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- Services
- Floor Plans
- Spaces
- Collections
- Equipment
- Circulation
- Library digitization service
- Other Campus Libraries/Resource Centres
- Library Instruction Course on Video
- D2L Library Research Skills Tutorial
- Renewing books
- Returning borrowed books
- Policies
- Feedback
Services
Ask the Library
Hours of Operation
| Days | Hours |
|---|---|
| Monday to Thursday | 10 am - 10 pm |
| Friday | 10 am - 10 pm |
| Saturday and Sunday | 12 pm - 6 pm |
This collaborative online research help service is staffed by Library personnel from various Ontario university libraries, including Laurentian. For more information, see About Ask the Library.
is a free, web-based citation manager that allows you to:
- Directly import references from article databases, the library catalogue, e-book collections, etc.
- Manage and organize your references and research materials (PDFs, ePubs, web page snapshots, etc)
- Annotate research papers with highlighting, custom notes, and capture tables or figures with automatic page references
- Create a bibliography
- Share your references with others
- Add in-text citation and a bibliography directly into your assignment
- Synchronize your references and research materials across multiple computers
- ... all with unlimited storage for users who have an @laurentian.ca or @laurentienne.ca email address associated with their Zotero account
To enable Zotero's Library Lookup service to find full-text documents licensed by Laurentian University, set Edit -> Preferences -> Advanced -> General -> Resolver to North America -> Laurentian University
Getting started with Zotero
- Consult the Zotero documentation
- Contact the librarian supporting your faculty
News
| Title | Post date | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| Canada Post Strike and Resource Requests | 2024-11-19 | During the Canada Post strike, Laurentian University Library has suspended shipment of physical library resources. This... |
| Welcome to the Laurentian Library & Archives! | 2024-09-03 | We're excited to welcome you to the Library and Archives, whether you are new to the Laurentian community or a returning... |
| Searching the Archives got easier | 2024-04-19 | Laurentian Archives are excited to announce that they have joined the Archeion archives platform. Archeion is an archival... |
Direct Borrowing
Students who visit other university libraries in Canada may borrow directly from these libraries with a valid student photo ID, and may return these books at Laurentian at no charge. For further details contact: bibdesmaraislib@laurentian.ca.
Accessibility Services
Working in co-operation with Accessibility Services, the J.N. Desmarais Library provides research and library services and assistive technologies to students with disabilities. For specific information, please email Accessibility Services.
Research Help & general information
Library Hours
Visit our Library Service Counter on the second floor for research assistance, help with library services, and for general information about the Library. You can also call us at extension 4800 or dial 705-675-4800.
Research Consultations
You can make an appointment with a Librarian or the Archivist for in-depth assistance with your research. Contact the Librarian responsible for your subject area.
Assistance by email
If you need assistance, you can also email the Librarian responsible for your subject area. We try to reply to email inquiries within one business day (Monday through Friday) of receiving your question.
If your question refers to the Special Collections housed in the archives, or pertains to an archival fonds, send your question to archives@laurentian.ca and the archives will answer it. Depending on the complexity of your request, it may take up to a month to satisfy your query.
J.N. Desmarais Library Lockers
The lockers at the J.N. Desmarais Library are available for daily use and are located on the 3rd floor of the library. The lockers are available to all 
Laurentian University students on a first-come, first-served basis. A valid student card must be presented in order to pick up the key at the “Library Assistance” counter.
There is no charge for locker use, but the user is responsible for any fines payable for not returning the key on time; the key is due back before the closing time of the library. A user is responsible for removing all items before returning the key. All unclaimed items will be sent to Security.
The J.N. Desmarais Library is not responsible for any items stored in a locker. The user is responsible for his/her belongings; the use of a locker is at the user’s own risk. The J.N. Desmarais Library assumes no liability for any items stored in the lockers.
Floor Plans
Spaces
Brenda Wallace Computer Centre
The Brenda Wallace Computer Centre is located on the second floor. You may use the computer room when it is not being used by a scheduled class. Brenda Wallace Reading Room and Computer Centre Usage Policy. Please note--like the third floor, the BWCC has been designated as a quiet area.
Visit our Brenda Wallace Computer Room Google Calendar to view scheduled room bookings.
Search "Brenda Wallace Computer Room" or "J230"
Brenda Wallace Reading Room
Brenda Wallace Reading Room is situated on the third floor. Come to the reading room to read, study, or relax with a book or periodical. Brenda Wallace Reading Room and Computer Centre Usage Policy. Please note--like the third floor, the BWCC has been designated as a quiet area.
Visit our Brenda Wallace Reading Room Google Calendar to view scheduled room bookings.
Search "Brenda Wallace Reading Room" or "J375"
Graduate study rooms
Graduate students may register at Borrowers Service Desk for their own private rooms located on the third floor.
These rooms are assigned on a first-come, first-served basis for the week, but because of large waiting lists, rooms unused for a week will be re-assigned. Five have been set aside for daily use. The rooms are checked regularly to see that library material in them is signed out; if it is not, room privileges may be revoked.
For further details, contact Borrower Services, ext. 4800.
Group study rooms
The library has private study rooms that will seat from 2 to 12 people and these may be reserved at the Borrower Services Desk for up to 3 hours.
Washrooms
Facilities are located near the elevators on each floor of the library. All washrooms are fully accessible.
Angus Gilbert Reading Room (Archives)
Located on the first floor of the library, the Angus Gilbert Reading Room is accessible to everyone, and is a great place for people looking for a quiet environment to study, read and work. No food or drink is permitted in the Reading Room.
The Reading Room can accommodate up to 40 researchers.
Rotunda
Located just outside the main entrance to the library, the Rotunda is available 24/7 for those who like to talk, eat lunch, access the Internet--and even study.
Collections
The reserve collection, periodicals, the reference collection, newspapers, as well as indexes and abstracts are located on the second floor.
Circulating books, recreational paperbacks and the government documents collection are located on the third.
The Archives, located on the first floor of the Desmarais Library, houses the following special collections: Regional; Faculty; Mining Environment Vertical Files; Rare Books; 4th Years Honours Essay and Graduate Theses; and Archives.
The J.N. Desmarais Library & Archives also contains several specialized collections spread throughout the building such as the Collection franco-ontarienne and the Mining Environment collection.
Data
Numeric and geospatial data are also available for teaching and research. Laurentian has a site licence for software such as SPSS and ArcGIS Desktop. For assistance, contact Dan Scott or gis@laurentian.ca
E-Books
E-books are located in two different places:
- Many ebooks may be located with the library’s catalogue. These records will say they are Available online on the search results page.
- Ebooks can also be located by searching in e-book collections. Some recommended ebook collections include:
- Scholars Portal Ebooks (over 250,000 ebooks in multiple subject areas. Select Full Text Only to find only those ebooks with full text)
- Ebook Central (close to 40,000 ebooks in multiple subject areas)
Access to the Collections
Access to the library's collections is available from terminals throughout the building. The library is also wireless, so you may work on your own laptop.
Books within the library are accessible through the catalogue in various ways including by author, title and subject. So too are all the special collections housed in the Archives as well as government documents . If you need help finding government information in print or online, consult Dan Scott.
Periodical articles are found using online indexes and abstracts from the library’s home page from on- and off-campus. We list recommended databases and other online and print resources by subject.
The library subscribes to 50,000 periodicals in full-text electronic format. For those available only in print or in microformat, use the catalogue to see whether the J.N. Desmarais Library has the periodical title containing the article you want. Like books, periodicals in print are organized on the shelves by Library of Congress call number; periodicals in microformat are organized by title.
Archives
Finding aids for Laurentian’s archival fonds are most easily accessed from the Archives or contact archives@laurentian.ca.
Paperbacks
A selection of popu
lar paperbacks is available on the third floor. In 2011, graphic novels were added to this collection.
DVDs
DVDs are located on the second floor of the Library.
Music
The library has a large collection of 33 1/3 rpm (long play) recordings comprised mostly of classical music from the baroque era through to the twentieth century.
There also is a selection of jazz and popular music recordings. The loan period is one week.
Equipment
External DVD drives
The Windows workstations in the J.N. Desmarais Library & Archives (both in the Learning Commons and in the Brenda Wallace Computer Lab) do not have internal DVD drives. Students who wish to watch a DVD at the J.N. Desmarais Library & Archives and who do not have a laptop with an internal drive can borrow one of the five external DVD drives available from the Borrower Services desk:
Note: The user must supply their own headphones or earbuds with a 3.5mm jack to listen to the DVD.
Printers / Scanners / Photocopiers
One card Printers / Scanners / Photocopiers are located on the second floor and the equipment is capable of producing in either colour or black & white. Your student photo ID card serves as your access card. Visit the "One Card" machine in the Learning Commons to add money to your card, or go to https://laurentian.ca/onecard to add funds electronically. With a card, the cost per page is 10 cents for black & white printing or photocopying, or 25 cents in colour. There is no charge to scan and when you scan you can save your output on Google Drive or email it to yourself.
Microform Readers
New equipment which gives you the option of converting pages on microform to .pdf documents has been placed on the second floor by the washrooms.
Circulation
Introduction
A valid student photo identification card must be presented before books can be borrowed.
Books
Undergraduates, graduates, staff and faculty of Laurentian may borrow up to 500 circulating books for 120 days.
All books may be renewed and unlimited number of times unless requested by another borrower. Please know that if a book is requested by another patron, a borrower will normally have seven days to return the book, notwithstanding the original due date. The due date stamped into the book at the circulation counter serves simply as a courtesy reminder of the due at the time the stamp was applied. If a book is recalled before the date stamped into the book, the new recall due date takes precedence. For greater clarity, the due date listed in the library’s online catalogue is the official due date of the book at any time.
Reserve Material
Your professor may request that the library place material on 1, 2 or 4 hour, 1, 3 or 7 day reserve. The Reserves list enables you to search for reserve material.
Special Processing and Searches
All items on order are indicated in the online catalogue. If there is a particular title that has been received but is not yet available for circulation, please fill out a CAN'T FIND A BOOK? form available on the pods containing library chromebooks. Under normal circumstances, you will have the book in your hands within 48 hours. You may also use this slip to request that the library search for a book missing from the shelf.
For further information about User Information Services, contact us.
Your LU Library Account
Login to your library account through the catalogue to renew your books, to see which books you have out, to place holds, and to verify whether you have fines owing.
Your username and password are the same as your LaurentianID account.
Library digitization service
To request digitization of a print book chapter or journal article:
- Type your search on the Omni search bar (example: All our Relations: Finding the Path Forward):
- Click on the item on the results page:
-
- Sign in using your Laurentian ID and password (if not already signed in):
- Under the Get It heading, click on Digitization:
- Fill in chapter or as much article details as possible and click Send Digitization Request (Optional: enter Comment and Not needed after date).
In keeping with copyright law we can “make copies of up to ten percent (10%) of a work (e.g., a book, whether monographic or a collection of shorter works) OR provided that it is no more than ten percent (10%) of the work in which it is found, we can make copies of an entire chapter from a book”. We cannot provide digitization of a complete book, or of a complete periodical volume or issue.
- You will receive an email when the item has been digitized, with a download link to the scanned material. The link will be active for 30 days.
Other Campus Libraries/Resource Centres
Campus libraries and resource centres
The J.N. Desmarais Library & Archives is located adjacent to the Classroom Building. The entrance is on the 2nd floor. Email: bibdesmaraislib@laurentian.ca Email: archives@laurentian.ca Phone: 705-675-1151 ext. 3306 If your inquiry pertains to the opening hours of the special collections (Regional, Faculty, Rare Books, Essays and Thesis), they are accessible during our regular hours of operation. No appointment is necessary. Please be advised that an appointment is required prior to your visit to the Archives for all search requests concerning archival fonds. Access to and reference for archival materials will be offered only on Thursdays and Fridays. The Architecture Library is located at Laurentian's McEwen School of Architecture in downtown Sudbury, serving the students and faculty of the Architecture program. Email: bibarchitecturelib@laurentian.ca Phone: 705-675-1151 ext. 7273J.N. Desmarais Library & Archives
Phone: 705-675-4800
Toll-free: 1-800-661-1058Archives
Architecture Library
Education Resource Centre
Located in room AR-102 of the Alphonse Raymond Building, the Education Resource Centre houses provincial curriculum documents, educational methods and strategy texts, specific texts for all subjects covered under the Ontario Curriculum.
You can also find picture books, DVDs, instruments, and other manipulative resources specifically used in today's classroom.
Location: Alphonse Raymond Building, Room AR-102
Telephone: 705-675-1151, extension 5024
For further information, please contact the librarian responsible for Education
Greater Sudbury Public Library
Students possessing an active photo identification card from Laurentian University are entitled to a Greater Sudbury Public Library card free of charge. The Library offers a variety of services and programs, in addition to providing access to a large print and electronic collection. Here are just a few examples of resources that might be of use:
- Hoopla: instantly borrow free digital movies, TV shows, music, ebooks, audiobooks, graphic novels, comics, and more!
- Lyndalibrary: online education service that offers courses and video tutorials to learn business, technology and creative skills. Popular tutorials include Programming Foundations, Photoshop, Project Management, Time Management, HTML, etc.
- Mango Languages: online resource for learning over 60 languages, including French, English, Spanish, and Italian.
- Local History Collection: resources that highlight the rich history of Greater Sudbury.
For more information, visit the Greater Sudbury Public Library website.
Library Instruction Course on Video
Welcome to the J.N. Desmarais Library and Archive
This course was created by Leïla Saadaoui, French Language Services Librarian and adapted to English by Alain Lamothe, Chair, Department of Library and Archives.
The following videos will enable you to:
- Familiarize yourself with the services offered by the Library and Archives (in particular during the current pandemic);
- Discover research guides associated with your subject area;
- Discover online dictionaries and encyclopedias, in both English and French;
- Learn how to conduct simple and advanced searches in Omni;
- Learn how to borrow books in person and from off-campus;
- Learn how to use our various e-book collections (locate appropriate e-books and e-book chapters);
- Learn how to retrieve articles from e-journals and chapters from e-books;
- Evaluate if an article is from a peer-reviewed journal and is a scholarly or academic article;
- Learn how to search various online databases (Ebsco, ProQuest, Web ofKnowledge,...);
- Learn how to format citations based on a variety of standards such as APA,MLA,...;
- Familiarize yourself with Zotero, a citation management tool.
Virtual Tour of the J.N. Desmarais Library
You will be able to:
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Identify the J.N. Desmarais Library building
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See where the Library Help Desk and the IT Help Desk are located
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See where the Centre for Academic Excellence is located
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Locate the Periodical, Microform, Circulating and Government Documents collections.
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Find the Brenda Wallace Computer Centre and the Brenda Wallace Reading Room
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Locate the Archives
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Find the offices of the librarians
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Navigate the library's three floors
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To see where you can work and study while in the library
Session 1 - Introduction to the Library
You will learn about:
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The services and resources available to you at the library
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The J. N. Desmarais Library and Archives web site
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Current library services, updated on the Covid-19 FAQ and our News section
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Points of access to library resources
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Research guides by disciplines
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Omni
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Find a book (Borrow the book or Digitize a section of it)
Session 2 - Library Research Skills Tutorial on D2L
You will learn how to:
Access the Library Research Skills Tutorial on D2L
Navigate through the Modules
How to successfull complete all quizzes
How to access your Certificate (Proof of course completion).
Session 3 - Omni
You will learn about: Omni
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Your library account
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Simple search, advanced search
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Search Laurentian University’s collection / search all 16 partner libraries
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Author search, title search
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Search based on a citation:
(article, permalink on Omni) Hagège, C. (2000). La vie secrète du langage. La Linguistique, 36(1/2), 63‑69.
(book, permalink on Omni) Gervais, G. (2000). Les jumelles Dionne et l’Ontario français, 1934-1944. Prise de paro
For the purchase of required course textbooks: Visit Laurentian Bookstore, your local bookstore, online store like Amazon or directly on the publishers’ websites.
Session 4 - Online Databases
You will learn:
How to search for articles in a specialized online database (Web of Knowledge)
Session 5 - E-Journals
You will learn:
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How to search for peer-reviewed academic articles
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What makes an article academic in nature
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How to search a subject in a specialized online database.
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Scholars Portal - E-journals
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Periodicals - newspaper (daily, weekly), bulletin, magazine, academic journal.
Suggested reading: Chapter 6 (p. 138-140) in Smale, B. and J. Fowlie. (2009). How to succeed at University: An Essential Guide to Academic Skills and Personal Development. SAGE Publications.
https://login.librweb.laurentian.ca/login?url=https://books.scholarsportal.info/uri/ebooks/ebooks3/sage/2017-12-06/1/9781446279731 (access restricted to LU)
Session 6 - E-Books
You will learn:
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How to access e-books via Omni
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The different e-books platforms available to you (Ebsco, ProQuest, Scholars Portal, etc.)
See the «Electronic book collections» on the library’s Research Guides.
Session 7 - Citation Styles and Zotero
You will learn:
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How to cite sources (Citation Style Guides)
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The different citation styles currently used at the Laurentian.
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The tools available to store citations and generate citation lists
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How to use Zotero, the citation manager (Zotero)
We advise you to create a free account on Zotero to download your Zotero library (click on Download and follow the instructions: Zotero.org).
You can also create groups in Zotero in order to share your references with others (see further information below on Zotero Documentation).
The University of Ottawa also has an excellent series of instructional videos at https://uottawa.libguides.com/c.php?g=699879&p=5080078
We are available to help you with your research needs:
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By email: Send a question to your librarian
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If you have questions about your library account, borrowing books or fines: bibdesmaraislib@laurentian.ca
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To reach the Archives: archives@laurentian.ca
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Using the Ask a Librarian chat reference services
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By Zoom, by appointment with your librarian
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See also Contact Us
Have a great academic year!
D2L Library Research Skills Tutorial
D2L Library Research Skills Tutorial
The Research Skills Tutorial can teach you how to use library resources and efficient strategies for successful academic research.
To register for the Research Skills tutorial, log in to D2L and add it to your course list:
- Click the Self Registration button at the top of the page.
- Select "Research Skills Tutorial" from the course list
- Click Register. The form should be pre-filled with your information.
- Click Submit and then Finish to complete the registration. The course should now appear in your course list.
If you run into problems, have any questions, or are interested in getting customized research skills instruction in your class, please contact the Librarian responsible for your subject area.
NOTE: The Ask the Library online chat service cannot help you with the Research Skills Tutorial, as the chat operators do not have access to this D2L course.
Renewing books
Students, faculty, and staff may renew items an unlimited number of times. After 3 renewals, you will have to renew your items in person.
Due dates on renewals will not extend beyond the expiry of the borrower’s account, nor will renewals be allowed if the item has been recalled.
To renew your items manually:
- Sign in to your Omni account and select My Loans from the menu.
- Check the items to renew, and click Renew. The items display the new due date.
- If you can’t renew an item, email the library that loaned you the item:
Returning borrowed books
Please return borrowed books by dropping them into the book return bin at one of the following locations:
- The outdoor book return bin, located near the south-facing west doors of the Arts Building (facing parking lot 4), near the Tim Horton’s entrance.
- The blue book return bin, located in the lobby between the Classroom and J.N. Desmarais Buildings (near the Starbucks entrance), from the entrance facing the Science Building.
- The book return bin located near the main entrance to the J.N. Desmarais Library, on the 2nd floor.
Please do not place Chromebooks or other fragile items in the book return bin; instead, contact us to make arrangements.
If you live farther than 50 km from Laurentian University campus
Please contact us by email at bibdesmaraislib@laurentian.ca and we will email you a prepaid shipping label to return your books by Canada Post. You must provide the following information so that we can prepare the shipping label:
- Your name:
- Address:
- City, Province:
- Postal code:
- Telephone number:
- The number of books you are returning to us:
- The total weight of the package (kg):
- The size of the package in cm, including:
- Length:
- Width:
- Height:
Contact us
J.N. Desmarais Library
bibdesmaraislib@laurentian.ca
705-675-1151 ext. 4800
Architecture Library
bibarchitecturelib@laurentian.ca
705-675-1151 ext. 7273
Policies
- Collection Development Policy
- Donation Policy (PDF)
- Policy on the Access and Loan of Library Materials (PDF) - loan periods, renewals, and charges
- Library Code of Conduct (PDF)
- Brenda Wallace Reading Room and Computer Centre Usage Policy (PDF)
Feedback
We are always interested in your opinion about our collections and services. If you have a suggestion, you may leave it on a compliments / questions / suggestions sheet near the exit to the library. You can request the addition of books, journal subscriptions, or research databases to the Laurentian University library collection.
You may also visit, phone or write:
Natasha Gerolami
Chair, Department of Library and Archives
ngerolami@laurentian.ca
or
Danielle Dennie
University Librarian
705-675-1151 ext. 4841 or ddennie2@laurentian.ca