewed pages specific to that terminal - one click will load the page).

Next, Chrome's address bar is actually a multi-function tool as well, which they call Omnibox.  You can perform Google searches right in the address bar without having to go to Google.  In the example below, I've searched for "bar code wiki," so that I can get the Wikipedia page for "barcode."  (It's the 57th anniversary of it's invention)

As you can see, once you start typing into Omnibox, it will recognize your phrase as either a URL or as a Google search.  Options automatically dropdown as you type; you can either choose and click one of the options, or press enter to bring up the Google search results page:

If you decide to use Chrome, try these shortcuts out - hopefully they'll save you some time and make searching a little bit easier.

Note:  Although I personally like Chrome, I will point out that it's not perfect.  One of the problems - specifically for staff here at JPL - is the way that webmail is displayed in Chrome.  Some of the features are missing (like the ability to move an item into another folder) and it looks a bit different, so if you're checking your email or doing reference email you might want to stick with IE for those tasks.

New Additions of New Editions - 10/7/09

Guinness World Records 2010, (032.02)  Happy 250th Birthday, Guiness!  To Arthur!

Melton's Encyclopedia of American Religions, 8th ed. (200.973)

Vital Statistics on the Presidency, 3rd. ed.  (324.630973)

S & P's Security Dealers of North America, Fall 2009  (332.62)

D & B Principal International Businesses, 2009/10  (380.1025)

Kovel's Antiques and Collectibles Price Guide, 2010, 42nd ed.  (745.1)

Encyclopedia of Jewish-American Literature (810.9)  1st ed., but new to us.

New Title Added

The reference book fairy had a light load today - just one title (though it contains three volumes).

Encyclopedia of American Religious History, 3rd ed. (200.973)  As with the prior editions, this set provides an overview of the people and events that have influenced U.S. history through religion.  The 3rd ed. has added a brief section titled "A Short History of Religion in America."  The third volume contains a general index.

Recently Added to the Shelves - 9/23/09

The New Strong's Expanded Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (220.52033)  Our copy has been missing for some time now, so this is a nice addition.

Gun Control:  A Documentary and Reference Guide (344.730533)  Written to "bring together a wide variety of documents, organized  both by chronology and subject, in order to provide the reader with a fuller understanding  of the history, evolution, scope, and consequences of the issue of gun control."

Official Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide, 39th ed. (741.5973)

Bing and Google Side by Side

Some of you may have seen a few of the slick new ads that have been touting Microsoft's Bing as a search alternative to Google. Or maybe you haven't. You are the ones asking, "What the heck is a Bing?"

Now I can't speak for everyone, but when I think "search engine," Google comes to mind. In fact, "googling" has become synonymous with searching to many people, so it will take a lot more than slick commercials to persuade me to make the switch.

However, I'm always open to things that might make searching easier, but it can be tedious trying to compare search engines using multiple windows and switching back and forth. Luckily for us, there's a site made specifically for that: Bing-vs-Google. Bing-vs-Google allows you to enter your search query into a single box and then splits the screen with Bing search results on the left, and Google search results on the right, allowing you to judge the sites side by side.

Similar sites include Bingle and BingandGoogle.

New Books in Reference - 8/12/09

The following items have been added to the Reference collection:

American Salaries and Wages Survey, 2009, 10th ed. (331.2973021) contains over 2,300 occupational combinations and respective salaries, taken from close to 600 sources, including government statistics and trade journals.

American Wholesalers and Distributors Directory, 2009, 19th ed., 4 vol. (381.2029473) Profiles of over 28,000 wholesalers and distributors - encompassing small & large businesses and public & private sectors - are included. Arranged in broad subject headings, then alphabetically by name. SIC, geographic and alphabetic indexes are included.

Surgery Sourcebook, 2nd ed (617) is designed for laypeople seeking knowledge about typical surgeries, including "oral, eye, gastrointestinal, gynecologic and obstetric, head and neck, heart and vascular, orthopedic, cosmetic and reconstructive, and urological surgeries--associated risks, and potential complications."

Masterplots II: African American Literature, Revised ed., 4 vol. (810.9896073) "...focuses on works by African American writers from the earliest known colonial writings through the beginning of the twenty-first century." Contains over 300 essays, of which one-third were newly commissioned for this new edition. Volume 4 includes a type of work index by genre, a title index and an author index.

In addition, an anonymous donor left one copy of the Jacksonville Senior Services Directory, 2009-2010 and one downtown map (Downtown Vision version) on my desk. I've labeled both "Information Desk," and coincidentally, decided to keep them beneath the Reference desk with the other maps and directories. Thank you Mysterious Philanthropist!

As always, these books can be reviewed at the Reference desk before I shelve them next week.