Classified Information: the Lloyd Sealy Library Newsletter, Spring 2008 issue, is just out. Look for it in print in or near your department mailbox or read it online.

Georgia State University is being sued by three publishers, claiming copyright infringement. The New York Times reported the story on April 16, 2008. More information and commentary about the case is being collected by the DigitalKoans blog.

ebrary   

Directions:   Start by searching for a book with the advanced search box.  Select a book from the results list and click on the book title.  You will be prompted to install the reader, if needed.   The ebrary reader is a simple Java application that works safely with your browser as long as the settings  accept cookies and the pop-up blocker is set to accept pop-ups from the ebrary site.  You will be asked for permission to download the application and prompted to accept the License Agreement.  The installation should only take a minute or so.  Check the Help menu for advice based on the browser you use.  

 With the ebrary reader installed, you now have access to the full-text of over 37,000 books from all academic subjects.  You will be able to search for your specific topics of interest within the library of books, locate subsections of books that may be of interest, read the whole book online, print selected pages, and make notes in your private folder.

Try this out and let us know your comments via this blog or send emails to  ggross@jjay.cuny.edu

Foreign and International Law Resources  (trial until May 15th)

Directions: Use the link to HeinOnline;  then select Foreign & International Law Resources 

The legal resources in HeinOnline are greatly enhanced by a  new set of international law publications from the Hague Permanent Court of International Justice, the American Society of International Law and legal Yearbooks from countries around the world.  While many of the volumes are of historic interest, others cover the current decade.  Publications such as  The Africa Yearbook of International Law,the Human Rights Law in Africa, and The South African Human Rights Yearbook  expand the resources on  human rights issues in Africa.   Other geographic areas such as Croatia, the Baltic area, Israel,  New Zealand, and Singapore have their own legal yearbooks.

Art Museum Image Gallery   (trial until May 30th)

This digital collection of art images and multimedia resources brings the treasurers of major musuems from around the world to the computer screen.  The images have been given clearance for educational use.  The collection covers both ancient and modern artworks from cultures and nations throughout the world.

African American Studies Center  (trial until May 10th)

This database is a collection of major reference works in the field of African American Studies Both the original  Encyclopedia of African American History, 1619-1895 and the newer edition covering 1896 to the present are searchable.   Another valueable source is The African American National Biography with over 6,000 biographies and continual updates. All articles are written by top scholars. The home web page showcases different topics. The editor in chief for this project is Henry Louis Gates, Jr. from Harvard University and the publisher is Oxford.

Latino Literature  (trial until June 3rd)

This is a database of drama, fiction, and poetry written in English and Spanish by hundreds of Chicano, Cuban, Puerto Rican, Dominican and other Central and South American  authors working in the United States.  About one third of the literary  works have never been published before.  The works are published in the original language.   Most works are from the 20th and 21st centuries, but some 19th century works are included.  The authors provide a window on “different immigration experiences, their efforts to adapt to a new culture and language without losing their own, and the struggle to pursue social, political, and economic advancement.”

 Please post any comments to this blog or send email to ggross@jjay.cuny.edu

GreenFILE is a new database of information about environmental concerns from EBSCO.   It indexes scholarly and general interest titles as well as government documents and reports, and draws on the connection between the environment and disciplines such as agriculture, law, education, health and technology.  It contains nearly 300,000 bibliographic records, full text for selected titles, and searchable cited references for nearly 200 titles.  

The New Palgrave Dictionary of Economics (2008) is available on trial for the members of the John Jay and CUNY community until April 4, 2008.  This database functions more as a specialized encyclopedia because economic concepts are explained in lengthy articles rather than short definitions. Articles range from  classical economics to current issues such as Fiscal and monetry policies in developing countries. The articles have been written by more than a thousand of the world’s leading economists.

 Please post your comments to the blog or send an email to ggross@jjay.cuny.edu

Black Drama Second Edition  (trial until May 6th)

This database contains the full text of 1,450 plays written from the mid-1800s to the present by more than 200 playwrights from North America, English-speaking Africa (Ghana, Uganda, Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa), the Caribbean, and other African diaspora countries. More than a quarter of the collection consists of previously unpublished plays.  Plays by key writers of the Harlem Renaissance will be of special interest as will works performed for the Federal Theatre Project, and plays by critically acclaimed dramatists of the 1940s.  Images from playbills, stills, photographs, and other ephemera are included for some of the plays. 

Our trial access has been established for members of the John Jay community and will continue until May 6, 2008.  Please post any comments to this blog or send email to ggross@jjay.cuny.edu