I have to say I am disappointed with Thode Library and the renovation's [lack of] progress. This project started two years ago and still only a third of the main floor has been renovated.

The basement is practically unusable if you have a laptop because power supply is limited. Most of the time it is almost empty - what a waste of space.

The first floor is now a group study floor - not necessarily a bad thing because we need this space, but most of the second floor is rendered useless as silent study space because sound emanating from the first floor, both from the Cafe and group study, is so loud.

The third floor has been converted into a private study area for iSci (integrated science? I don't even know what this is) students. I've been up there a few times and from what I can tell it's mostly vacant - it seems like a waste of what was valuable silent study space, something that this University is now direly lacking.

Is anyone else seriously fed up with Thode yet?

go to a different library?

I have studied in every library. Mills is notorious for being noisy, you have to have horseshoes up you arse to find a quiet place there.

Health sci is pretty good, but it is really busy.

Thode is closest to my house and it is a good library, I just think MAC has dropped the ball on the renovation so far. I am wondering if anyone else feels the same.

Ya, Thode is pretty shitty. I'd like to meet the genius who thought moving the group work tables of the main floor underneath the second floor study areas was a good idea.

Also as a side note, who the hell thought it would be good to lock the macs while booted in windows at 800x600 resolution on a 30 inch cinema display?

Current Thode = Thills

Seriously, a blender? I would have been happy with a simple timmies.

I don't get why it has to have a cafe of any sort, its a library. It should be for studying. Plus there's countless places on campus to eat within a 5 minute walk.

Thode is still my favourite library by a long shot, but it really isn't useful for anything besides group work at this point.

And a repost, since its pretty relevant to this thread as well:

The computer labs in the second floor of BSB tend to be really quiet, and since the monitors are mounted you get lots of desk space. The computer lab in the Psych Complex is also generally pretty empty, although it closes early (5ish). Hamilton Hall is pretty dead during exam time, and is a great study environment. I also like the empty classrooms in BSB and MDCL, they tend to be very quiet (however I'm not sure if they stay unlocked during the exam period).

in my short time, ive tried a bunch of places (Thode, Mills, Health Sci, etc)

i gotta say Student Center is my favorite. there is this little study room in the second floor that has glass walls, so you can see the outside and the student center main floor, but the entrance to the room is literally hidden, so there arent that many people there.

"The first floor is now a group study floor - not necessarily a bad thing because we need this space, but most of the second floor is rendered useless as silent study space because sound emanating from the first floor, both from the Cafe and group study, is so loud."

Really? Although I've only been there one day, I was there for a couple of hours and I couldn't hear much from downstairs.

I'm just annoyed at the Internet in Thode.

ya thode first semester last year was not so bad. after they took out like a third of the seating from the first floor it got annoying. the internet in thode is ridiculously slow at times.

Thode was better last year because you could actually study in 2nd or 3rd floors.

Who's idea was it to put a cafeteria there anyway? Library should be for studying, not socializing.

All the libraries just suck now. Mills is too loud, Innis is too small, Thode is too loud, Health Sci has rooms reserved for health sci students and is useless most of the time. There's also not enough study rooms in each library, I mean, it's ALWAYS booked. You have to like, book two weeks in advance now. Just try and find places that people wouldn't think of going to... I've found a few... you just gotta look.

I don't have a problem with the thode reno's BUT I dislike how the basement is so depressing, the lighting at the study places is so minimal, and the chairs are from 1890 and have no cushion which means studing for a long period leaves your but numb....
I think they need more study places, it sucks when you're on campus and most study places are full.

I really wish that the university would stop trying to be pretty and fun, and actually perform their function. It seems like this is a reoccurring theme in Universities. Someone needs to remind them they are an institute of higher learning, and not a post-high-school vacation spot.

I wish they would realize that if they did their job properly, the reputation of the school would jump through the roof and people would be knocking down the door to come here. It seems like they have lost confidence in their ability to be a leading academic institute and instead have tried to just look pretty and be convenient.

It would be a dream if the university would adopt the slogan "Yeah we are ugly, but we kick ass".

Thode is a perfect example of that. It should be ugly. It should be hideous. There should be no cafe or timmies, just books and well planned study space.

If I am ever put in charge of a university, things will change.

where is innis library. i should try that out sometime

Originally Posted by lmasud

where is innis library. i should try that out sometime

I think it's sort of on the side of TSH. I always get there by going through the DeGroot school of srsbzns.

It's a nice library, and about the only place on campus with a sufficient amount of outlets. The only kind of crappy part is that the group discussion area and the study booths are sort of in the same spot.

There are more study booths in a 'quiet area', but they don't have outlets.

I don't think I've ever found a study place that meets all the following specifications:

a) Working Outlet
b) Sufficient amount of internetz
c) Quiet
c) Lack of a retard talking to their friend IRL or on the phone about shit nobody cares about while completely missing the fact that they're in a library