Category Archives: Alerts

ALERT | Library Service Updates during COVID-19 Crisis

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The Brown University Library buildings are closed with virtual services available at rock@brown.edu, hay@brown.edu, and library.brown.edu.

Read the latest on Brown’s response to the COVID-19 crisis.

Returning Physical Material

Graduating students are urged to return physical materials to the Rockefeller Library, through the book return drop located to the left of the front doors. Other students may also drop off materials at the Rock, or you can keep the items in your possession until you are able to return to campus. This includes items obtained through Borrow Direct, easyBorrow, and ILLiad. Fines and late fees will be waived.

Expanded Access to Digital Content

As a response to the global COVID-19 pandemic, many of the Library’s content providers have expanded Brown’s access to digital content in order to support online research, learning, and teaching. In addition to the 2 million+ digital books and journals available through the Library’s subscriptions, we are excited to share many addition additional resources from our partners.

Requests for Library Support & Digital Material

You can request access to digital material! Contact us at the following email addresses to request items, ask research questions, and connect with a Library expert:

Interlibrary Loan (ILL) requests for resources available electronically are being fulfilled!

Requests for Physical Library Materials

During the critical period of transition from site-based to online instruction, the Library was rotating a small number of staff onsite to scan physical material. However, now that we have made the transition, and in response to Governor Raimondo’s March 29th executive order, scanning of physical items is no longer possible until further notice. This includes scanning requests for Online Course Reserves Access (OCRA).

Faculty and Research Support

We are providing online services, including research consultations and instruction. Subject librarians can be reached by email and on chat, which will be staffed Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Additional resources:

Checking Out Library Materials

Checking-out of physical materials from Brown University Library, interlibrary loan (ILL), and BorrowDirect have been suspended until further notice (with the exception of requests for digital material). We will reassess all Library services on an ongoing basis and will post updates here.

Note that most Brown books can be renewed indefinitely.

Online Course Reserves Access (OCRA)

Scanning of physical material is no longer available. All digital material scanned or uploaded prior to April 3 will remain available. Students can continue to access course reserves through Canvas.

University Updates

Please check the University’s 2019 Novel Coronavirus Updates web page frequently for timely information.

Take good care and be well.

Announcement | Library Closing at Noon on August 14

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Ad with pool from Catskills 1997
“The Concord Resort Hotel, Kiamesha Lake, N.Y.: summer 1997 rates ” (1997). Catskills Institute. Brown Digital Repository. Brown University Library.

The Brown University Library will close at 12 p.m. on Wednesday, August 14, 2019 for the annual staff summer picnic.

The following locations will close:

  • Rockefeller Library
  • John Hay Library
  • Orwig Music Library
  • Annmary Brown Memorial
  • Library Annex

The Sciences Library will remain open, but there will be no library services available in the Friedman Center.

Thank you for your understanding.

Planned maintenance and service interruption: multiple library systems

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The library has scheduled an update and associated maintenance for the library catalog software on Tuesday, March 26 beginning at 10 am. This will require approximately eight hours of downtime for the library catalog and services tied to the software API. We chose this date to reduce the number of faculty, staff, and students affected by downtime.

We don’t expect the system to be down for more than eight hours, but we will send out an update should that time be extended for any reason. This update from version 3.4 to 4.2 will bring the library to the current release of this software and should resolve many outstanding issues.

Services interrupted include:

  • Requesting/paging items from any library or the Library Annex will be delayed
  • Patron records may not immediately reflect item returns and checkout
  • BorrowDirect requests will not work, but ILLiad will remain online
  • Classic Josiah will be down. Patrons will still be able to search ‘New’ Josiah though item availability information will not populate
  • Any link using josiah.brown.edu from Canvas, syllabi, various content management systems, or other communications will not work during downtime

Thank you for your patience and understanding while we work to improve services and facilitate world-class, innovative research.

Planned system outage

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The Library will be updating one of its core servers on Thursday morning, March 21. You may see instability in some Library services for a brief period of time. All buildings will remain open and all in-person services will continue to operate normally during the system update.

Library Paging Service Down

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The single-sign-on service (SSO) for Josiah that is hosted by Innovative is down.  This has been reported as an urgent problem.
Losing SSO means graduate / med / faculty patrons cannot page items from the Rock until service is restored.
In the meantime, users can request most materials from the Annex using the Blacklight discovery service (https://search.library.brown.edu) or login using the Affiliate login (name & barcode).

Exhibit | Black Panther Comics

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Marvel Comics Black Panther #31, 2001

“T’Challa is the Black Panther – a righteous king, noble Avenger, and fearsome warrior. Under his leadership, the African nation of Wakanda has flourished as one of the most technologically advanced countries in the world. And though he’s a card-carrying member of the Avengers, his first loyalty lies with his people, and he will defend them to his last breath.”  – Marvel

Black Panther, 1977, 1978, 2001
New York, New York: Marvel Comic Groups
Brown University Library, Special Collections

The Black Panther (T’Challa) made his comic strip debut in Fantastic Four: “The Black Panther” (Vol 1 #52) in July 1966. The superhero character premiered in his first solo series in 1977, followed by periodic runs through 2016.

Originally created by Stan Lee (writer) and Jack Kirby (penciler) during the era of the civil rights struggle, the comic addressed the lack of black superheroes in the broader American narrative.  The Black Panther’s significance is multilayered and includes anti-stereotypical representation, self-empowerment, and connectivity to Africa. T’Challa is as relevant today as when first created, as witnessed by the record-breaking box-office sales for the Black Panther movie and the character’s popularity on social media.

The Michael J. Ciaraldi Collection

Michael J. Ciaraldi began collecting in the early 1970s. The collection consists of 60,000 comic books, published from the 1970s to 1995. The most significant sections are comprised of magazine-format comics; graphic novels; fan and collector’s journals; reissues of classic “golden age” comics and newspaper strips; translations of Japanese “manga” and “anime” comics and European comic art; compilations of the work of comic artists; advertising ephemera; role-playing game materials; and adult erotica.

Dates: April 3 – 30, 2018
Time: John Hay Library Hours
Location: Second Floor Landing, John Hay Library, 20 Prospect Street, Providence