Toronto Reference Library Blog

The 2nd Fl. Renovations are Near Completion

Many exciting things are happening in the Humanities and Social Sciences Department!

These photos show some of the developments:

Staff at the new Information Desk . . . we moved just yesterday.

 

Nicholas, with friends, the very first visitors to the new "Meet Up" area.

 

 
Two more views of the "Meet Up" (click on images to enlarge).

 
Most of the Local History and Genealogical Materials from Special Collections have been moved close by.

Most of the map collection from Special Collections is now available close by.

 

The history books that were on the 3rd Fl, have now been moved down to the 2nd Fl.

 

The view beyond the "Meet Up"

And last, but not least, new washrooms.

For a listing of subjects covered in the Humanities and Social Sciences Department, see Katherine's earlier post "What's on the 2nd floor anyway?".

Hope to see you soon . . . perhaps you'll want to drop by and see the "New Books" display:

The Humanities and Social Sciences Department, or... what's on the 2nd floor anyway?

More than renovations are happening at the Toronto Reference Library--books, magazines and whole departments are moving and changing.  In May 2012, the new Humanities and Social Sciences Department (or HSS, or Aitch Es Es) was formed on the second floor.

So what will you find there?

Religion, Myth, Philosophy      

 

 

 

Psychology, Sociology, Self Help    

 

 

 

Economics, Politics, Warfare

 

 

 

Law, Education, Parenting    

 

 

 

True Crime, Poverty, Social Problems
 
 

 

 

Urban Studies, City Planning, Toronto      Collection

 

 

 

History, Geography, Travel  

 

 

 

Sports, Games, Recreation

 

 

  

Customs, Folklore, Paranormal

 

 

 

Coming in late summer 2012

Genealogy, Local History, Maps

 

 

 

(Some images courtesy freedigitalphotos.net; Tourism Toronto)

Service Update - May 15, 2012

We have moved collections to serve you better!

As part of the revitalization program at the Toronto Reference Library, we have formed new subject departments by gathering all related subject material together (including periodicals) on a single floor in a way that reflects how they are used.  This makes it more convenient for you to access related materials.

New department arrangements:

Floor 2             Humanities & Social Sciences (including Urban Affairs and eventually, genealogy , maps                         and local history)

Floor 3             Business, Science & Technology

Floor 4             Languages & Literature

                       Special Collections (final home on the 5^th floor)

Floor 5             Arts

Some of the collections are still in a transition stage because of construction.  It will also take a while for the catalogue to reflect all the changes.  If you have questions or could not find a book, please ask staff for assistance.

There continues to be some service disruption due to construction:

For the week of May 14: 

While the Genealogy, Maps and Local History collections are still on the 4th floor, the re-location of the post 1920 map collection from the Special Collections Centre, 4th floor to the Humanities and Social Sciences Department, 2nd floor has begun. Before the map cabinets arrive on the 2nd floor, they will be painted.  The move will be done in stages, so only a portion of the map collection will be unavailable to the public at a time.

Currently, there are no public internet stations on the 5th floor due to relocation of the construction hoarding.  Parts of the Picture Collection may be inaccessible due to cabinet painting.

 The Languages collection has been moved from the 5th floor to the 4th floor.  However, some multilingual dictionaries and language learning materials remain on the 5th floor for now and will be moved soon. 

The Arthur Conan Doyle Room on the 5^th floor is temporarily closed. However, the collection is still accessible in the Baldwin Room in Special Collections on the 4^th floor.

 

Service Update - Dec. 23

The new Cube Entrance will be open on Saturday, December 24th!!

The revitalization program at the Toronto Reference Library will be entering an exciting new stage with the much anticipated opening of the new entrance cube.  There is still a lot more work to be done but we are nearing the completion of the first phase of work which included the new TD Gallery and the Browsery on the main floor.   The next phase, the construction of the new Special Collections Centre on the 5^th floor has just begun.  When completed, this will include a spectacular two-storey Rotunda to bring increased accessibility to the library’s vast Special Collections.

As part of the construction, there may be some service disruptions:

The TD Gallery will not be open to the public as of November 26th as originally scheduled due to construction delays.  The exhibit "A Passion for History: The Legacy of James Bain" has been rescheduled to later in December, date to be confirmed.

For the week of December 28th:

Three ranges of books on the 2nd floor in the 900's travel and history area have been temporarily moved toward the elevator due to the construction.  Ranges are a little out of sequence, please ask staff for assistance.

As part of the move of periodicals into the subject departments, periodicals on the humanities and social science subjects have been moved to the 2nd floor from the 4th floor and periodicals in the business and science & technology area have been moved to the 3rd floor.  There are lists of these titles at the service desks.  Please ask staff for assistance. 

Some computers (28)  on the main floor remain out of service to accommodate wiring work due to construction. There are computers on the terrace and also on floors 3, 4 & 5 and the basement.

The Arthur Conan Doyle Room on the 5^th floor is temporarily closed. However, the collection is still accessible in the Baldwin Room in Special Collections on the 4^th floor.

The Music Practice Room has been moved to the 4^th floor, in Room 401 beside the washrooms.

The move of the Urban Affairs Collection from Metro Hall to the Toronto Reference Library is  complete and the books in the public area are now available.  Stack items from Urban Affairs will be fully accessible soon.  Periodicals published prior to 2009 are not currently accessible.  Many of these periodicals may be accessible in electronic format.  Please ask staff for assistance.

In the Centre for People with Disabilities, screen reading (JAWS) and Kurzweil software and the Braille printer are out of service. For assistance, call 416-393-7099.

 

Service Update - New Oct. 5

   

An exciting phase of the revitalization program at the Toronto Reference Library will be coming up – this is the beginning of construction of the new Special Collections Centre on the 5^th floor.  When completed, this will include a spectacular two-storey Rotunda to bring increased accessibility to the library’s vast Special Collections.

As part of the construction, a number of collections have to be moved at the library and there will be some service disruptions:

For the week of October 3:

Effective October 5, 28 computers on the main floor will be taken out of service for two weeks to accommodate wiring work due to construction.  There will still be computers on the terrace and also on floors 3, 4 & 5 and the basement.

 The Arthur Conan Doyle Room on the 5^th floor will be temporarily closed. However, the collection is still accessible in the Baldwin Room in Special Collections on the 4^th floor.  Some books will not be available on Oct. 6 and 7 when the collection is being moved.

The 5^th floor Performing Arts information desk has been consolidated with the audio desk in the south-west corner of the floor, to the left as you exit the elevators.

Materials in the 5^th floor Quick Reference area are moved to the north-west corner of the floor beside the ESL material.

The Music Practice Room is moved to the 4^th floor, in Room 401 beside the washrooms.

 

The move of the Urban Affairs Collection from Metro Hall to the Toronto Reference Library is mostly complete and the books in the public area are now available.  Stack items from Urban Affairs are not fully accessible.  Periodicals published prior to 2009 are not currently accessible.  Many of these periodicals may be accessible in electronic format.  Please ask staff for assistance.

Items in the TRL Stacks in the following dewey areas are not available:

531 L265 to 576 F78

658.83793 R26 to 660.28449 R59

676 M58 2002 to 697 B128

 

 

There will also be intermittent accessibility to other items in the TRL Stacks.  Please call 416-393-7131 for details. 

In the Centre for People with Disabilities, screen reading (JAWS) and Kurzweil software and the Braille printer are out of service. For assistance, call 416-393-7099.

 

Deadline For Business Inc. Applications Has Been Extended

Great news! There is still time to get your application in to the Business Inc. program.

Due to community demand, the application deadline has been extended to Friday, September 30, 2011.

Through Business Inc, you will prepare or update a business plan with the help of professionals. You will also have access to a business adviser and valuable resources, and have the opportunity to network with other entrepreneurs. Upon completion, you will obtain a Business Seminar Series Certificate of Completion from the Toronto Business Development Centre. The fee for the entire program is $100.

Details of the program, and information as to how to apply, are available through the Business Inc. website.

 

Click here for Business Inc.Program brochure.

 

Don't delay!

Urban Affairs Library Update

As of September 15, 2011, the Urban Affairs collection and staff at Metro Hall are re-locating to the Toronto Reference Library. The last day that the Urban Affairs Library is open to the public is Wednesday, September 14, 9:30 a.m. - 8 p.m.  Thank you to all of our customers who have used Urban’s collections and services over the years. It has been a privilege and a pleasure to serve you and we hope to see you at the Reference Library.

Here's an outline of what is happening:

The Urban Affairs Collection:

• After being moved to the Toronto Reference Library the week of September 19, Urban’s unique collections will be available for use at Toronto Reference Library for longer hours that include Saturdays, Sundays during the school season, and four evenings a week.

• Some items may be unavailable for a few days during moving and re-shelving but all should be available by Saturday, September 24.

The Urban Affairs Staff:

• All Urban Affairs staff members are re-locating with the collections to the 2nd floor of the Toronto Reference Library, Main Reference Department (soon to be the Humanities & Social Sciences Department).

• Urban Affairs librarians will continue to provide information service and access to City of Toronto publications.

Picking Up Holds and Returning Items:

• If you are still waiting for items requested to be picked up at Urban Affairs, the pick-up location has been changed to City Hall. If City Hall is not the most convenient location for you, you may change your own pick-up location, ask a staff member in any branch to make the changes, or call Answerline at 416-393-7131.

•Toronto Public Library’s Bookmobile will stop every Thursday from 11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. in the King Street Laneway, adjacent to Penelope's Restaurant at the north side of Metro Hall.  If the laneway is unavailable, a mini-bookmobile will be parked adjacent to the John St. entrance to Metro Hall instead. At the bookmobile you may pick up holds, return materials, and borrow new items. There is also a Bookmobile stop at Queen’s Quay on Fridays, 6:15 – 7:45 p.m.

• There are 4 branches within 2 km of Metro Hall:

City Hall, 100 Queen Street West;

Lillian H. Smith, 239 College Street ;

St. Lawrence, 171 Front Street East;

Sanderson, 327 Bathurst Street;

Check out the maps and hours.

Job Hunting? See What the Toronto Reference Library Has to Offer

The unemployment rate in Toronto was 8.9% in July 2011 according to Statistics Canada.  This was the second highest unemployment rate among all eleven Ontario economic regions (The highest was London, Ontario at 9.3%)  If you are among those who are unemployed, the Toronto Reference Library may be able to help you in your search.

The Business, Science & Technology Department has a large career book collection on the 3^rd floor, and many can now be borrowed.  There are books on writing resumes, interviewing techniques and much more.  

The Toronto Reference Library hosts career and job searching workshops.  Check What's On regularly for listings city wide.   

Don’t forget to check out the tours called "Are You Looking for a Job?".   Find out the resources that are available in the Business, Science & Technology Department on September 10^th from 10-11 a.m. and on September 27^th from 7-8 p.m.  No registration is required.

For many more tips why not try the Toronto Public Library website’s Find Your Way to Job & Career Help.  There are frequent blog postings and listings for workshops all over the city.

And for those of you who would like to start your own small business, don't forget to investigate Business Inc. offered by the Toronto Public Library in conjunction with the City of Toronto and the Toronto Business Development Centre.  The next orientaion session is on September 8th.  Two of the nine modules will be presented by librarians on how to conduct research.  Read more about it in the Toronto Star's Moneyville. 

If you need a helping hand to make sense of it all perhaps you should try our Book a Librarian service.  Book a Librarian using our online form (phone information is also listed) ahead of time to explain your situation in detail and he or she will pull together some resources tailored to your specific needs.  The appointment is free.  Whether you are just starting out to look for a job, changing careers or starting a small business, their experience in identifying resources and finding alternatives will help you on your way.

And of course, you can always come in person to 789 Yonge Street and ask at the information desk on the 3^rd floor!

Need Help with Research to Start your Small Business? Book a Librarian.

Today, there are over 1 million small businesses across Canada that employ almost half of the Canadian private sector workforce. Each year, 130,000 more small businesses are created. Small businesses are providing the impetus that will drive our economy forward.

Behind all that there is an incredible amount of work that entrepreneurs put into creating small businesses and a lot of research which needs to be done before they can start.

There are organizations such as the Toronto Business Development Centre and Enterprise Toronto which offer excellent programs to assist people in getting their businesses up and running.

But many people don’t think of asking for help from those who are trained to find business information on a daily basis.  The Toronto Reference Library not only has a strong collection of print materials and business databases, it also has professional librarians who can help navigate the wealth of information that is available.

Call ahead or fill out a form online http://www.torontopubliclibrary.ca/book-a-librarian/ .  A librarian will interview you about your research needs and set up an appointment at a time convenient to you.  He or she will prepare a package of materials listing books, journals, directories, websites or databases to help you whether you are researching your industry, determining your market and competitors or preparing your business plan.

Those who have used the service have commented:

“[The librarian] was very helpful.  She was able to identify resources and direct me/suggest alternatives which I had not known.”

“I know I would have had much difficulty doing this without her assistance and again want to thank her for sharing time from her busy schedule to help me.”

“This is an excellent program and I want to give a note of thanks to the library management for having this service available to the public.”

“I would absolutely recommend this service to others.”

Ask Me!

Have you been to the Toronto Reference Library lately?  You may be surprised to see all the changes that are happening. 

The Library is being renovated.  You may be confused as to where to find the picture collection, where the science books have moved to or simply how to renew your library card...

You may have noticed people standing in the entrance of the Toronto Reference Library holding signs saying “Ask Me”. 

No, we aren’t recruiting for any charity.  We're there to answer any questions you might have when you first enter the building. 

All of us work in the building and can help you with many things and can direct you to where you need to go.  Don’t be afraid to ask – we're there to help you find your way!