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When is the library open? 7:45 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. on school days Whom do I ask for help? Any of the library staff is willing and happy to answer your questions. We will refer you to the person who can help you the most. Also, please feel free to step into Mrs. Barnes's or Mrs. Arant's office and ask them for help if no one appears at the front desk. Who can check out books from the library? Any current school student or employee may check out books. Any student from the MAISLIC group may also check out books. A parent of a student can use his or her student's account to check out a book, but due dates do apply. Where do I return a book? Please use the Book Drop slot at the front desk. If you return a book to a cart or shelf it WILL NOT be checked back in and you will find your name on the overdue list. Where are fiction books? Fiction is upstairs; use the front stairwell. What does SC mean? SC stands for Story Collection; short stories are arranged by the author or title of the collection, between the fiction and biography sections upstairs. Where are biographies? Biographies are in the 92s, which are on the south wing next to the short story collection and the fiction shelves. Where are the Oversize books? The Oversize shelf is next to the wall adjacent to the biography (92) section. Can I use the computers in the smart classroom? This room is locked when a class is not using the room. Please use student computers by the front desk; if all those are in use, ask for help and a librarian will either open the classroom or lend you a laptop for use at the computer tables by the Reference Well steps. What is the username and password for a database? A brochure is available at the front desk with this information; if you're off campus, you can email a librarian or call the library at 260-1390. You can also find Mrs. Barnes's home phone number in the U-Book. What databases are recommended for my subject? See our Databases page for a complete list of databases appropriate for your subject. Where can I get a tape recorder and a cassette tape? Behind the front desk we keep cassette tapes, which you can purchase for 50 cents, and tape recorders that you can borrow while in the library. Can I donate books or materials to the library? Yes! The library encourages and appreciates memorials and gifts. Donations may be made through the MUS Development Office by giving to the annual campaign and designating your gift for the library. If you would like to give books or other materials to the library, please contact the library director at (901) 260-1390. Can I use the copy machine? The copy machine is available for students and faculty/staff. If you are having trouble using the copier, please ask one of the library staff for help. Can I use the phone? Students are allowed to use the wall phone behind the desk. Just ask for permission and dial "9" before the number. Can I check out the magazines? Magazines and newspapers can be checked out overnight. But you can access most of these online from the library or home 24 hours a day through our online databases or search for it using Serials Solutions. Can I play games or listen to music on the computers before or after school? No. The computer policy remains the same regardless of the time. If the music is for a school project, please let us know at the front desk and we will provide headphones. Top Of Page How Do I? How do I find a book? Go to the Library Catalog and enter your search terms. For a listing of new materials acquired by the library check the What's New section. See our Books page for more information. How do I log in to the school network? From campus, use your first name (dot) last name as a username and the assigned password. If you've forgotten your password, call Mr. Smith in the Upper School computer lab to reset it. How do I log in to a database? A brochure is available at the front desk with this information; if you're off campus, you can email a librarian or call the library at 260-1390. You can also find Mrs. Barnes's home phone number in the U-Book. How do I use an e-book in netLibrary? Go to Mrs. Barnes's faculty homepage for an overview, or just go to www.netlibrary.com and follow their online instructions. For optimal use, set up an account while you're on campus, and then you can access the database from any computer. For Thomson Gale e-books, go to the Gale Virtual Reference Library; no separate account is needed. How do I check out a Reference book? The Reference materials can be checked out for overnight use only at the end of the school day. The library can put a Reference book on hold for you until you can check it out after school. Library fines for overdue Reference materials are BY THE HOUR, so please bring them back before school starts the next day. How do I pay a library fine? Simply bring your money to a member of the library staff at the front desk and ask to pay your bill. U Cards do not work as a form of payment in the library. How do I know if I have an overdue book? The due date is stamped into the front of the book; check that date due slip. Usually, all library books are due on a Wednesday. Also, your name will be on the overdue list. To take your name off the overdue list, you will need to return the book and pay the fine. You can always ask any of the library staff to look up your status if you're still uncertain. How do I cite in MLA style? See our Red & Blue Guide for Works Cited Lists. For general MLA help, see our MLA Style page. How do I find a primary source? See the Primary Sources page for print and electronic sources along with a definition of the term. How do I find a full-text article for my research paper? Look in the periodical databases under title or keyword, and select Search for Full Text Articles Only. If you have a citation but can't find the full text online, you can also ask Mrs. Arant or Mrs. Barnes for an interlibrary loan.
Practice Tests TERC offers PSAT, SAT, ACT, and AP practice tests through Thomson Gale. You must create your own username and password once you're there so that the site can keep track of your test scores. For more practice software, scholarship websites, and information on the college application process, see the College Guidance page.
Quick Research Little Known Resources | Encyclopedias | Dictionaries & Thesauri | Fast Facts | Local Information | Maps | Weather | Search Directories
The Digital Book Index attempts to list every free e-book available on the Internet. You have to log in, but it's free. Go to Mrs. Barnes's faculty homepage for more information on e-books. Google Scholar When you are on campus, you can do a Google search for your research subject and Google will display JSTOR results. That's because JSTOR recognizes the MUS computers as subscribers. Serials Solutions This search lets you browse through all of the online journals, or do a search by title. DianaHacker.com This site gives good examples of citations in MLA format, with a drop-down index of document types. For help with MLA citations, see our MLA Style page. For a computer-generated citation for a whole book, try out ottobib.com, or subscribe to noodletools.com. Again, these sites are not guaranteed to be correct.
Britannica Online This edition, designed specifically for students, features the most recent update of the complete encyclopedia, an internet guide, a video library, learning activities, and more. If accessing off-campus, please contact the library for password information. Wikipedia.org The free encyclopedia with an open contribution policy. Be sure to doublecheck this information with other sources because wikis are vulnerable to vandalism and inaccuracies. Check out this article for more information about the downside to Wikipedia and a new alternative. Top Of Page Dictionaries & Thesauri Bartleby.com Offers the American Heritage Dictionary , the Columbia Encyclopedia, Roget's Thesaurus, Bartlett's Familiar Quotations, and the American Heritage Book of English Usage. Clicking the tabs brings you to a listing of available texts for these categories: dictionary, encyclopedia, thesaurus, quotations, and English usage. Merriam Webster Online Dictionary Provides access to a dictionary, thesaurus, and word games. Oxford English Dictionary Online The definitive source on the history and usage of the English Language. Access is limited to the MUS community. Contact the library for username and password. Thesaurus.com Includes a simple translator, word of the day, and word games. WordNet An online lexical reference system whose design is inspired by current psycholinguistic theories. English nouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs are organized into synonym sets, each representing one underlying lexical concept. Your Dictionary.com Over 1500 dictionaries representing more than 230 languages are linked here. Fast Facts World Almanac Facts.com partnered with the classic almanac to host this online version and its sister encyclopedia. Fact Monster Produced by the folks at "Information Please," Fact Monster offers not only links to ready reference information, but also links to science, mathematics, government, history, people, and sports information. Information Please Almanac Provides access to daily and kids' almanacs, an atlas, a dictionary, and an encyclopedia. Library Spot Extensive list of links to encyclopedias, maps, libraries, and more. Old Farmer's Almanac Offers access to North America's oldest continuously published periodical. RefDesk Provides links to ready reference information, search engines, news, weather, and chosen subject links. Local Information Commercial Appeal The daily edition and a search engine for older articles. Articles from the Appeal and other area newspapers are also available from the Proquest Online database. Access to Proquest is limited to the MUS Community. Contact the Library for the username and password. DirectoryMemphis.com Provides a frequently updated Memphis city directory. Memphis Museums Listing of museums, things to do, and arts and culture features. WMC TV5 For weather-related school closings, local news, and information from the NBC local affiliate. Top Of Page
Find maps The MLA Style has a Research Guide section which includes finding maps. Find Primary Sources This page has a section of maps that are primary sources. Mapquest This site has easy to use features for finding places, but some maps aren't always current. Google Maps Good site for driving directions; maps aren't always current.
Accuweather Local weather for any U.S. city with hourly forecasts. NOAA Official site of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. See Today's Weather by city or state, current watches and warnings, and global earth observations.
Directories Search directories are indexed by people, not computers. They are driven by a hierarchical menu instead of a search algorithm. Because of this, directories index fewer sites, but may give you better results than search engines. The Internet Public Library Maintained by the University of Michigan's Library Science school. Michigan Electronic Library Sponsored by the Library of Michigan, MEL offers a core set of useful subject links to its users. BBCi Search directory maintained by the British Broadcasting Corporation providing high quality sites with a UK focus. Infomine Brought to the web by the University of California, Riverside, this directory offers over 110,000 academically useful sites. Dewey Browse This is a very easy to use website that arranges websites according to their Dewey number. Pandia Search Central Includes search directory tutorial and helpful guides.
Ask.com Natural language search engine; incorporates the now-defunct Teoma. Webcrawler This metasearch engine combines Google, Yahoo, and other search engines; it operates under several names, including Dogpile and Metacrawler.
Glossary of Library Terms Audio Collection MUS Library holds a collection of audio cds and tapes. These are located downstairs in the AV cabinet outside the student Study Room. They can be checked out overnight. Book Drop A slot in the front desk where books can be returned after being checked out. To make sure books get checked back in properly, be sure to return books here. Cart See truck. College Collection Located in the back of the library. The college materials are available for overnight checkout, and the pamphlets and applications are available for students to take. Database A collection of information (articles, books, illustrations) stored electronically (online) and organized for access and retrieval through a user search. MUS databases can be paid for by subscription or free, with subscription databases requiring a password when accessed off-campus. Subscriptions are paid for annually by the Hyde Library. For passwords, contact a librarian. General Circulating Area See Stacks. Journal A periodical with an editorial board of scholars who review the submitted articles before publication. Journals are usually in a more formal style and written for an audience of professionals in a specific field. Also see Magazine for comparison. Journal issues in hard copy can be checked out overnight; many are also available online. Magazine A periodical with articles that are written for the general public and are chosen by a group of editors. Magazines are usually in a less formal style and contain advertising. Also see Journal for comparison. The magazines available in hard copy can be checked out overnight, and many are also available online in full-text. Newspapers The library subscribes to these newspapers: The Commercial Appeal, USA Today, Wall Street Journal, and the Sunday edition of The New York Times. They are displayed on rods and located with the magazines. Over 300 other titles are available online. On Display Books that are On Display CAN be checked out. Display areas of the library are: the front glass cases, the table beside the stairwell, and the study carrels beside the smart classroom. Overnight Materials that check out overnight include Reference, Reserve, and Magazines. They check out at the end of school and must be returned to the library the next day before school starts, no later than 8:30 a.m. Even being absent from school that day does not relieve a student of his responsibility to return overnight materials. Periodical Any publication (magazine or journal) that comes out periodically, or at certain intervals of time, and is numbered, contains separate articles, and has no end-date. For example, Sports Illustrated is a periodical. REF Call number for Reference books, which are located on the first floor. See Reference Collection. Reference Collection Any nonfiction book located downstairs, usually encyclopedias, dictionaries, handbooks, digests, or directories. Unlike most libraries, the MUS Library allows Reference materials to be checked out overnight. Reference Well At the MUS Library, the recessed area of the first floor has shelves in an X pattern with bookcases along the perimeter. Those books are available for checkout overnight. Reserve Books or videos on reserve are available during the school day to use while in the library. They can be checked out at the end of the school day but must be returned the next morning before school. Often more than one class is using the reserve books, so it is important those books are returned to the library in the morning. Serial A publication that is published at regular intervals, including periodicals as described above, newspapers, annuals, and indexes. Stacks The second floor of the library contains books which can be checked out for approximately two weeks, both fiction and nonfiction. Study Room Located downstairs at the back of the library, this room is always locked. Please sign in at the front desk for access. Truck The metal carts on wheels which hold Reserve books and books the library staff has checked in. Do not put any books on these trucks unless they have a green Reserve bookmark. To be safe, just return all the books you've used by putting them in the Book Drop or giving them to one of the library staff at the front desk. Video Collection Located at the back of the library in the gray cabinets and arranged by call number. Students can check out videos overnight. Video Editing Room Located downstairs next to Mrs. Arant's office, this room holds an iMac computer with all the video editing and burning software needed to create your own movie or podcast. The manuals are also available for student use if there are problems. This room remains locked and students must sign in at the front desk.
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