August 21, 2019

Gale Database Updates: Names, Icons, Interfaces

Hi,

Welcome to the new school year!

As reported earlier (5/16 , 6/20, and 7/12), Gale made many updates to their databases this summer, and a few updates are still pending. The summary is that several databases were renamed, all databases have new icons, and many have enhanced interfaces. Tutorials and other training materials were either updated or will be soon. Webinars were offered over the summer, and many will be repeated starting in September.

You may want to update the Gale database icons on your website, in LMS’s, on instructional or promotional materials, etc.

The elementary and secondary Find Information pages on OSLIS are current, and when applicable, former database names are included for context. If you see the former version of database icons, force a refresh of the page or clear your cache.

Today I also updated the Gale K-12 Database Comparison document that lives at the bottom of the elementary educator and secondary educator Find Information pages.

Gale created a web page of screenshots that reflect the main database enhancements. The most noticeable change is that tools are grouped differently. Some are now in a sticky toolbar that is always visible at the top of the page, no matter how much scrolling you do. Others – like Translate and Listen – are found just above the beginning of articles. Of note is that the Bookmark tool is now called Get Link. Also of note is that Gale sunsetted what was called My Folder. Why? Because many users thought the items were saved for good and did not realize that their My Folder items would disappear once they closed their Internet browser or session. Also, My Folder was no longer necessary because of the other save options, including saving to Google Drive, downloading articles, and more. Many of the enhancements were made with accessibility in mind.

These are a few of the K-12 databases most affected by the changes:

Database Icon	Current Name (& More Info If Available)	Former Name & Updates
Technically, all database names now begin with Gale. Ex: In Context: Middle School is really Gale In Context: Middle School.
	Kids InfoBits	No name change Interface will be updated around summer 2020
	In Context: Middle School	Former name: Research In Context
	In Context: High School	Former name: Student Resources In Context
	Gale OneFile: High School Edition	Former name: InfoTrac Student Edition
	Gale eBooks (Or, spelled like this instead: Gale Ebooks? Not sure yet.)	Former name: Gale Virtual Reference Library (GVRL) *To be updated to new interface in September
	Health and Wellness	Former name: Health & Wellness Resource Center *Major update to interface
	In Context: Environmental Studies	Former name: GREENR *Major interface update; now has In Context look and features
	Gale OneFile: News	Former name: InfoTrac Newsstand
	Books and Authors	Former name: Books & Authors *Major interface update on August 23 Can no longer save book lists within the database, but can save to Google Drive, etc.

Please help spread the word about the changes.

Have questions about all of these updates? Besides asking me, you can attend one of the database sessions to be led by a Gale trainer at the OASL Fall Conference. The conference is for all school library staff and anyone else who is interested. FYI, first timer scholarships are available, and applications are due September 13.

Thanks,
Jen

Jennifer Maurer
School Library Consultant
State Library of Oregon

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