About the library

Need a brief reminder about library hours, services, contact us details, and how to look information up in databases? Check out this pdf!

Microsoft Word 2007 blues...

You haven't upgraded to Office 2007 because you like Office 2003 and are quite comfortable with it. The only problem is, you are now receiving documents in a .docx format that it's impossible for your computer to open. If faced with this situation, download this converter to rectify the problem and you can continue using 2003 without having to worry about compatibility with newer documents!

Uh, I can't get the Header to work on my Word document!

Ok, you're in Microsoft Word 2007, typing up that paper for your BHS class when you realize your instructor has requested, in no uncertain terms, that you MUST include your name in a header at the top of each page.

To further compound your misery, you must also include the page numbers. No problem, except that "1" is appearing on your first page & your instructor probably doesn't want that there.

By this time you're probably ready to put your forehead through your expensive hi-def LCD monitor, right?

Don't panic! Before you commit PC monitor hara kiri, take a look below & you'll see some instructions that should guide you through the process. They're somewhat detailed, so read them through once before you sacrifice your Word document.

And away we go:

1. Click on Insert in the top menu

2. Click on Page Number in the Header & Footer box, avoid clicking on either Header or Footer, you have to access a different function.

3. Click on Top of Page (or the position you prefer).

4. Select the position you’d like the numbers to appear in – Plain Number 3 is the most common choice.

5. The top menu will change to the Header & Footer Tools menu & Design will be highlighted in green.

6. Just underneath the word Design you’ll see Different First Page, put a checkmark in that box – this will remove the page number from the 1st page of your document.

7. Down below, on the document, you’ll see the page number has been inserted on the 2nd page. Click to the LEFT of the page number.

8. Type in the text of your header, typically, your last name only.

9. Hit the space bar once to separate your name from the page number.

10. Click on the red X button on the right to close the Header/Design menu & return to your paper.

1960 at Dutchess Community College

Hudson River Valley Heritage has an amazing collection of prints, media and objects digitized online for students, teachers and the general public to access. This collaborative effort across the Hudson Valley has created a comprehensive database of digital media, primarily photographs. Recently, seventy plus photos from 1960 at Dutchess Community College were added to the collection. Click here to check them out. See what Dutchess looked like in its early days!

For the full collection of HRVH images, click the HRVH logo.



For all of Dutchess' collection, click here.

The Big Read

Check it out - the BIG READ is here! What is the Big Read? The Big Read is an annual event which spans the United States that encourages reading. Sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts, different organizations within a community who support reading pick a classic work of literature to read and then discuss. This year in Poughkeepsie the book of choice is F. Scott Fitzgerald's classic, The Great Gatsby. Local colleges, stores, libraries and schools are part of this collaboration, including Dutchess Community College. We have multiple copies of The Great Gatsby in the Francis U. and Mary F. Ritz Library, so stop by and grab a copy!

Open the PDF of the Poughkeepsie Public Library District's The Rotunda Big Read events by clicking here.

Stop by and see our Big Read display as you walk into the library and pick up a Reader's Guide to F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby to enhance your reading experience.

Google Chrome

I admit it. I'm a browser-a-holic. I like using different web browsers depending upon the mood I'm in. Sometimes I'll stick to one for awhile and sometimes I'll use two or three different browsers during the day. In general, Mozilla Firefox tends to win out over all the other browsers because it's fast, it's simple, it has great extensions and it's free from clutter. However, not all applications work with Firefox (although more and more of them now do), so I occasionally need to use IE. Then, a few months ago I wrote about the social networking browser, Flock, which truly is a one of a kind browser replete with pictures and ins to Facebook, delicious, mySpace, and all sorts of web 2.0 tools. Netscape Navigator used to be in the loop, but it's been supplanted by the developers by Flock. Opera is an interesting critter, and I mention that one because Google's Chrome has a similar feature to one that I really love about Opera - speed dial. On Chrome it's called "Most Visited". With speed dial you select the pages you want to store and a visual image of the page is displayed, with Google Chrome, the browser stores the pages "most visited" automatically.

Like the Google search engine, the look of Google's browser, Chrome, is one of simplicity. The youTube video describing the new browser touts "speed, stability, and security". Watch the video here. One of the features that I like about the new Chrome is called "new incognito window". That feature allows you to open and download files without cookies being stored and information logged into the browsing history. If you download a file, a giant arrow slides down the browser indicating that data has been downloaded.

I've only been playing with Chrome for a couple of days now, and I have noticed a couple of difficulties: not all applications play nice with Chrome, and my back button hasn't always gone back, but I'm assuming that the little issues will clear themselves up as Google releases new versions of their browser. For further discussion of the "battle of the browsers", check out this PC World article. So take a look at Google Chrome and enjoy running your own comparisons of browsers!

Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month

Visit the Francis U. & Mary F. Ritz Library

Display Case in Front Lobby

3rd Floor - Hudson Hall

The theme this year is Child's Play Around the Hispanic World. Members of the DCC Hispanic Heritage Committee display dolls and toys purchased from Hispanic countries. They also feature juvenile books written in Spanish which can be borrowed from the DCC library.