Table Arrangement and Noise

You wrote:

Heres’ a suggestion to noise: Reorganize the tables and seating arrangements so that those individuals making noise will be in visible site by other peers studying. The best way to crack down on noise makers is to have other students pressure the noise makers to leave.
From what I’ve seen, authoritative pressure will only promote more rebelling to make noise. Might I add it is very expensive to hire watchdogs for noise makers and this is only a temporary solution.

My proposal for seating arrangements is as follows. If you look at the second floor study area behind the computer area (i think where the periodicals are) this area is very silent because there are 3 long rowed tables and everyone is in visible sight. As such, anyone making noise will definitely stand out. Also if you noticed Vanier library is quieter because it has a similar seating area arangement as what I’m proposing.

Now if you look at the Webster library, especially on the 4th floor, it is very easy for students to make noise as the tables are spread out in a single file line along the windows. This promotes noise making as groups of people will mark a particular table as their own and probably engage in group talking and other non-approved library behaviors. This is why manystudent use the library as hang out areas. Clustering them into vast seating areas, such as it is at Vanier, should definitely solve this problem as it would make seating areas a common place for all to use.

As for the orange and blue zones, im my honest opinion, orange zone is misleading as students believe they can engage in noise making behaviors. It only takes a few individuals to make the library feel like a crowd!

Note: Cubicles aren’t the solution either!

Thank you for taking the time to share all your suggestions about how furniture contributes to a noisy or quiet atmosphere. We appreciate your ideas very much. The arrangement and types of furniture in the library spaces are definitely factors we consider in relation to noise management. Thank you again!

Fines for Noise?

You wrote:

Please start issuing fines to people who disrupt their fellow students in the library. The Blue/Orange Zone was a good idea, but one of the negative effects was that the Orange areas got louder. Since mutual respect doesn’t seem to work, then perhaps substantial fines will.

We have had suggestions to issue fines to those who are disruptive, but we would rather just be notified so that a staff member can respond to a noise concern. We encourage you to let us know when someone is being too loud. You will regularly see library staff walking through the building; please let them know. Otherwise, please inform someone at a service desk.

Temperature at Vanier Library

You wrote:

The university’s Vanier Library (Loyola) should be ashamed of itself. Students come to study/work in a library, not a freezer! In case the University has not noticed, it is winter outside and it is flu/cold season; it is constantly freezing cold inside the library. The radiators are NOT radiating anything! If after this written complaint and the recent verbal one I have already made is not enough motive for action, more noise will have to be made on the issue.

Thank you for contacting us about the temperature at the Vanier Library. The library is quite vigilant about noting the temperatures in the building because many of the heat pumps are old and need to be replaced on a regular basis. Still, we are glad you contacted us. Right now, the temperatures in the building are within normal ranges for the season. We verified the temperatures throughout the building yesterday (February 1st) and they were all within the 21-24 degree Celsius range. However, extreme weather or sudden changes in the temperature outside can have an impact on the temperature inside the building. We are glad that you reported this, and we encourage you to let us know if you feel uncomfortable. We will do everything we can to maintain a comfortable temperature at the Vanier Library.

What was that book I borrowed?

You wrote:

In the online CLUES library catalogue, could you please add an option to show the history of items that were checked out in the past? This not only confirms that I returned things on time, but I also sometimes want to check out a book again (especially if it was recalled). Thanks for your helpful services.

Great suggestion! We think it would be very useful for students to be able to see a list of the books they have borrowed in the past. Students often ask for this. We are currently developing this service, and we look forward to offering it soon.  You will be able to look at a list of what you have borrowed, and organize it by author or title. You will also be able to email yourself the list of what you have borrowed. Thanks for writing!

 

 

More Computers

You wrote:

This is about the Webster library: I am literally fed up with the lack of computers in the downtown library. Today (like every day) I had to stand in line to use a computer.Now as I type this I see 6 students waiting to use a computer and this isn’t even the “high” use time which seems to be around lunch hour.

 Another complaint I have is with the printers. Today only ONE printer is working and the other two are not. I stood in line with over 15 other students to print one page out. This is an outrage!

 Suggestions: I suggest that the university make another room available with more computers. There is a smaller roomon the 2nd floor library that I have used before, but now there is a sign stating that it will be closed because there is a big demand for that room. Students cannot use it now and yet, it is sitting empty as I type this. A suggestion for the printers would be – have another printer available and please have someone who can do maitenence on the machines working so that they can be fixed as soon as possible. Thank you.

Thank you for writing with your feedback and your suggestions. I am sorry that you have experienced frustration when trying to use the computers and printers at the Library. We have as many computers as our limited resources allow. We know that demand for computers is very high on campus. As enrollment increases at Concordia, so too does demand for computers at the Library. We work as fast as possible to maintain the computer equipment we have available. The printers will be fixed as soon as possible. 

Please note that we will be acquiring more than 70 new laptops, thanks to the CSU contribution. You can borrow a laptop at the Circulation Desk.

 The Library offers many workshops in room 203,and so for a period of time each semester this computer lab is unavailable as an individual workspace while workshops are offered. We know that this is inconvenient, but we need this space to deliver workshops to groups of students. Often there are periods of time when the room is empty, because otherwise we would be kicking students out every couple of hours to use the room for classes. We are sorry for the inconvenience. We know how much those computers are needed. There is a schedule of workshops posted at the door of LB-203 and as of February 11th, the room will be open for walk-in use again.

 Thank you for your suggestions.

Interlibrary Loans (COLOMBO)

You wrote:

Just wanted to let you know how very much I appreciate the ILL service. I have used it alot in the past few years as I am working on my PhD. Most of the time the books come very quickly. The staff have been very helpful when there is the occasional glitch. I also teach part time and am so pleased that undergrads can make use of this service for free. THANK YOU!!

Thanks for letting us know that you appreciate our Interlibrary Loans service. We’re very glad it has been so helpful for you as you work towards your PhD! Thanks for your comments.

Damaged Book

You wrote:

Borrowed a book (BF 39 K46 1992) two days ago and immediately noticed the whole book had been marked with blue pen and pink highligther, whoever commited such act is disgraceful, disrespectful and irresponsible for the university properties.

In the past, I had encountered quite a number of similar situations since it was in pencil marks I
could still erase it with an eraser, but this time it is totally unacceptable.

Could the library establish some measures to monitor further damages to the precious books?

With my experiences in Hong Kong, which is ten times smaller than Montreal island but have 12 millions population, the public library staff would briefly flip the book before it lent out ensuring there is no damage otherwise they would not lent it out. Also,they would briefly flip the book upon return, if there is any damage there would be penalty (usually it is the cost of the book replacement). Even if the books return by book deposit, they would trace back the last
borrower who had checked out a clean copy of the book and penalise them. The high school library, where I volunteered, also adopted the same policy and practise to ensure the protection of the library properties.

Sincerely wish the library could preserve the precious books and properties for many others to enjoy freely in the future.

Thank you for writing us with your concerns. It is very frustrating to borrow a book and see that it has been marked up and with a pen or highlighter. Thank you for reporting the damaged book to us. We have ordered an additional copy of the book so that future readers can have a better copy to use.

We try to check books for damage when they are returned, but we often have a very heavy volume of books returned at certain points in the semester, so it is not always possible to check each one. Thank you for letting us know.

Noise Notification

You wrote:

Noise is most definitely the biggest concern with our library. I propose some sort of notification system (telephones, a link on the library site, or even a number we can send a text message to) that would allow us to directly contact library staff/security regarding noise complaints. This would be useful in assessing the urgency of a complaint since most students don’t want to go all the way downstairs and risk losing their study space. A zoning system (letters/numbers for various locations in the library) would allow staff to keep track of areas with high noise concentrations, and this would also enable security workers to find disruptive students.

Abuse of this type of system would be minimal, since multiple unique complaints from a specific zone could be determined via cell phone number or perhaps netname.

Thank you for your thoughtful suggestion!

Happy holidays!

Over the holidays, we will be taking some time off from the suggestion box.  However, please do continue to send in your comments.  We look forward to reading them all in 2010! 

Happy holidays!

ID required?

You wrote:

I’m surprised this is being taken seriously and it is truly appreciated. However there is an important issue I haven’t read about yet which concerns the amount of students/people that are in the library during examination periods. It becomes really hard for us, students at Concordia to find a place to study. It would be appreciated if security can check id’s since at least half of the crowds during the examination period don’t attend Concordia University. Thanks!

Thank you for your input. You are right in saying that there is a lack of study space at the downtown library. Its capacity is for 2950 people, yet an average of 5000 people visit the Webster Library on a daily basis! That number is sure to go up in the New Year, as the Webster Library will be open 24/7, as of January 4 2010! At that time, ID cards will be required to visit the library during the night.

As for checking IDs during the day, years ago, when the Webster Library first began the 24-hour-opening at exam time, security guards checked ID cards at the library entrance all day long. One year, they did this outside of exam time, just to keep track of who was coming through the doors. It was found that the vast majority of users were in fact our own students. So, it was felt that rather than spend money on keeping a guard to check IDs 24/7, it would be preferable to have a longer 24-hour-opening period, one that began well before exam time. In fact, this year, the Webster Library 24-hour-opening began November 30, 10 days before the beginning of exams.

Thanks for taking the time to write to us.