SRP Volunteer Registration

Summer Reading Volunteer Registration starts on Monday, April 6th and ends
April 17th.

The registration packets and sign up sheet will be on the file cabinet behind the information desk. Please follow this procedure:

1. Fill out the registration sheet completely.
2. Give the student a registration packet. Each packet is numbered. The packet number should match the number on the registration sheet.
3. If taking a phone registration, set aside the packet with the student's name on it and instruct him/her to pick it up before our orientation.
4. If they can't make it to our orientation or training, there are alternate dates available at other branches. This sheet is on the same clipboard as the registration sheet.
5. If they are volunteering here, but attending a different orientation or training date elsewhere, please tell them to return all paperwork to Arbutus.

Our orientation is on Wednesday, May 13th 7-8:30PM (parent & child must attend)
Our training session is on Wednesday, May 27 6:30-8:30PM (child only)

Materials Availability Survey

We will be conducting a Materials Availability Survey during the week of 3/23 (Next Monday) or until we get 200 responses. As customers enter a volunteer will give a brief explanation about the survey then ask them "Are you going to be looking for books, CDs, or magazines on this visit?". If they answer yes, then the customer will be given a Did You Find It? survey form to fill out. They can fill this form out at any time during their visit. There will be a tray by the exit door where customers can return completed forms. There will also be a small sign on the front cafe table letting customers know about the survey along with some chocolates.

Diana and Sharyn have added the survey to the desk schedules. Volunteers, please make note of this on the schedule and know when your shift begins.

Thank you

Tax Appointments

I spoke to Pat and she said it's okay to fill cancellations and to fill ALL slots (including the fifth line) for all dates. Please do not give out Pat's phone number, take the customer's name and phone number and Pat will get back to them.

Print Release Software

The Print Release Software is now on both information desk computers. If you print form the right one, it will print to the information desk computer. If you print from the left one, it will print to the public print station. The information desk computers are labeled accordingly.

Automatic Shutdown

Our new public computers automatically shut down at closing. The only computers we need to turn off are: computer sign up station, print station, children's computer and the staff computers.

Black Display or No Image on Display

1. Make sure the computer and display are on. The power button on the computer should be lit and green. The power button on the display should be lit and either amber or green.

2. If the power is switched on on both the display and computer, then make sure the display input is set to either Auto Detect or Digital. To do this press the input selection button until either the words Auto Detect or Digital appear on the screen. The input selection button is located on the right side of the display. It is the third button down. After pressing the button it may take a few seconds before an image appears on the display.

3. If the input setting is correctly set then check the brightness and contrast to make sure they were not turned all the way down. To check contrast and brightness:

Press the Contrast / Brightness button on the display. This button is the top button on the right side of the display.
On the screen, you should now see two columns: Brightness and Contrast. If the brightness and contrast are set to 0 then adjust them by using the buttons on the right side of the display (you should see an up and down arrow).

4. If there is still no image on the display then check the signal cable to make sure it is connected securely. The signal cable has a white plug on either end. One end is connected to the rear of the display at the bottom. The other end of the cable is connected to the left side of the computer.

5. If none of the above resolves the issue, then contact the Help Desk at x3000.

Printing problems on the new public computers

If a public computer will not print to the Print Release station or no printers appear to be installed then do the following…

1. Make sure the Print Release Station is on and logged in.
2. Check the print service icon. (Red means it is connected, grey is not connected.) On the public computer, press the CTRL ALT and P keys at the same time. You do not have to close any windows or documents. Just hit CTRL ALT and P on any window. This will restart the Print Management software. The Print Management icon in the system tray should flash from red to gray then back to red.

3. Try printing from either Word or Internet Explorer.

4. If printing still fails, then reboot the computer and try printing again.

5. If after a reboot it still fails then note any error messages and contact the Help Desk at x3000.

Opening and saving documents on our public computers

Opening Documents

When opening a document all of the Office 2007 applications will first look for a USB drive. If Office can not find a USB drive then it will try to open the My Documents folder on the hard drive. Since access to the hard drive is disabled the following message will appear.

"This operation has been canceled due to restrictions in effect on this computer. Please contact your system administrator."

To clear the message and open a document, first click on OK. This will take you to an “Open” dialog window with just a “My Computer” icon showing. Insert a USB drive in one of the USB ports. After the drive is detected, double click on the “My Computer” icon. Then click on the (E:) drive icon. From here you can browse the USB drive for the document you wish to open.

Saving Documents

In Office 2007, when saving a document you must select a valid path to save to. If a USB drive is plugged in then Office will set the default save path to the USB drive. If you try to save a document without a USB drive you will get the following error message.

"This operation has been canceled due to restrictions in effect on this computer. Please contact your system administrator."

To clear the error message and save the document, first click on OK. This will take you back to the “Save As” window. Insert a USB drive in one of the USB ports. Wait until the USB drive is detected. Then double click on the “My Computer” icon located on the “Save As” window. Then double click on the (E:) icon. From here you can browse through the USB drive to find a location to save the document.

Templates and Clipart on Microsoft 2007

Installed on each public computer are 32 default Microsoft Word templates, 7 Microsoft Excel templates and 6 PowerPoint templates. To access these templates customers simply have to click on the Office Menu and select New. A list of templates will appear from which they can select one. Importing new templates from either the internet or from a USB drive is disabled. So customers are limited to the 44 default templates that come with Office 2007.

Every public computer has 10,000 clipart images installed. The clipart gallery can be searched by clicking on the Insert tab then clicking on the Clipart button. Customers can only search the 10,000 images stored on the computer. They can not search Web Collections or download new clipart from the internet.

Disk drives on our new public computers

The public computers have DVD drives, however they have been disabled. The public are prohibited from using CDs or DVDs in any public computer.

Removing thumb drive from our new computers

When a USB device is plugged into the computer an icon will appear in the system tray, which is located in the bottom right corner of the screen. If a USB device is inserted and the icon does not appear then either Windows does not recognize the device or there is a hardware problem.

To remove a USB device it is recommended to unload the device from within Windows before physically removing the device from the USB port. To unload a USB device click on the device icon shown in figure one. Then click on the menu item “Safely remove USB Mass Storage Device – Drive(E:)”.

After a few seconds a message will appear above the icon indicating that it is now safe to remove the USB device.

Cleaning the LCD screen on the new computers

The LCD monitors on the public computers require special care when cleaning.

- DO NOT clean the LCD with Windex or any other glass cleaner. These types of cleaners will scratch the LCD.

- DO NOT use paper towels or any other abrasive cloth to clean the screens. Paper towels will scratch the LCD screen.

- DO NOT press hard on the LCD it will crack if too much pressure is applied.


Cleaning the LCD screen…
1. First, gently dust the screen off using either a duster or a dusting cloth like a Swiffer.
2. If the screen has smudges or stains on it then dampen a clean soft cloth with a mixture of half water and half rubbing alcohol. If you do not have a 50/50 mix of water and alcohol then straight alcohol will work fine.
3. Gently wipe the damp cloth over the screen until the smudges or stains are gone. Be sure not to press hard on the screen.

Fees

There are certain fees that we should all be aware of. Please see below:

Playaways are now available at the Perry Hall library. These are miniature mp3 players that have recorded books on them. I believe all branches will eventually circulate them. When you buy these from the store, they come with batteries and earbuds. Ours will not have these, but customers can purchase batteries and earbuds from us.

Batteries - $.60 tax. included *ring up under batteries
Earbuds - $1.00 tax included *ring up under earbuds
Flash drives - $5.30 tax included *ring up under flash drives

Hold Fees:
Direct loans - free/no charge
Interlibrary loan - $1.00 *ring up under reserves (there may be additional fees, if so it will be noted on the ILL slip)
Holds with green slip - $1.00 *ring up under reserves
Holds with pink slip - free/no charge

Any questions...ask Erin