Table of Contents:
What is IM?
How does this work?
What hours are you available?
Who will I be speaking with?
What kinds of questions can you answer?
What if I want to speak with a librarian from a different Emory library (ie., business, health, law, etc.)?
Will my chat be recorded?
What is IM?
IM stands for instant messaging. This is a form of online communication that lets you send online messages to other people. This is done by registering for a user name through one of the IM services (AIM, Yahoo!, MSN, and GTalk, to name a few) and either downloading a client or using a web-based client.
Once logged on, you can add "buddies", other peoples' usernames. When they are online, you can send them a message and receive messages from them and carry on a "chat" conversation.
How does this work?
We have signed up with Yahoo, MSN, AIM and Google Talk with the user name EmoryWoodRef. You may use any of these chat reference systems to contact us. (If you use another chat client, send us an e-mail and we’ll try to sign up for that service.)
If you do not subscribe to any chat systems, you can sign up for an AIM user name and download AIM at http://www.aim.com. If you do not wish to download anything, you can also contact us using AIM Web Express or Meebo (see the last two questions for more information) .
What hours are you available?
We are currently available for chat 1 pm – 8 pm, Monday through Thursday, and 1 pm – 5 pm on Friday through Sunday.
Who will I be speaking with?
EmoryWoodRef is staffed by a number of librarians and library staff that work in the library. Many of them also staff the reference desk at Woodruff Library!
What kinds of questions can you answer?
We can answer any library or research-related questions you might have. We think chat reference is particularly well-suited for asking questions about online materials (e-books, databases, online journals, our website, etc.), but we’ll always try to answer any question as best we can.
What if I want to speak with a librarian from a different Emory library (ie., business, health, law, etc.)?
At the present time, only Woodruff Library staff are available for chatting, but we would be happy to do what we can to answer your question.
Will my chat be recorded?
Yes – all conversations will be recorded. However, this is only for the library’s use, and we delete any personal information (including your user name), so that our transcripts will be completely anonymous. Read our disclaimer for more details.
Got a question not on our FAQ? Contact Rachel (rborcha@emory.edu) or send an IM to EmoryWoodRef!
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