Reading Time: 2 minutesDion Boucicault (1820-1890) was a prolific and innovative playwright, actor, producer, manager, and director of the 19th-century, English-speaking stage. This year, the collection gained a newly digitized play, just in time for Halloween. The Vampire, a supernatural melodrama explores two encounters with a mysterious phantom, blending elements of the supernatural with dramatic tension.
Digital Dialogs
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Baking the Archives: Wisconsin Crumb Cake
Reading Time: 4 minutesToday’s bake takes us back to 1908, when the Woman’s Club of Jacksonville, Florida published its Woman’s Club Cook Book, a 220-page community collection spanning everything from soups to “chafing dish recipes” to “diet[s] for the sick.” These early 20th-century cookbooks are more than just recipe compilations, they’re cultural documents of women’s lives, networks, and foodways.
Plan, Manage, and Share Your Research Data with Confidence: How the DMPTool Can Help
Reading Time: 2 minutesEvery grant proposal tells two stories: one about the research itself, and another about how the resulting data will be managed. For many researchers, writing a Data Management Plan (DMP) can feel daunting—but in reality, it’s an opportunity. A well-crafted DMP not only meets funder requirements but strengthens your research practices and ensures your data will remain visible, accessible, and impactful for years to come.
Copyright vs Terms and Conditions: Access and reuse of library collections
Reading Time: 2 minutesCopyright law protects creative expression as soon as it is saved or fixed, but this protection can be transferred and modified by contract law. Contracts can also provide guidance or put restrictions on how copyright protected material can be used. Library database and vendor contracts or license agreements establish rules for how the Libraries and its users may access content held by the vendor in exchange for a subscription fee to that content.
LINK: Your 24/7 AI Chatbot Ally at USF Libraries
Reading Time: 4 minutesSay hello to LINK (Library Information and Knowledge), USF Libraries’ new AI-powered reference chatbot designed to assist students, faculty, and staff with library-related questions around the clock. LINK serves as a friendly, reliable entry point to help users navigate collections, databases, services, and spaces, freeing them from routine inquiries and empowering library professionals to focus on more complex, personalized support.
Navigating the World with Mercator Projection – Past and Present
Reading Time: 2 minutesIn a world of satellite imagery and interactive maps, it’s easy to forget that some of our most important mapping tools have deep historic roots.
Baking the Archives: Strawberry Shortcake, or The 1892 Biscuit Disaster
Reading Time: 4 minutesRebekah Nault bakes a recipe for strawberry shortcake from Mrs. Lincoln’s Boston Cook Book – What To Do and What Not To Do in Cooking.
Primo Research Assistant
Reading Time: 2 minutesEarlier this semester the USF Libraries catalog, powered by Primo and hosted by the Florida Virtual Campus Library Services, was upgraded with an AI research assistant. When searching with the Primo Research Assistant, your keywords or question will now be turned into …Continue Reading
Remembering Roberts City Through the Stories of Its Community
Reading Time: 4 minutesOnce a vibrant community in West Tampa, Roberts City was notable for its residents, bustling businesses, and nationally recognized athletes. Today, it is remembered only through historical markers, cherished memories of former residents, and the archives they preserved.
Annual Vote for the Public Domain
Reading Time: < 1 minuteEach year, more material reaches the end of its copyright protection and falls into the public domain. And each year, the USF Libraries invite our community to participate in selecting which public domain works from the Libraries’ collections will be digitized and made freely available online.