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Brain Bites – Learning skills workshops to increase your success at RRC

December 22, 2017

Do you want to increase the effectiveness of your study time? Do better on tests? Join these free brain-based workshops to increase your study skills — and your performance on tests and assignments.

Join these free lunchtime workshops to find out what your brain needs to learn at maximum efficiency.

Library Window Display: Transgender Day of Remembrance

November 17, 2017

Library Window Display: Transgender Day of Remembrance

Library Window Display: Transgender Day of Remembrance

November 20th is Transgender Day of Remembrance. It is a day that was established to memorialize those who were killed due to anti-transgender hatred or prejudice. The Transgender Day of Remembrance raises public awareness of hate crimes against transgender people and also gives a moment when people can stop and memorialize those who have died by anti-transgender violence. (Source: http://www.transgenderdor.org/)

Visit our the Notre Dame Campus Window Display

To increase awareness on this issue, Notre Dame Library Services has set up a window display at Notre Dame Campus where you can find information about Transgender Day of Remembrance.

As well, the RRC Library has many LGBTT* themed items in its collection. Check out some of the items that are currently on display in the Notre Dame Campus window display.

Veterans’ Week: 5-11 November #CanadaRemembers

November 1, 2017

Veterans know the price paid for our freedom and they want all Canadians to share in this understanding. They are passing the torch of remembrance to us, the people of Canada, to ensure that the memory of their efforts and sacrifices will not die with them, and that an appreciation of the values they fought for will live on in all Canadians.

100th Anniversary of the Battle of Passchendaele

100th Anniversary of the Battle of Passchendaele

The Battle of Passchendaele raged in Belgium in the summer and fall of 1917. The Canadian Corps joined the fighting there in October and would overcome almost unimaginable hardships to triumph on a brutal and muddy battlefield. This victory only came at a high price, however, as over 4,000 Canadian soldiers lost their lives and almost 12,000 more were wounded.

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Passchendaele. The service and sacrifice of the Canadians who fought there will never be forgotten.

Reference: http://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/remembrance/history/first-world-war/passchendaele

Acts of Remembrance – Social Media

Every year in November, we stop to remember, salute and honour Canada’s Veterans and active duty personnel. This year, we hope that Canadians from coast to coast to coast will join us to pay tribute to our heroes for their service and sacrifice. Let’s start a social media movement that tells our Veterans that #CanadaRemembers.

You can even dress up your online profile with social media ready pics and graphics:
http://www.veterans.gc.ca/eng/remembrance/get-involved/remembrance-day/social-media/acts-of-remembrance

Notre Dame Campus Window Display

Check out the Notre Dame Campus Library window display, which highlights books and materials chosen to help you to learn more about this topic. To view a complete list of books in the window display click here: http://library.rrc.ca/Search/Window-Display.aspx

RRCLibrary is on Instagram!

October 10, 2017

We are proud to say the Red River College Library has recently begun posting on Instagram! Tune in to our Instagram channel at rrclibrary and follow along as we continue our library related feed.

In case you’re wondering, here is a sample of what we’ve posted so far:

 

Last two. Don’t worry we have more. One word: ebooks! #redrivercollege #exchangedistrict #librarycollection

A post shared by Red River College Library (@rrclibrary) on Oct 5, 2017 at 6:50am PDT

 

When an an over-sized book exhibits a personality all its own. #libraryfun #redrivercollege #librarycollection

A post shared by Red River College Library (@rrclibrary) on Sep 29, 2017 at 11:39am PDT

New in the Notre Dame Campus Library… 📖 Plugged In: How Media Attract and Affect youth Now, as never before, young people are surrounded by media–thanks to the sophistication and portability of the technology that puts it literally in the palms of their hands. Examine the role of media in the lives of children from birth through adolescence, addressing the complex issues of how media affect the young and what adults can do to encourage responsible use in an age of selfies, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. ___ #library #book #books #instagram #instabook #bookworm #booklover #bookcover #reading #read #bookme #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #bookshelf #bookaddict #booknerd #bookish #college #highereducation #librarybooks #bookoftheday #bookfinds #RRC #RedRiverCollegeLibrary

A post shared by Red River College Library (@rrclibrary) on Sep 20, 2017 at 9:39am PDT

Saturday Sept 30th is Orange Shirt Day

September 26, 2017

Orange Shirt Day occurs annually on Sept 30th and recognizes the harms done to our Indigenous communities, friends and family by the Residential School System.

Orange Shirt Day is a legacy of the St. Joseph Mission (SJM) residential school commemoration event held in Williams Lake, BC, Canada, in the spring of 2013. It grew out of Phyllis’ story of having her shiny new orange shirt taken away on her first day of school at the Mission, and it has become an opportunity to keep the discussion on all aspects of residential schools happening annually.

The date was chosen because it is the time of year in which children were taken from their homes to residential schools, and because it is an opportunity to set the stage for anti-racism and anti-bullying policies for the coming school year. It also gives teachers time to plan events that will include children, as we want to ensure that we are passing the story and learning on to the next generations.

Orange Shirt Day is also an opportunity for First Nations, local governments, schools and communities to come together in the spirit of reconciliation and hope for generations of children to come.

Reference: http://www.orangeshirtday.org/ 

Residential Schools Library Guide

Learn more about residential schools and their effects on Indigenous peoples.
Residential Schools Library Guide: https://library.rrc.ca/c.php?g=697597

Notre Dame Campus “Orange Shirt Day” Window Display

Red River College Library has recognized Orange Shirt Day by setting up a window display outside the Notre Dame Campus Library. We have also placed a selection of books in the display. Come by and see what is available. If you see something you like, inquire at the Circulation Desk inside the library.

Come Play Mini-Putt Golf in the Library

May 30, 2017

The Notre Dame Campus Library will be holding a mini-golf tournament on on Thursday 8 June 2017 from 11:00AM to 1:00PM. It takes about 15-20 minutes to play the course, no registration is necessary, equipment is provided, it’s free and no actual golf skills are required. Anyone who completes the course will be eligible to win a prize.

Where: Notre Dame Campus Library

When: 11:00AM to 1:00PM – Thursday 8 June 2017

Come and have some fun in the Library!

Great Googling

March 9, 2017

Who doesn’t use a search engine? In fact, a search engine is statistically the first web page most people see when they go online. An average user is not a search expert and they likely use a search engine in its simplest form… just typing in a few search terms and going from there.

But, search engines can do much more than you might think!

In this blog post we have posted a handful of really cool tips that we just know you will love. Please note: In these instructions we are primarily referring to Google.  However, these tips will work in other search engines as well.

Let’s get started!

Searching an Explicit Phrase:

Lets say you are looking for content about the Winnipeg Jets.  Instead of just typing Winnipeg Jets into the Google search box, you will be better off searching explicitly for the phrase “Winnipeg Jets”.  To do this, simply enclose the search phrase inside quotation marks.

Search phrase: "Winnipeg Jets"           --> try it

Using a Wildcard within Quotes:

Lets say you are searching for a quote (or a song lyric) and you are not sure of one of the words. Replace the part you’re not sure of with the wildcard character (* – an asterisk). For example if you knew only part of a quote “Life is wasted on” from an unknown source or the lyric “Heard it from a friend” from an unknown song, you could use this search method to discover the source.

Search phrase: "Life is wasted on *"          --> try it

Search phrase: "Heard it from a friend *"      --> try it

Excluding Words

Lets say you want to search for info about the name Justin, but you want to exclude the results that may be included that have info about Justin Bieber. Simply use the minus (-) sign in front of a keyword you want to exclude from your search results.

Search phrase: Justin -Bieber        --> try it

A Site Specific Search

Often, you want to search a specific website for relevant content.  Even if the site doesn’t support a built-in search feature, you can use Google to search the site for your term. Simply use the “site:hostname.com” modifier.  For example, to search the tsn.ca website for information about the Winnipeg Jets:

Search phrase: Winnipeg Jets site:tsn.ca        --> try it

A Synonym Search

Let’s say you want to include a word in your search, but you also wish to include results that contain similar words or synonyms.  To do this, use the tilde (~) character in front of the word. For example, you could search for “Winnipeg Jobs” and then also search for “Winnipeg Employment” and get two different results.  However if you search for “Winnipeg ~employment” you should get all results for Winnipeg and all synonyms of employment included.

Search phrase: winnipeg ~employment         --> try it

Searching for a Specific Document Type

Performing a Filetype Specific Search

Performing a Filetype Specific Search

If you’re looking to find results that are of a specific type, you can use the modifier “filetype:”.  For example, you might want to find only PDF files related to the Red River College:

Search phrase: Red River College filetype:pdf        --> try it

Searching for This OR That

By default, when you do a search, Google will include all the terms specified in the search.  If you are looking for any one of one or more terms to match, then you can use the OR operator.  Please note that the OR has to be capitalized.

Search phrase: "winnipeg jets" OR "manitoba moose"         --> try it

Conclusion

There are dozens of tips which can be used with Google, but this is all for now!  We will post more in a future blog entry.

Changes to Student Email coming in March

March 1, 2017

During the month of March, Red River College IT Solutions will be moving into the next phase of enhancements to the Student Email system, moving Student Mailboxes to Office 365 in the Cloud.

Students will access the Student Email service in the same manner that they have in the past, by using HUB, and will have the additional benefit of mobile access on their phones or tablets using Microsoft’s Apps.  Student Email using Office 365 will have a similar look and feel to the existing Student Email system, with slight changes in colours and enhanced features.  The email addresses for all students will continue to use the “username@academic.rrc.ca” format, allowing for a smooth transition into the new system and ensuring that communication from Faculty and Staff will continue to flow without issue.

Students will be notified by email of the upcoming change through an All Student email.  Additionally, students will receive an email from ITS on the day prior to their mailbox moving to make them aware of the imminent change.  No action is required by the students for this change to occur.

For further information and help please refer to:
http://blogs.rrc.ca/its/help-resources/

Student Email Changes 13-16 May 2016

May 10, 2016

banner_email

On May 16, Red River College is rolling out a new Student Email system (powered by Office 365), which will enable you to access your email, contacts, and calendar from virtually anywhere. Stay in sync and on schedule with Outlook, and coordinate more effectively with classmates and Instructors. The new Student Email will not change how you send email from Learn, but it will provide additional communication enhancements to you. You’ll be sent further information regarding this change to your current student email.

Student Email will not be available from 4pm on Friday, May 13 until 10pm on Sunday, May 15 while the upgrade is completed.

Once the change is complete, students will see a different look and feel, but the general email experience will remain the same. The email addresses for all students will remain as “username@academic.rrc.ca” and all of their mail from the current Student Email system will be transferred into the new system.

Important: If students have set their student email to automatically forward to another email address, they will likely find they have to reset their forwarding in the new email system.

Support documentation for the new mail system will be located at the IT Solutions Blog (https://blogs.rrc.ca/its/help-resources/).

Cultivating An Idea: The Green Wall at The John And Bonnie Buhler Library

April 20, 2016

 

A project management assignment planted a seed that bloomed at the Roblin Centre’s John and Bonnie Buhler Library. Library Technician Rosemary Woodby with the support of a Program Innovation Fund (PIF)  was able to procure two six foot tall, self-watering planters. A partnership with the Greenspace Horticultural students and their instructor, Ruth Rob, supplied the plants. Using the knowledge they have acquired as part of the Horticulture Practice course, the students planned the design and layout; chose and grew the plants and on a bright sunny Apr 13th installed them in the planters. The Reading Room’s trademark sunlight takes care of the rest.

Living Walls, sometimes called Green Walls, have sprung up in a variety of settings, both Florafelt-Vertical-Garden-How-It-Worksinside and out. Some of the larger interior walls are physically connected to the HVAC system to actively pull air in for better circulation. Our wall isn’t quite so complicated however, using a ‘passive system’ as illustrated by the Florafelt system (Pictured right). While the project is not without risks ranging from plant to pump failure, but the gains far outweigh them and we can expect:

  • Noise reduction
  • Optimizing humidity
  • Improved indoor air quality
  • And the Horticulture students gaining an opportunity to work in a vertical format that is gaining popularity with both interior and exterior landscaping.

Last but not least, the greenery provides some welcome relief for staff and students from the stressful periods during the academic year. Woodby and Rob hope to apply what they have learned from installing this wall and add a second next year.

Before

IMG_4936

Image: Rosemary Woodby

After

IMG_4961

Image: Rosemary Woodby

 

Image: Fatima DeMelo

Image: Fatima DeMelo

With contributions by Rosemary Woodby

RRC Polytech campuses are located on the lands of Anishinaabe, Ininiwak, Anishininew, Dakota, and Dené, and the National Homeland of the Red River Métis.

We recognize and honour Treaty 3 Territory Shoal Lake 40 First Nation, the source of Winnipeg’s clean drinking water. In addition, we acknowledge Treaty Territories which provide us with access to electricity we use in both our personal and professional lives.

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