Ask - a - Librarian

Who may use the Ask A Librarian service?
This service is intended for students enrolled in any of Tallahassee Community College's programs. TCC faculty and staff serving these students are also eligible.

Is there an On-Line Chat Service?
Yes, TCC participates in the Florida Ask a Librarian Service. 'Chat' is staffed by Reference Librarians from public and college libraries around the state of Florida, so it is highly probable you will be 'chatting' with a community college librarian in the network, but not necessarily one at TCC. On-line Chat is available Sunday through Thursday from 10 a.m. to Midnight E.S.T. [eastern standard time], Fridays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. EST. "When you click on the chat button, your question enters a queue for the on-duty librarians. Librarians answer questions in the order they receive them. Typically, depending on the expected traffic, between two and six librarians staff the Ask a Librarian desk during the hours we are available for live chat. When the librarian accepts your question, you are able to chat one-on-one with that librarian while he or she helps you find what you need by guiding you through the myriad of resources available. The librarian might screen-share these resources with you." 

Is texting service available for Ask-a-Librarian?
Yes. Text TCC & your question to 850.424.8300  -  
Type tcc as the first 3 characters, enter your question and send - Ask-a-Librarian will reply shortly

Can Ask-a-Librarian activate my library account ?
No. Because Ask a Librarian is a statewide service, you could be speaking with a librarian from any of our 120 participating libraries. If the librarian is not from your local library, he or she will not have access to your personal library record.

Who will answer my e-mail question?
Your e-mail question will go to the TCC Library reference staff, located at the Tallahassee Community College Campus Library (our email address is library@tcc.fl.edu).

When will my e-mail question be answered?
The TCC Library reference staff responds to e-mail questions as soon as they are received. Most questions are answered within 24 hours.

What kinds of questions can I ask?
Any research related question you might ask at a reference desk in any library. This might include:

• Where should I start my research on..."
• I've looked ..., where else should I look?
• I need an address for...
• I need help connecting to the library's catalog.
• I'm having trouble accessing the Academic Search  database.
• How do I write an APA [or MLA or Turabian] citation for a website?
• And more...

The TCC Library Ask A Librarian service does not provide document delivery (finding, copying and delivering articles). However, we can help you with information about interlibrary loan and document delivery services available to TCC patrons.

• Send an Ask-a-Librarian e-mail request

  

• Send an Ask-a-Librarian chat request
• Text  Ask-a-Librarian 850-424-8300 TCC
• Call the Reference Department 850-201-8383

Posted February 2006
Updated April 2012