As of August, our library research guides have received a makeover. The new interface includes a simplified look and feel and a mobile friendly design. Not sure what research guides are? They’re mini-web sites created by librarians to help you get started with research. Research guides are tailored for specific subjects and courses to help connect you to the resources you need.

Research any time on any device

Temple libraries’ research guides still contain all of the great content you need, such as  databases, books, websites, videos, and more, to help you tackle research projects, but now you can access research guides on across a range of devices including desktops, tablets and smartphones.

Arts of the Western World course guide by Art Librarian, Jill Luedke

Arts of the Western World course guide by Art Librarian, Jill Luedke

Access TU libraries’ Research Guides anytime at guides.temple.edu or by going to the library website and selecting the “Guides” tab.

As of July 21^st, our all-star database Summon has received an update resulting in a sparkling new interface and some helpful new features. (Don’t remember which database is Summon? It’s that big ol’ search box in the middle of the library home page.) Check out some of the changes below:

• Topic Explorer – Summon will automatically plug your search term into one of our reference databases and pull a relevant encyclopedia entry to provide a brief overview of the topic. This will be located in the top right hand corner of the page.

(click on photo to enlarge)

• Increased item information – Whenever you hover over one of the items in your results, you’ll see expanded item information in the right hand column. This can include citation information, but can also include article abstracts and book summaries.

(click on photo to enlarge)

• Suggested search terms – Not finding what you want and having some trouble thinking outside the box? Summon now has prominently displayed “Related Topics” that may help you formulate more effective search terms.

(click on photo to enlarge)

• More easily navigable refinement tools – Now, you can simply select from the left hand side of the page whatever refinements you want to narrow down your search. No more “include” or “exclude”.

(click on photo to enlarge)

• To infinity and beyond – Summon 2.0 uses an infinite scroll, so no more clicking through page by page.
• Folder Storage – The Saved Items folder is now more prominently displayed (it’s in the left hand corner.) Didn’t know you could save items to look at later? We hope the new larger icon will serve as a visual reminder.

Ready to take Summon for a test drive?

And don’t forget:

Summon searches ALL the holdings TU Libraries has access to—this means books, eBooks, journal articles, newspaper articles, magazine articles, videos, films, government documents, etc. If you have a specific research need and Summon isn’t helping, one of our subject specialist librarians will be happy to help you find what you’re looking for.

In an effort to gather information about use of the Temple University Libraries’ electronic resources, an occasional web-based survey will be launched on July 31. The survey form will appear when connecting to any electronic resource including journal databases, online encyclopedias, music libraries, electronic books, and other e-reources. The online web survey must be completed in order to gain access to the desired electronic resource. This four question survey, while creating a momentary disruption, will only be conducted for two consecutive hours per month throughout the academic year, running through June of 2015.  The survey will be presented only once in the two hour interval as long as the browser window is not closed.  The survey is anonymous and will coincide with short on-site surveys of a similar nature taking place at some campus libraries.

The University Administration has requested that we conduct this survey to gain more information about how institutional investment in electronic information resources contributes to our scholars’ and researchers’ capacity to perform research that leads to new discoveries. While this survey will create some minimal disruption in the short run, the data gathered has proven to be of great benefit to our institution in the long run. Therefore, we will greatly appreciate your understanding and cooperation if and when you are asked to complete the survey form.

Should you have further questions, FAQ are appended to the online survey instrument. Further questions may be directed to the Controller’s Office, which is sponsoring the survey.