Newsletter 02.2021
1. Extension of essentials-only service until April 1st 2021
The university library’s current essentials-only service will be extended until April 1st 2021. This period was set comparatively long, bearing in mind not only the resolutions made by the chancellor and the states‘ minister-presidents from January 19th 2021, but especially upcoming construction work in the reception area scheduled for six weeks within that period. Please read the next paragraph of this newsletter for further information.
The library buildings will remain closed to the public, with only pickups and returns available on site Monday to Friday from 9am to 3pm.
For now this service still only covers university members. As before, no late fees will be raised. The library continues to monitor these policies and will review and adapt them depending on political decisions about general relaxations from February 15th onwards.
2. Introducing a new technology to check out and secure library items
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After several years of preparation the university library will switch to an RFID-based checkout and security system this spring, making the old system based on magnetic metal strips obsolete. The change brings advantages particularly for checkouts: visitors will be able to check out books by themselves, allowing the library to change up its service policy and noticably extend opening times – as soon as the coronavirus pandemic allows.
The changes brought by this project require a complete rebuild of the library’s reception area, scheduled from February 22nd to April 1st. The reception area and regular library entrance will be closed during that time. You will be able to access the library by the Limona building from Schützengasse. Please note that the library will remain in essentials only service mode due to the pandemic.
The project was officially brought underway on January 18th, when the first items from our collection received new RFID tags. During the next few weeks, around 200,000 volumes from our open collection will be tagged.
We are planning to reopen the regular reception area equipped with new technology on April 6th. Whether the library will be reopened to the public, as well as our opening times at that time, will depend on further developments in the coronavirus pandemic.
The rebuild and RFID technology are being financed primarily from funds granted by the Hochschulpakt 2020. The project’s planning and execution are expected to cost around 430,000 Euros.
3. Digital copies by inter-library loan temporarily enabled
Copyright collectives VG Wort and VG Bild-Kunst have agreed to a request made by the conference of ministers of education to temporarily forgo the requirement of handing physical copies to library patrons during the current coronavirus crisis. Libraries are now allowed to send partial copies of books (max. 10%) and articles from scientific journals directly to patrons by e-mail as part of inter-library loan services. This regulation will expire on March 31st 2021.
4. Bauhaus-Universität Weimar receives additional DFG funding for open access publication
The German Research Foundation (DFG) grants the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar additional funds of 25,200 Euro in a follow-up phase of the »open access publishing« funding program. These funds will enable the university to fund its scientists‘ articles in open access journals from its open access publishing budget during 2021 and 2022.
Please refer to the university library’s website for further information on the university’s open access actions, and to this press release for further information on DFG follow-up funding.
5. New – Citavi Web beta
Citavi Web provides Citavi for Windows‘ tried and tested functions online in a modern, intuitive interface: manage, annotate and structure your sources and plan your tasks.
You can work anywhere you have an internet connection – in any operating system, Mac OS, Windows or Linux. All you need is an up-to-date browser.
The web version can currently be tested on Citavi’s website, which also provides helpful information to assist you in its use.
Stefanie Röhl
Sachgebietsleiterin
Informationsdienstleistungen