Introduction to MARVEL Maine`s Virtual Library

Freeport Community Library
207  865  3307
www.freeportlibrary.com
Introduction to
This presentation will explain what MARVEL! is, will
introduce you to some of the databases in MARVEL!
and will demonstrate how to use them.
October 10, 2012
Robin Lowell, MLIS
Technology Librarian
Freeport Community Library
10 Library Drive
Freeport, ME 04032
207-865-3307 – rlowell@freeportmaine.com
What is MARVEL?
• MARVEL! is a group of databases that provides
all Maine residents with free access to full text articles
and abstracts from respected and credible sources such
as magazines, newspapers, journals and reference
books
• MARVEL! can be accessed from public & academic
libraries and schools and also can be used at home and
other locations in Maine with internet access.
• According to the Maine State Library’s site, “The value
of the resources provided in these databases would be
over $700,000 per library!”
Who provides MARVEL?
Statewide licensing for the databases is funded by:
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Maine State Legislature
Maine State Library
University of Maine
Colby, Bates & Bowdoin Colleges
Public Utilities Commission
Maine Telecommunications Educational Access
Fund (also known as State E-rate)
Who can benefit from using MARVEL?
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Students from grade school through college
Educators
Business people
People interested in getting information from
reputable sources
• People looking to improve their technology &
job skills or prepare for an exam
• Public library patrons like you!
MARVEL! sounds great!
How do I get there?
Accessing MARVEL!
• If you are at a school or library, you just need
to go to the following web site to get into
MARVEL! - http://maine.gov/marvel
• If you are at home or another location with
internet access, you will need to create a
username and password before you will be
able to use resources in MARVEL!
Accessing MARVEL! from home or
another location with internet access
• Go to http://maine.gov/marvel
Accessing MARVEL! from home or
another location with internet access
• Once you’ve clicked on one of the MARVEL!
resources, you’ll be prompted to login.
• The left side of the login screen is only for those
who have a library card from a Minerva library, an
URSUS library or Portland Public Library. (Not
Freeport)
• The right side of the screen is for those who
login with a username. It includes a link for
“New Users” to register.
How to register for a MARVEL!
username and password
Click on this “New User?
Register here” link
How to register for a MARVEL!
username and password
• This info is needed
because MARVEL! is
limited to Maine residents.
• Your username can be
your email address (good
idea) or something else.
• You can create your own 6
character password (you
don’t need to use their
randomly generated
password suggestion).
MARVEL! registration confirmation
• Once you have filled out the registration form
and clicked on the registration button, you will
see a “Thank You” page and can begin using
the MARVEL! Resources.
• You’ll also receive an email message with your
username and password.
MARVEL! home page
Resources
organized
by subject
Resources organized
alphabetically with
helpful “About’ info
I don’t recommend using OneSearch
Choosing a MARVEL! resource
• The subject-organized resources section can help
if you know your general topic of interest but
don’t have a specific resource in mind.
• The alphabetical list of resources is handy if you
know the name of the specific database you want
to search – for example: NoveList
• If you are looking for information from a specific
publication but you don’t know if it is available or
not, use the link to “find journals, magazines &
newspapers by title” to find out what database
that journal is in.
Resources organized by subject
Here’s an example of the
resources listed under the
subject of Health
Alphabetical list of resources
• Click on the individual letters to jump to that part of
the list or scroll down the page to see the whole list
Find journals, magazines &
newspapers by title
• Let’s say you want to find an article that you
know appeared in the September 2012 issue of
Consumer Reports.
• Click on the link that says “find journals,
magazines & newspapers by title”.
Find journals, magazines &
newspapers by title
• Type the name of the magazine you want in the
search box and click the search button.
Find journals, magazines &
newspapers by title
• Consumer Reports is in the MasterFILE Premier database
• Click on the database link to find Consumer Reports articles
(you may need to login to MARVEL! at this point if you haven’t
already)
Find journals, magazines &
newspapers by title
• From here you can either click on the year to drill
down to the specific month you want or use the
“Search within this publication” link to search for
keywords in Consumer Reports articles such as
washers, dryers, cars…
Here’s a list of some of the magazines &
newspapers available through MARVEL!
•American Heritage
•Architectural Digest
•Atlantic Monthly
•Audubon
•Daily News
•Bloomberg Business Week
•Globe
•Morning Sentinel
•Christian Science Monitor
•Consumer Reports
•Fortune
•InStyle
•Journal
•Kiplinger’s Personal Finance
•Sun Journal
•Maclean’s
•Macworld
•(The magazine) Antiques
•Money
•National Review
•Nature
•New York Times
•New York Times Book Review
•New York Times Magazine
•New Yorker
•Newsweek
•Organic Gardening
•PC World
•People
•Popular Mechanics
•Popular Science
•Press Herald
•Psychology Today
•Real Simple
•Rolling Stone
•Runner’s World
•Scientific American
•Smithsonian
•Sports Illustrated
•Time
•U.S. News & World Report
•Value Line Investment Survey
•Vanity Fair
•Wall Street Journal
Here are just a few of the resources in
MARVEL!
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Academic Search Complete
NoveList
Maine Newsstand
Value Line Investment Survey for Public Libraries
Learning Express
AHFS Consumer Medication Information
Hobbies & Crafts Reference Center
Britannica Online Public Library edition
Ancestry (this database can only be used at the
library)
Once you’ve found an article…
• You can email the article to yourself or others.
• You can print the article.
Printer icon
Email icon
If you have any questions about the
information covered this evening…
• At our next meeting, we’ll get to practice using MARVEL!
You can bring a laptop/iPad/tablet with you. If you don’t
have one, you can look on with someone else.
• Feel free to sign up for a tech appointment with me. I
have the appointment book with me tonight or you can
stop by the front desk another day.
• If you write down your name and email on the sign-in
sheet, I will email you a PDF of the presentation.
• I post my presentations up on the library’s site along with
other helpful tutorials at:
http://freeportlibrary.com/tutorials.htm
Thank you for attending!