May 20, 2008
Ursuline College and Marietta Honors Program Join ETD Center
Ursuline College recently joined the OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center and published their first three papers. The Marietta College honors program also joined the ETD Center and published their first theses this month.
There are now 24 programs, from 20 member institutions, participating in the OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. The ETD Center is a free, online database of more than 16,000 graduate theses and dissertations and undergraduate honors theses from students at participating Ohio colleges and universities. For more information about the OhioLINK ETD Center, visit the frequently asked questions page.
May 13, 2008
New Tool for Archivists & Librarians: EAD Finding Aid Creation Tool and Repository
OhioLINK is pleased to announce the release of a finding aid creation application, repository, and full-text search engine. The EAD Finding Aid Creation Tool and OhioLINK Repository (EAD FACTORy) will help archivists ensure broad-based access to archival collections and local history collections by providing a solution for institutions wishing to create and deliver finding aids according to the Encoded Archival Description standard. Finding aids are descriptive tools that come in a variety of formats and levels of detail that describe the contents of archival or manuscript collections. EAD is an international standard for encoding archival finding aids, making them standardized in structure as well as more predictably searchable in collaborative electronic repository environments.
The OhioLINK Finding Aid Repository will allow researchers to search finding aids across institutions to locate archival materials and primary sources across the state. Finding aids may be browsed as well, and an advanced search function is also available. The Finding Aid Creation Tool and Repository are available for use by any institution in Ohio and do not require membership in OhioLINK. The brand new Repository is now ready and waiting for submissions.
The EAD Finding Aid Creation Tool and OhioLINK Repository is a project of the OhioLINK Database Management and Standards Committee. The committee formed the Encoded Archival Description Task Force in late 2004 and charged its members with creating standards for the creation of EAD Finding Aids within the OhioLINK community. Following the completion of content standards in 2006, the Task Force pursued the development of a Web-based tool that would allow users to create valid EAD finding aids without technical knowledge of complex EAD encoding. This major project was undertaken in cooperation with the Kent State University Libraries and Media Services' Systems unit. Programming was completed by KSU's David Gaj, Applications Developer.
May 12, 2008
Two Students From OhioLINK Schools Receive Innovative ETD Awards
Congratulations to Heather Forest, from Antioch University, and Justin Tickhill, from Ohio University, two recipients of ETD awards from the Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations (NDLTD) consortium. The awards recognize students who have written exemplary electronic theses and dissertations (ETDs). These ETDs demonstrate new dimensions of scholarship being explored by individuals who have made significant contributions to the worldwide ETD movement.
Both Heather and Justin are from OhioLINK schools and received Innovative ETD Awards which recognizes student efforts to transform the genre of the print dissertation through the use of innovative software to create cutting edge ETDs. Use of renderings, photos, video and other multimedia objects that are included in the electronic document were considered as part of the innovation of the work. The awards will be presented at the ETD 2008 Symposium, to be held this year at The Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen, Scotland, June 4th - 7th.
You can find both award-winning innovative ETDs in the OhioLINK ETD Center:
Heather Forest / Inside Story: An Arts-Based Exploration of the Creative
Process of the Storyteller as Leader. Doctoral Dissertation: Leadership
and Change; Antioch University, U.S.A.
File description: 27 files; pdf, mp3 (audio narratives).
Justin Tickhill / The Virtual Pig Head: Digital Imaging in Cephalic
Anatomy. Master's Thesis: Biological Sciences; Ohio University, U.S.A.
File description: 13 files; pdf, mov (computer animations of tomography).
May 06, 2008
Tip: Travel Light with Electronic Stats and Facts Resources
Want to travel light when doing research or classwork on the go? OhioLINK offers dictionaries, a thesaurus, an almanac, numerous encyclopedias and hundreds of other reference books so you can check stats and facts anywhere, anytime. See a complete list of available resources or try some of our favorites on the list below.
- Oxford English Dictionary -- A guide to the meaning, history, and pronunciation of over half a million words, both present and past.
- Oxford Reference Online -- Over 100 dictionaries, general reference, language reference, and subject reference works from Oxford University Press.
- Roget's II: The New Thesaurus -- Contains 35,000 synonyms and over 250,000 cross-references in an easy-to-use format, this thesaurus features succinct word definitions and an innovative hyperlinked category index.
- STAT-USA -- A service of the U.S. Department of Commerce that delivers vital economic, business, and international trade information produced by the U.S. Government.
- World Almanac -- Includes biographies, encyclopedia entries, facts, and statistics.
- World Data Analyst Online -- offers detailed statistical comparisons of countries around the world, using both the most recent statistics and historical figures.
Want more tips? Learn how to:
- Search 10 Databases of Your Choice Simultaneously
- Practice a Foreign Language with Digital Videos
- Pick the Perfect Present