Magazines and Newspapers

Continuing on from the Media Commons area, we arrive at the magazine and newspaper section. This is a long, double sided shelving unit.

On the front facing shelves there are sample magazine covers. These are laminated and taped to the unit. They are alphabetized to help patrons and staff find what they are looking for quickly. For example, let’s say I was a patron looking for the magazine Every Day with Rachel Ray. I would quickly locate the vicinity of magazines beginning with the letter E and then find the magazine I wanted.

Once a patron finds the desired publication, the shelf is simply lifted revealing all the magazines of that particular title.

Here, the magazines are shelved by month making it easy to locate the most recent edition. All of these magazines are barcoded and available for check out.

As you can also see in the picture, this unit also houses newspapers.

The most recent edition of the various newspapers will be visible with the most local news at the top.

Again, the shelves can be lifted revealing back copies of the newspapers.

The top of the magazine/newspaper unit also stores honor magazines.

Some of the most popular ones, in this case quilting magazines, have been grouped together and put into binders. The honor magazines work just like the honor books previously discussed in another post. Honor magazines do not have to be checked out, but the circulation staff should be notified how many magazine binders are being taken. The library counts honor circs as “in house circulation.” Patrons are on the honor system to return the binders.

In keeping with the display of artwork throughout the library, the top of this unit also is home to a few sculptures. The first one depicts two people with open books.

The second is a bronze sculpture called The Reading Girl which, if memory serves, was donated to the library.

Here are a few more pieces on display on top of the magazine/newspaper unit.

As part of my read through project, I have explored all of the magazines shown earlier and several papers. I tend to gravitate towards magazines that have plenty of pictures and deal with the broad topics of family, home, cooking, and crafting. There are many other magazines that cover a vast array of other interesting topics.

The magazine & newspaper collection at Fulton County Public Library has in itself probably saved me hundreds of dollars since I can read all of these magazines and newspapers for free instead of subscribing to the magazines and newspapers myself. This has also helped to reduce clutter in my home since I no longer have to store my own copies!

Just for fun, here is a library savings calculator for you to play with to see how much your library can (or is) saving you:

http://www.fulco.lib.in.us/about-fcpl/library-value-calculator/

Happy calculating!

 

 

Media Commons

Just outside of the Indiana Room, we arrive in the Media Commons. This is a very versatile area which serves many purposes. This room is frequently used as a reading and study area. It is in close proximity to the newspaper and magazine area.

The large glass wall in this area provides a favorite place for patrons to just sit and contemplate. The wall looks out into the library’s arboretum (which will likely appear in a future blog when the weather is warmer). Note the art work lining this wall. There is art of all kinds throughout the library. We saw some examples of this already in a previous post about the Indiana Room.

The library is not far away from Lake Manitou  in Rochester, Indiana so you will notice that there is a wetlands wildlife theme running throughout the library. Even the carpet represents wildlife habitats. There are several nature preserves located in the vicinity. You will also see various live plants throughout the library and the majority of furniture is even crafted out of natural materials.

You may have noticed the TV in this area. Libraries are changing considerably and are often a place just to hang out. This TV is usually muted, but set up for closed caption. Patrons can check out the latest news and weather among other things. The closed caption not only helps hearing impaired patrons, but also is considerate of patrons who may be reading or studying. Below the TV is a small shelf holding some games.

This area also is a place where patrons can socialize with each other. Many times they will play games.  Gaming is becoming a part of regular programming at many libraries, including this one. Many patrons will bring games in and the library also owns several games that patrons can use. In this area, it is usually some sort of board game. There are a few multipurpose tables used from anything from reading and research to game playing and tech activities.

Fulton County Public Library (FCPL) offers two free tech classes a week and usually meets in this area at the Rochester branch. Taught by  Tweak Turtle 

and Twain Turkey, 

the tech classes offered at FCPL are as varied as the people taking them. Tech classes offer instruction and support for patrons who are users of laptops, tablets, kindles and other e-readers, smart phones, digital cameras, geocaches, gps, and various other devices. (If it’s technical, Tweak and Twain can probably help!) In addition to using the actual devices, they can also instruct on how to use a limitless array of software. A few examples (but by no means a complete list) include Excel, Email, Photoshop, and Microsoft products.

The furniture in the Media Commons area is versatile and easy to move, providing large floor space area when needed. Often staff meetings are held in this area. The possibilities of this space are endless. Many spontaneous meetings occur here. Homeschoolers  and various other groups frequent this area.

Just some more comfortable seating in this picture.

Bridging the gap between the Media Commons and the stacks, we find these study carols. These are also a popular destination for many patrons. Please note the art work above the back wall which continues the lake environment theme.

I have this odd urge to take my books and read at Lake Manitou!

Indiana Room

The next section of the library after the reference books is the Indiana Room. The view above is a panaromic view of the Indiana Room. Part of the Reference Department, the Indiana Room offers many amenities.

This is the entrance to the Indiana Room.

Entering the Indiana Room and turning to the left brings us to the microfilm machine area.

Using these machines and accessories, patrons can access archived older newspapers and print them. Archived newspapers can be used for various research projects and are also popular for genealogy projects.

Continuing to move around the wall to the right showcases a bookshelf containing school yearbooks dating back several years.

Continuing to move to the right we see bookshelves and another enclosed bookcase.

 

These shelves and bookcases contain Indiana historical books and biographies and various genealogy resources.

In the center of the room is a large round table that can be used for research projects or smaller group meetings. The room has a projector screen and a portable projector can be reserved to be used in this room.

The library board frequently holds public meetings in this area.

The case seen in the picture to the right of the table is a changing display case. All displays in this room have something to do with the state of Indiana.

Continuing to move around the wall to the right of the second enclosed bookcase, we come to a small section of wall with this vertical file tucked between two windows.

On top of this vertical file are hanging files for genealogy research. Inside of the vertical file are documents pertaining to Fulton County only and then documents pertaining to the state of Indiana.

Moving to the right of this vertical file brings us back to the door and out into the Media Commons.