Both chargers were funding by a grant from the Department of Energy Resources, and Chelmsford was one of 25 Massachusetts towns to earn the grant to install chargers.

The grant also covers the expense of charging electric cars for the first two years – so anyone charging up their electric car and do so for free. You can read about the chargers in the Chelmsford Independent, Chelmsford Patch, and the Lowell Sun.

More information is available on the library website, or by contacting the Town of Chelmsford’s Department of Public Facilities.

In our continued effort to make information at the library – whether in the form of books, movies, or anything else – easy to find, library staff spent last Thursday morning shifting, merging, weeding, and generally reviewing some of our collections. Here’s the major highlights of what moved and where, and please ask library staff if you have any questions:

• All non-fiction DVDs moved downstairs, and are now interfiled with our non-fiction books. This way, if you’re looking for, say, travel information to England, books and DVDs are now in the same place
• All items having to do with languages – books, DVDs, books on CD, etc – are now shelved together in a new “Language” section upstairs, right next to the music CDs. We’re still in the process of labeling all of these items as “Language” both with a sticker on the item and also in the call number in the catalog
• Most of the movies and audiobooks have shifted a few aisles over, to make room for the new Language section, and to fill in where the non-fiction DVDs were
• The Young Adult section also has quite a few changes:
  • New books will no longer be in a separate section – they will be interfiled with the rest of the YA fiction books
  • We’re starting a new section for books in a series (like Harry Potter, The Hunger Games, etc) – these eventually will all have a “Series” label both on the book and in the catalog
  • Video games are now on the back wall

If you have any trouble finding anything, or any questions about these moves, please ask any library staff person.

To that end, all MVLC libraries are asking their patrons to complete a short survey to share their experiences. There is also a spot to make suggestions for features you’d like to see added.

Please take a few minutes to fill out the survey – it will be available through the first week of January 2012.

If you need any help or have questions about using the catalog, please contact the Reference Desk. Thanks!

Why are we doing this?
Information on what materials you have checked out, on hold, etc. is private data protected by state law. The current four-digit PIN does little to prevent a hacker from compromising your account information. They could also provide a hacker with a way to access and potentially damage the system itself.

Beyond this, we’ll be immediately introducing some new services, and next year we expect to introduce additional user services that will require us to retain more information about the materials you’ve previously checked out and placed on hold. We need to better protect your data in order to provide these services. After you update your password, you’ll also have the ability to update your e-mail address online and, if you wish, to choose a user name for your account other than your library barcode number.

Please Note: With the new system, a username other than your barcode number will work only for logging into the MVLC catalog. Any other services that currently require you to enter your barcode (databases, museum passes, etc.) will still require you to use your barcode for access.

What you’ll need to do
When you log into your account after December 5th, you’ll be automatically prompted to change your password. You’ll need to select a password that’s at least seven characters long and contains both letters and numerals. Once you make this change, you’ll be able to log into your account.

Should you forget your new password, you’ll still have the ability to update it online. Your library also has the ability to reset your password or to assign you a temporary password that will allow you to reset your password yourself online.

This functionality was lost when we migrated from our old catalog to the new Evergreen catalog, because Evergreen and the Virtual Catalog were not able to communicate properly. All summer, developers at the MVLC Central Site office have been working on restoring this communication, and after this weekend’s update, it’s finally back.

Here’s how connecting to the Virtual Catalog works in Evergreen:

At the bottom of every page, there is a Virtual Catalog link. You should still search the MVLC catalog first, but if you can’t find what you’re looking for, click the Virtual Catalog link at the bottom of each catalog page (or contact the library).

This will link you to the Virtual Catalog login page. On this page, first, use the dropdown box in the middle of the page to choose the library in which you’d like to pick up the item you are going to request. Second, enter your library card number into the box at right, and then click the Begin Searching the Virtual Catalog button.

From that point on, searching and requesting in the Virtual Catalog works just like it did before – find the item you’d like, click the blue request button, and complete the form. You can also check your Virtual Catalog account to view the status of the requests you’ve placed through the Virtual Catalog.

We’re very happy to have this functionality restored. If you have any questions about the Virtual Catalog, or need help placing a request, please contact the Reference Desk at askus@mvlc.org or 978-256-5521 x211.