READ WATCH PLAY: Get your face on a poster!

Posted on October 20, 2014 by QLB

Ever look at your dorm room or apartment walls and wonder, “My decorations are alright, but a poster of myself would really spice this place up”? Well, it’s your lucky day! The UGL is excited to announce the READ, WATCH, PLAY Poster Contest. Yes, it is your golden opportunity to get YOUR FACE on a poster. You can hang it on the wall and show it off to friends, or you can hang it somewhere dark and scare your friends. It’s totally up to you because it will be all yours! So, here’s how it’s going down.

1. You must be a current undergraduate student at the University of Illinois.

2. You must like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.

3. You will then pick a book, movie, or video game that you want to pose with. Explain to us (just 2 or 3 sentences) why you chose that book, movie, or video game and why you think other undergrads would be interested in it.

4. What is your favorite service or space at the Undergraduate Library and why?

A print application will be available at the Circulation desk on the upper level of the UGL. An online application is available at here.

Once a winner is chosen, a “photo shoot” will take place at the video production studio in the UGL. Be ready to reveal your inner supermodel. Once the photos are done, the poster will be printed out and displayed at our wonderful library through spring. An extra poster will be printed out for you to keep!

A Day in the Life: Angeline

Posted on April 17, 2014 by LK

Have you ever wondered what a librarian’s job looks like? Or what exactly the staff members, faculty, and graduate assistants do at the Undergraduate Library during the day? Here’s your chance to find out! Meet Angeline, a graduate assistant at the UGL.

Q: So, Angeline, what do you do here?
A: Well, I’m a graduate assistant, so I get to do a lot of different things! Most often, I work at the research desk on the upper level of the UGL, and I also answer your questions through the Ask A Librarian chat. I teach library instruction classes for CMN 101/111, Rhet 105, and ESL 115 classes, so you may have had me as your instructor in one of those sessions. I’m here early to open the UGL on Saturday mornings, so if you really want to make my day, feel free to bring me tea! One of the projects I get to work on that I’m really excited about is digitizing video games.

Q: That sounds awesome. What’s your favorite part about your job?
A: Definitely the people I work with. Between having a lot of classes together and working together, all the graduate assistants here are pretty close. I really like how we all support each other, both in this job and as we have started looking for full-time employment after graduation.

Q: What’s your favorite part of the UGL?
A: Hmmm…the staff area! If you haven’t been back there–and, of course you haven’t, you’re probably not staff–it’s like Narnia. I mean, literally, I have to wear a jacket because it’s so cold.

Q: Besides working at the UGL, what do you do for fun?
A: I enjoy reading comics, mostly from the UGL because we have a really great collection. I’m a big Captain America fan, so I requested the comics we don’t have here from other libraries through I-Share so I could read them ALL.

Q: Nice! Now, let’s talk about something really important. Where is your favorite place to eat in town?
A: Black Dog! I love me some BBQ.

Q: Yum. What’s your favorite part of working with students?
A: Helping students find the information they need. There’s nothing better than having a student ask you for help, then being able to work with them to find what they’re looking for. It makes me feel like a superhero…but with less explosions. Although I did have to call an ambulance once.

Q: What do you wish students knew about the UGL?
A: That so many people who work at the UGL are here to answer your questions and help you with whatever you might need. So, come visit me on the research desk, I’d love to help!

Old school gaming

Posted on September 2, 2013 by HJL

If you’ve visited the Gaming Center of the UGL since returning for the fall semester, you may have noticed a new display and some new decor. (And if you haven’t, you should drop by and check it out, along with all the other summer updates). You may already be aware that the UGL has a pretty extensive collection of games and equipment you can check out and take home or play in the library. But you may not know that we also have a large collection of vintage games and consoles, from Atari to Sega.

Mario was originally meant to be a carpenter, not a plumber. Now, before you get too excited, you can’t actually check out any of the vintage consoles or games. Some of them are simply too old or fragile, and too much use could cause them to degrade and become unusable. It’s important for us that the games kept in the best condition possible, as not many libraries have these types of collections. Faculty and researchers doing research into vintage games are able to examine and use the games and consoles, though they will not be available for general use. Don’t worry, though, we’ve got the inside scoop on the collection and you can reminisce with us about those long-lost childhood days. The collection includes games for the Atari, Nintendo, SNES, Sega Genesis, and many more. (Mario! Zelda! Sonic! Donkey Kong! We’ve got them all.) In order to preserve these games for as long as possible, the UGL staff has been hard at work this summer archiving the games and transferring them to storage. This can be a long process, as each game has to have a storage box built around it in order to ensure the best fit and, consequently, the best protection for the cartridge.

A game box opened all the way…

…and a game box closed up tight to protect the cartridge from light and dust.

Once all the games are boxed and stored, the next phase of the project begins, which includes digitizing the games and eventually, adding them to the library’s catalog so people (like you!) can see what we have. If this has got you itching to play some of your old favorites, you may consider stopping by the UGL to check out updates to the classics, like Mariokart Wii, The Legend of Zelda, Sonic the Hedgehog, or Final Fantasy. You need a break from all that studying, anyway.

Quick-change Acts

Posted on August 29, 2013 by CN

Have you popped in for a visit to the UGL since the semester started? If you have, you’ve probably noticed that things are a lil’ different around here. Don’t get disoriented! We’ve still got all the cool stuff you know and love, and even some new stuff. We just did some shuffling over the summer. Here’s a quick guide to some of the major changes.

Behold: your new chill spot.

First off, the new books and magazines – which used to be on the northern side of the upper level – are now on the shelves on the southern side, near the collaboration rooms. You may notice that this is the same spot where the reference books and career cluster used to be. If you still have need of the style guides or test prep materials that used to be there, fear not! We still have them – we just moved them with the rest of the books downstairs. Ask a librarian to help you find them.

Enter and be enter-tained (cue audience groan)

Speaking of downstairs, we also rearranged our media enclosure, so your favorite movies and audiobooks should be easier to find. The audiobooks are now against the left wall, and the VHS tapes are all huddled together like friends. It’s a much better arrangement, but if you still need a bit of help finding something, ask the nice person in the vest who should be sitting at the table pictured above.

Come to the gaming space to feel the cosmos.

In other entertainment news, the gaming space has also been getting revamped over the summer. Why don’t you come in to check it out? We’ll still be adding things as the fall semester progresses – come see our new stuff as we get it!

The place to go to find (print) release.

Printing, printing, gotta get that printing done. Printing from our public computers still works the same way it did last year – we’ve just moved the printers to new locations, so don’t panic when you don’t see them right away. Did you know that we also now offer laptop printing? Tada! You’re welcome.

While we’re on the subject of laptops, say hello to the Chromebook:

Why hello there.

The Macbooks and HP laptops that you’ve all gotten so much use out of have outgrown their warranties, and gone off to a happy retirement. These sleek new Chromebooks are now your new best friends. Check one out at the loanable tech desk!

That’s it for now. There have also been some changes to the electronic reserves system for your classes – check back next week so you can read our explanation of those. Good luck and happy studying!

Pushing Buttons

Posted on July 22, 2013 by CN

Looking for yet more ways to have fun this summer? Of course you are. And, of course, the UGL is here to help. We’ve got video games and everything you need to play them, so why not indulge in a gaming marathon before the fall semester starts and your life gets crazy again?

I’m somewhere in the UGL, eternally jumping! Come find me!

You can always come in and browse the shelves in our media collection to pick out a game, but if you want to see what we have from the comfort of your own home (or see everything we offer, not just what’s currently on the shelf and not checked out) you can also search for video games using the catalog. If you’re comfortable using the Classic Catalog, then we have a partial list of games for each console linked from the Games and Consoles page. If you’d rather use the VuFind catalog, here are some ways you can search in there.

To see basically every video game ever, go to the catalog and do a search for ‘Video Game,’ selecting ‘Subject’ from the drop-down menu next to the search box. The results this gives you will contain all our video games, but it will also contain books and movies about video games (like this one!). So, to make sure you get only video games, use the limiters on the right-hand side of the screen to choose ‘Software/Computer File’ as the format. This will take out all those books and give you only games – about 1,700 of them!

If you don’t want to look at all 1,700 results – say, you only want to look at games that we have for a certain console – there’s a way to do that, too. First, decide what console you’re looking for, type that into the search bar, and select ‘Keyword’ as your search criteria. Then hit the ‘Find’ button.

The search box is on the main catalog interface.

If you want to find computer games, ‘PC Games’ is a good search term to use. Don’t worry, it’ll bring up Mac games, too.

Then, like you did before, select ‘Software/Computer File’ as your format to remove any books or non-video game objects from the results.

The format limiter is on the right-hand side of the screen under "narrow your search"

If you DO want books about video games, pick ‘Books’ instead.

You can check video games out for up to a week and play them on your own devices at home, but we also have several handheld consoles available for one-week loans – you can check out the UGL’s Loanable Tech page to check on their availability. And if you want to play a game on a platform you don’t own, remember that we have several available (with all their associated controllers) in our gaming space as part of the Media Commons! Bring all your friends and have a good time. While you’re there, check out the new display showing off selections from our vintage gaming collection – if you don’t go anywhere else this summer, you can always travel down memory lane.

Loanable Tech, At Your Service

Posted on November 12, 2012 by CN

Cats and students all want to know: can I has this shiny device?
As active and informed members of Club UGL, you obviously know all about our loanable technology options, right? “Of course!” you say. “We check out laptops and chargers and headphones to help us study, all the time!” We know you do, you studious, busy little bees, and we’re glad you get so much use out of them—but don’t forget about all the other tech options that are available to you! For use on assignments or just for funsies and personal projects, we also have cameras, voice recorders, handheld gaming consoles (different kinds!), and tablets—most available for checkout for up to a week at a time. There’s a great big world of shiny technology here for you to explore. Isn’t that exciting?

Not only is our pool of technology large and diverse, but we’re constantly striving to expand it and include more useful gadgets for you. Lately, we’ve been adding lots of video cameras and related equipment for all your amateur and academic videography needs; here are a few we’d like to spotlight and make you more aware of.

The camcorder has a screen that folds out for easier viewing while filming.

It’s a camera! Whee!

HC-V700M HD Camera
If you’re making a video, whether for class or yourself, your primary need is, of course, a camera—and voila, we have just added 10 of these cameras into circulation! They have handy touch-screens to make them more intuitive to work with, and they can capture still images simultaneously with video, at pretty impressive frame rates. These cameras have 16GB of internal memory, but if you need to store even more video, they also accept SD cards. Go ahead, shoot video to your heart’s content!

Keep it steady.

Tripods
If horror-movie-style shaky cams aren’t what you’re going for in your video project, why not check out a handy tripod to use with your camera? We’ve got itty-bitty 5-inch tripods, and quite tall 72-inch tripods, and some sizes in-between. Keep your camera still, rotate it smoothly, adjust the angle easily—tripods make it possible, and we just added several more. Snap one up!

She blinded me with science, and LED lights.

Digital Juice Miniburst 128 Light
If you’re trying to film in less than optimum lighting—and it sure is getting dark early nowadays—you can check out one of these LED lights. They will mount onto any of the Panasonic cameras we offer (though you can use them with any camera), and will brighten that scene right up!

The backpack makes it convenient to carry the video camera kits.

It may look plain, but its contents grant untold powers.

Panasonic Video Camera Backpack
If you’re a Serious Videographer with Serious Videographer Needs, we’ve got some goodies for you, too. We just added some unassuming but pretty awesome backpacks that contain not only our Panasonic HC-V700M camcorder (see description above), but also a lavalier mic and a condenser shotgun mic, just to make things extra fancy. If those terms make sense to you and get you going, this is the rig for you. Combine it with the tripods and LED lights, or even a 3D conversion lens (we have those, too!) if you want a really comprehensive setup. Not for the faint of heart, or those with only basic needs.

That’s what we’ve added most recently in terms of video equipment—we also have brand spankin’ new Apple Lightning to USB converters, so that those of you with the newest iPhone can charge ’em up while you’re visiting us. We have loads and loads of things that we’re just itching to loan out to you—why don’t you glance over our list and see what we can help you with? If you want a more visual interface, you can also browse our Loanable Tech Pinterest board, which is also shiny and new.

You live in the future and have all these gadgets at your disposal to make your life easier (and more fun)—come and get ’em!

Read like an Olympian

Posted on July 26, 2012 by EP

The London 2012 Summer Olympics Opening Ceremonies officially kick off tomorrow (though soccer is already underway), and we hope you’ll cheer on as some of your fave athletes from your fave countries participate in your fave events (this blogger likes to watch track and field and diving!).

London Olympics flyer with Greek discus throwing statue in front of Big Ben

Photo from The National Archives UK via Flickr Commons

If you want to dive even deeper into the spirit of this spectacular once-every-four-years event that is the Summer Olympics, here’s some books, movies and video games from the UGL’s collection for you to sprint, jump, row, kick, swim, paddle, run, flip, volley, putt, or cycle through!*

The Naked Olympics: The True Story of the Ancient Games

Dig deep into the pagan ritual that was the ancient Olympics. Yes, the modern Olympics have been around for what seems like forever (116 years), but the ancient ones were held for over a millenium: 1200 years in all! There’s lots of history, culture, athleticism, and apparently nudity, to be learned about from this great read.

This Great Symbol: Pierre de Coubertin and the Origins of the Modern Olympic Games (also available online)

Pierre de Coubertin, the father of the modern Olympics, was a French baron with a passion for sport. If you’re a history, anthropology, sports, and/or biography buff, pick this up at your earliest convenience. Part biography of Coubertin, part history of the founding of the games, all thrilling look into the theories and dreams behind the modern games.

Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games

Not much needs to be said about this Nintendo DS game; it’s all in the title. Race, swim, jump, and play for the bronze, silver or gold as your fave Nintendo hero. Play it during the commercial breaks while watching the coverage of the real Olympics! (p.s. you can check out a DS from the UGL, too!)

Beijing 2008

Another awesome Olympics video game guaranteed to make you feel like you’ve trained as hard as the real-life Olympic athletes (okay, maybe not quite). Instead of doing the long jump as Yoshi, in this Playstation 3 game you play as an athlete participating as part of a national team in one of over 30 events. Sweet.

Chariots of Fire

A classic in the Olympics genre! Chariots of Fire follows two men participating in track and field on the Great Britain team during the 1924 Paris Olympics. Each has his own deep-rooted, complicated reasons for giving it his all. It won four Academy Awards in its day, so besides being a tale of Olympic glory, it’s also great cinema.

* Library books don’t like to get wet, though, so be sure not to take them swimming, diving or water polo-ing with you if you get inspired. They also appreciate not being kicked, volleyed, putted, or jumped on.

Get Game

Posted on April 10, 2012 by EP

Displays of games, consoles, and books about gaming.

If you’re curious about what it takes to get a career in the video game industry, don’t miss this: on April 19th, the UGL will hold our annual Gaming Career Night. From 7-10pm, artists, writers, programmers, IT managers, music composers and more from local video game company Volition, Inc. will be in room 291 to share their advice and experience. You will have the opportunity to meet one-on-one and in small groups with Volition team members to discuss careers, networking and job-seeking tips, academic advice, and more. PLUS: if you have any artwork, story line ideas, and/or games you’ve created, bring a portfolio of samples to have them critiqued by the experts!

Did you know that Champaign is home to a world-class video game company? Cool, huh?! Champaign-based company Volition, Inc., was born in 1993 as Parallax Software, founded by Mike Kullas and Matt Toschlog. In 1994, the released a shareware version of Descent, which quickly made it into the Top 100 Internet Games charts. The full version of Descent, released in 1995, won a PC Gamer’s Editor’s Choice award, earning one of the top ratings (96%) a game has ever gotten. In 1996, Parallax became Volition, Inc, and the affiliated company Outrage Entertainment. Since then the company has released more highly popular and critically-acclaimed games such as Summoner, Red Faction and Saints Row.

Wondering why the UGL is hosting this particular event? Well, the UGL is part of a Gaming Initiative, which is why we have a large video game collection, a gaming center in the library, and handheld consoles like PSPs for you to check out. The collection supports interdisciplinary research in gaming that goes on in the areas of psychology, computer science, information science, literature and more. Ridiculously awesome.

If you can’t make it to the Gaming Career Night, check out this handy guide to careers in gaming! Here you can read sample job descriptions, advice from industry insiders from previous Gaming Career Nights, a list of UIUC courses in gaming and game design, and more.

Filtered image of games on shelf

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