A Day in the Life: Systems Librarian Edition

I know it's not the usual time for Library Day in the Life, but some management folks were asking me just what it is I do all day! So here's my sysgrunt (hat tip to RefGrunt, which I miss), a typical day in the life of this slightly atypical systems librarian:

    •    Start: 7:57am. Email (and coffee, lots and lots of coffee)
    •    Initial config of new computer's Windows OS
    •    Confirm committee receipt of new web site online form submissions
    •    IM with my boss
    •    Scrub old version of DOORS from local virtual machine (VM, my Windows machine)
    •    Confirm agenda for SLA Fellows meeting
    •    Email manager regarding spam system settings
    •    Registry scrub of all DOORS & related mentions on local VM
    •    Email new staff member regarding vault account
    •    Install Office on new computer
    •    Regclean on local VM
    •    Install Project on new computer
    •    Reboot local VM
    •    Install Visio on new computer
    •    Updates on new computer
    •    IM with my boss
    •    New job ad on websites
    •    Email
    •    SLA Fellows teleconference
    •    Emails re: new online web form
    •    Clean install of DOORS 9.3.0.6 on local VM
    •    Validate Office, Project and Visio on new machine
    •    Reboot VM after changing network adapter settings per IBM tech
    •    Install Symantec on new computer
    •    Report failure to connect to DOORS licensing server from local VM :-(
    •    Edit/format staff member's technical note
    •    Install Acrobat on new computer
    •    Create new staff member's vault account; confirm another new staff member's account exists; remove departed staff member's account
    •    Install vault software on new computer
    •    Start safety review web page
    •    Set up VPN on new computer
    •    Discover VPN server is not responding to access requests or pings; get with IT to sort out why. Further discover it's not server, it's the network config of new machine. Argh.
    •    Skype with safety officer about the safety review page
    •    Email with managers regarding files on web site
    •   
    •    Lunch!
    •   
    •    Email
    •    IM software crash & restart
    •    Check in technical note & notify staff member it's ready
    •    Changes to safety review web page
    •    Route ICD for approval
    •    Number assignment & format fixes to Report with Responses before posting
    •    Skype/join.me with new staff member to install vault software & give basic training
    •    Email
    •    Im with IT about VPN problem
    •    Change Request processing: returning some to editing for further changes, noting rejections & filing appropriately, pinging for status of still-awaiting-signatures ones, and updating the web page
    •    Realized that past process for denying CRs will no longer work with the recent changes to the workflow. Added a new "CR Denied" final state, and added two new transitions to the "Waiting for CCB" state, allowing return-to-edit and denial states directly rather than having to go back through syseng first.
    •    Email to manager re: CRs awaiting his approval
    •    Email with staff members regarding meeting next week
    •    Browser (involuntary) reboot
    •    Update observing schedules on new NSO website (and poke staff member about training so he can do it now)
    •    Email re: ICD drawings still awaiting proper signoff
    •    PAM strategic plan articles, first review
    •    CR # request; update web page.
    •    Email & filing of answered messages
    •    Fix location of accidentally-moved file in vault.
    •    Email with manager re: PMCS files on restricted instrument pages
    •    Locate DOORS Web installation & configuration instructions
    •    Route ICD for approval
    •    Done! 5:03pm

And now... I'm off to write my new Spectacles column!

SysGrunt, or, A Day in the Life of a Systems Librarian

Just, y'know, because. This was actually a fairly quiet (and abnormal) day, as I spent most of it working on just one task... aah, it was nice!


Make coffee.
Email (95 messages)
Spec out a new engineering laptop (mmm, Asus).
Cancel account for no-longer-used web conferencing system.
With help from programming friend, figure out bug in application script.
Web site update.
Tweak bogus registry keys for EDMS system, hopefully to fix a recurring bug.
Document processing (update database, update docs with approval info, share appropriately, PDF, post to web)
Lunch.
Email (32 messages)
Install new software.
More document processing.
Install yet more new software.
Last batch of email (22 messages)
Out.

SysGrunt, or DILOLibrarian

Occasionally, I post what I call SysGrunts, in a tip-o-the-hat to the original RefGrunt blog. I'm also now involved in the Library Day in the Life project. This is my Day in the Life sysgrunt for Monday, January 26th. Whee!

Boot up, make coffee.
Read emails.
Put on hat for primary job.
Scan final form for year-end financial report, send to SLA.
Search and restore a problematic CAD drawing from backups for a designer.
Email.
Having been tagged by two more people in the "25 things" meme, actually wrote it.
Further editing on specification document.
Email.
Lunch.
Process newly-released document.
Continue implementation of traceback analysis database.
Bang on desk in frustration; go for brief walk to cool down.
Email.
Change hats to secondary job.
Continue work on configuration process in DocuShare. Make some progress, then bork.
Change back to primary job.
More search-and-restore of problematic CAD files....but first,
Upgrade SolidWorks to 2009SP2.
Read some biblioblogs while the update runs.
Confirm lack of notification of configuration process step. Stew some more about it.
Wait some more on the upgrade...63% now!
Email.
And now it's 5pm. Upgrade only at 66%, will leave running overnight.

Library Day in the Life

Every once in a while I do a SysGrunt here (a nod to RefGrunt), and now there's a "Library Day in the Life" meme going around the library world. So here's another SysGrunt , aka "A Day in the Life of a Systems Librarian", for 17 July 2008:

Arrive at work. Get snagged about slow network access speeds in hallway.
Open office, fire up computer.
Another complaint about slow network speeds.
Make coffee.
Reboot router.
Check email.
Router reboot didn't help. Neither did server or workstation reboots. Now what?
Seems tied to single software package. Send email to tech support.
Many conversations in hallways about slow access and what to do about it.
Download SP4 of EDMS package.
Upgrade CAD package from 2007 SP3 to 2007 SP5. Learn that the rest of the team has upgraded to 2008. Sigh.
Wait for 2008 package to download from web site.
Start catching up on backlog of library journals while files are downloading.
Wait some more.
Check email.
Finish upgrade.
Open macro editor, stare at vendor-supplied VBA module. Panic.
Batch dump a directory listing with 18293 lines to feed into macro for renaming script.
Start directory sort and renaming list.
Listen to complaints about not being able to listen to streaming radio today.
Spend rest of afternoon working through renaming list. Uncross eyes.
Flee.

This meme was started by Bobbi over at Librarian by Day... good idea, Bobbi!

SysGrunt: New Year's Edition

Today's the first day with a full staff complement back in the office, and boy, did I feel it... So here's the first SysGrunt of the new year!

Greet everyone who's back in the office after long holidays.
Email.
Update a few web pages.
Software key install for user.
DHCP reset.
Software installation.
Staff meeting.
Build and compare Apple and Dell file servers for a replacement machine.
Talk with IT dude about non-server options. Get excited.
Email.
Lunch.
Research question.
External hard drive lookup for batch purchase - can we get volume discount?
Meeting with boss.
Software installation.
Email.
Discuss non-server solution with Big Boss, get OK to proceed (yay!)
Last hour of day spent perusing the blog backlog.
Run away!

So hi, everyone, and Happy New Year! (It's currently 58°, grey, and gloomy. Maybe it'll rain!)

Sys Grunt

A day in the life of a systems librarian... with a tip o' the hat to Ref Grunt.

Make coffee.
Read and answer email.
Check status of user with new swap space definition (so far, so good).
Send copyright question for posting old hardware manuals to listservs.
Discuss problematic webcam with IT.
Send SLA meetup info to chapter webmaster.
Read and answer email.
Research some of the listserv suggestions on copyright issues.
Troubleshoot CAD crash issue with user.
Browser/mailer crash. Sigh..
More coffee, read Monday's and Tuesday's LISNews.
Tweak data archive request form.
Procure chocolate for IT guy who fixed webcam.
Blog posting: PCA Call for Papers.
Summarize copyright findings on blog, send to listservs with thanks.
Update billing info for Experts Exchange; renew membership.
Read and answer email.
Answer reference question about the "Eye of God" nebula, aka the Helix Nebula.
Rummage around for lunch.
Adjust settings for directory monitoring program on server after forcing an end-process to kill stuttering notifications.
Post report into archives, database, and web site.
Post new instrument information to web site.
Discuss future (if any) of long-ignored indexing project.
Burn archive DVD of document set.
Return indexed papers to originating scientist; vow to finish unindexed stack sometime this year.
Listen to user complain (at length) about application.
Start work on unindexed papers. Index, index, index.
Read and answer email.
Go home.

96° and 27%Rh. No rain today.