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What is Ask a UT System Librarian and who can use it?
When is this service available?
What types of questions will librarians answer?
Who answers my reference questions?
How long will it take a librarian to answer my question?
Can I ask a question anonymously? Who else sees my question?
Why did I receive an email from QuestionPoint?
What is my QuestionPoint Account and how do I access my questions?
Who should I contact if I have questions or comments about this service?
What is Ask a Librarian and who can use it?
Ask a UT System Librarian is a chat-based service that enables users
to ask reference questions that will be answered by librarians located
throughout the University of Texas System. Although the service is intended
for current
students,
faculty
and staff
of
the University
of Texas, librarians will answer questions from users outside the
UT community as time permits.
When is this service available?
Monday - Thursday: 12pm - midnight
Friday: 12pm - 4pm
Sunday: 6 - midnight
The above schedule may vary. Please see the main Ask a UT System page for notices regarding service interruptions.
If you have a question when this service is not available,
please use the Participating Libraries tab above to email a question
to your local University of Texas library.
What types of questions will librarians answer?
Questions pertaining to University of Texas System resources, the academic
research process, and other related topics will be addressed by librarians
staffing the Ask a UT System Librarian service. Librarians
will provide answers, source suggestions, search strategies, and referrals
to appropriate agencies.
Who answers my reference questions?
Library staff throughout the University of Texas System will provide
answers to your reference questions. Because
this service is staffed by librarians from various UT schools, the librarian
assisting you may not be familiar with the specifics
of
your
local University of Texas library.
As a result, librarians may suggest and provide information for contacting
your local library for library-specific, policy-oriented, or involved
questions.
How long will it take a librarian to answer
my question?
Chat requests will be answered during service hours. At peak times,
users may have to wait in a patron queue for the next available librarian.
Chat sessions typically take 15 minutes or less. If your question requires
more time, the librarian may ask if they can research your question and
send a response to your email address.
If the chat service is not available, use the Participating Libraries
tab above to email a question to your local University of Texas library.
Emailed questions will be answered as soon as possible. Please review
any information on the library's email form for a more specific estimate
of when you can expect a response.
Can I ask a question anonymously? Who else
sees my question?
Questions can be submitted anonymously. It is not necessary to include
a name in the chat form. However, an email address is required. A transcript
of your chat session will be sent to that address.
This service will make every attempt to respect and preserve your privacy.
Only library staff members have access to questions submitted to
this
service.
Questions
will
be
retained
for
90 days.
After that
time,
any identifying information,
such as names and email addresses, will
be edited
from questions and
deleted. Questions may be added to a database of frequently asked
questions
accessible to librarians for training and evaluation
purposes.
Why did I receive an email from QuestionPoint?
QuestionPoint is the chat software that the University of Texas System
uses to manage the
Ask a UT System Librarian service. An email
message will be sent to you the first time you use the service.
This message contains a system-generated password
and
information
about
accessing your QuestionPoint
Account.
What is my QuestionPoint account and how do
I access my questions?
Your QuestionPoint Account is an optional feature of this service.
It is not necessary to login to your account. However, accessing your
QuestionPoint account enables you to view transcripts of any of your
chat sessions
that occured within the last
90
days.
You can
access your
QuestionPoint
Account by using
your email address and password.
Who should I contact if I have questions or
comments about this service?
Questions
and comments can be sent to jwdobbs@mail.utexas.edu.
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