The TechSearcher

The Newsletter of Wisconsin TechSearch

Spring/Summer 2008

WTS Web Site Makes Your Job Easier

The WTS web site has several features that help you do your job more efficiently and with less worry.

  • Still sending requests to us by fax or PDF email attachment? Next time, try sending requests using the citation box on our web request form. The web form allows you to submit as many requests as you want - 1 or 1,000 or more! It's a much better way to send us lists of requests for several reasons:
    • You'll receive an email confirmation that we received your order.
    • You'll be able to easily track your requests through the Order Status section of our web site.
    • It's faster and easier for us to process requests, even long lists, which means you get your articles more quickly.
    • It's less likely we'll have to contact you for more information.

If you still need to send an attachment, you can fill out the web form and indicate that you're sending the list by email. That way, we'll have the critical information we need and you'll have a confirmation number for tracking.

  • Do you sometimes forget to enter a reference/charge number?
    • Go to the "Personal Information" area of the WTS web site and check the box "Require reference for all requests." Then, each time you try to submit a request without entering a reference number, you'll be prompted to include it.
  • Do you want to know the status of your request?
    • Just go to the "Order Status" area of our web site. All of your requests are listed by the date they were submitted. You can also search for requests by WTS number, confirmation number, or reference number.
  • Is there a message or special instruction you always need to send to us?
    • Go to the "Personal Information" area of the WTS web site and enter your message in the "Instructions for new requests" box. Each time you enter a request, that message will appear on the web form.
  • Do you want to do as little typing/writing/faxing as possible?
    • The web site saves your shipping and billing addresses, copyright and referral preferences, and shipping method preference. You don't have to type any of that information in when you send a request. And, you can paste any number of citations into our citation box - don't worry about filling out separate fields for journal title, author, etc., and don't worry about sending one citation at a time.
  • Do you want us to ship an article directly to the end-user, but do you still need to know when it's been shipped?
    • All you have to do is enter the end-user's email address in the "Deliver to email:" field on the request form, and we'll ship it to that address. You can then track the order through the Order Status page to see when it was shipped.
  • Have a question about our service?
    • We've expanded our Policies page to include more detailed information about our article delivery, cost estimates, and book loan policies.
    • We've updated our Copyright Costs page so that you can get an idea of what copyright fees might be.
    • We've updated our Prices and Delivery Times page with more information (but our prices haven't changed).
    • Still have a question? Call us at 608-262-5917 or email wts@engr.wisc.edu.

WTS at SLA, AALL

WTS will exhibit at the Special Libraries Association conference in Seattle, WA (June 15-18) and the American Association of Law Libraries conference in Portland, OR (July 12-15).

Rachel Watters and Rebekah Turner will be at SLA (booth #115). Karen Wagner and Rebekah Turner will attend AALL (booth #709).

If you're going to be in Seattle or Portland, please stop by the booth to say hello!

It's Another Baby Boy for WTS

Harrison Russell Velasco

The WTS family has another little addition. Harrison Russell Velasco was born in mid-November 2007 to Jennifer Velasco and her husband Joel. He weighed in at 8 pounds 9 ounces and was 21 inches long. Harrison is a healthy, alert baby. Favorite activities include charming new people, sleeping under the stove fan, and taking walks whenever the snowbanks recede enough to allow it. Of course he already loves books (and not just to eat)!

Jennifer returned to full time work in late January, and Harrison's dad brings him to the WTS office for a visit once in a while.

Staff Profile: Karen Wagner

Karen Wagner will mark her tenth year at WTS this August, so it's only fitting that you get to know a little more about her. Karen grew up on a farm in northern Wisconsin. She received her MLS from UW-Madison in 1996, and also got her bachelor's degree in English here. Before coming to WTS, she worked at the University of Virginia on a project digitizing first editions of early American fiction in their Special Collections department.

In her spare time, Karen enjoys gardening, knitting, cooking, tai chi, and reading. She's quite a reader, and has several books under her arm right now, including: Seeds of Change by Henry Hobhouse, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight - new verse translation by Simon Armitage, Lavinia by Ursula Le Guin, and Kitchen Literacy by Anne Vileisis.

Not Just Wisconsin, Not Just Tech

"Wisconsin TechSearch" may imply that our services are limited to Wisconsin and that we only work with technical information, but that's definitely not the whole picture.

Although WTS specializes in engineering and technical information, we utilize all library collections across the University of Wisconsin-Madison, including:

  • Biomedical Sciences
  • Agricultural and Life Sciences
  • Engineering
  • Chemistry and Physical Sciences
  • Business, Law, and Humanities

And, "Wisconsin" in our name does not mean that we only serve Wisconsin clients or that we only use library resources in the state. Last year, about half of our clients were outside Wisconsin and we obtained about 20% of document delivery requests from outside suppliers. So we can get what you need, when you need it, wherever you are!

UW Libraries Add Scanners

Recently, several of the University of Wisconsin Madison's departmental libraries added scanners to their copy centers. This allows WTS staff to send scanned articles directly to our office, instead of having to make a paper photocopy and physically return it to the office for shipping. The result: we can now ship better quality articles to you, even faster.