A Message from Joyce Rumery, Acting Director of Libraries

The new academic year has begun, and it is an exciting time of year to be on campus. For the fourth year in a row enrollment is up, and the library staff is very busy with classes, reserves, and other services.

The library is continuing to respond to the needs of the faculty and students by offering online databases, electronic journals, and other resources available electronically. As we move into the digital environment, you will find more materials available online as full text documents. One of the ongoing projects is the Electronic Theses and Dissertations Database. This database contains records for over 2,000 University of Maine theses and dissertations from 1987 to present. Some of the theses and dissertations may be found online and the others are available in Special Collections.

The University of Maine is also participating in Maine InfoNet. Now, when URSUS is searched, a request may be made for the system to also search the Maine InfoNet catalog. This catalog adds nearly 500,000 more unique items to the database, and, as the year progresses, we will see the addition of over 230 more libraries participating in this system. When the system is complete, a single search will scan 10 million items in the combined collections of more than 300 libraries. Maine InfoNet also has an online interlibrary loan system so that materials from these other libraries in the state may be requested for use here at Fogler.

Our website address has changed to http://www.library.umaine.edu. Please take a look at our pages and the services we offer, and let us know if you find a section particularly interesting or useful. You will also notice that URSUS has a new look, partially to respond to ADA requirements.

I look forward to the upcoming Friends events and welcome you to join us. Thank you for your support and interest in Fogler Library.