Born in an ancient Chinese city beside the Yangzi River in the year of the dragon, I had lived in this mystic land for 27 years. Living in a developing China, I was very lucky to have better opportunities than the older generations to get a higher education, participate in developing the new China, and even go abroad. After finishing my high school education, I was admitted by a top University - Huazhong University of Science and Technology where I got my bachelor degree in Electrical Engineering and experienced unforgettable four years.
After graduation, I stayed in Wuhan, a big city in central China where my University is located, and worked for the Hubei Electric Power Testing and Research Institute, which is the technical center of the Hubei Electric Power Co.. In the three years I worked there, I learned a lot about information technology, project management, and team spirit. Working as an assistant engineer and information specialist there, I took charge of information management and consultation, information technology support for the department, and some training work. As computer technology became the major force of workplace, I felt it necessary to study more in this field.
So I spend the next 3 years on my master's degree of Computer Science and Applications in Wuhan University, where I learned a set of computer courses and conducted intensive research in information retrieval, multimedia, and image processing. Always dreaming to explore other parts of the world, I moved to Canada as soon as I finished my thesis debating.
In 2004, after living in Toronto for more than half a year, I came to the University of Western Ontario and began my new journey. My current Master of Library and Information program is expected to finish in Dec., 2005.
Gary Wan
135-291 Windermere Rd., London, On. , N6G 2J9
Home: 519-438-8063; Home page: http://publish.uwo.ca/~gwan3/home.htm
Education
Master of Library and Information Science, University of Western Ontario, London, On. , Canada. Expected Dec., 2005
M.S., Computer Science and Applications, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China. 2003
B.S., Electrical Engineering, Huazhong University of Science & Technology, Wuhan, China. 1997
Professional Experience
Information Management and Development Librarian, Saskatchewan Provincial Library. May 2005 to September 2005
Worked independently and participated as a member of the E-library team.
Performed troubleshooting with the province-wide library management system (Horizon), communicated with clients and handled their requests regarding the use, configuration and statistics of system and database records, resulting in higher customer satisfaction.
Acted as a primary contact to Horizon customer support and the Union Catalogue Librarian at the National Library of Canada.
Developed external utilities connected with the library management system, increasing system efficiency significantly.
Developed instructions and guides for general staff and system administrators on several Horizon utilities and components; trained library staff to install, configure and use these utilities.
Extensive experience in project management.
Student Librarian, N'merind Sweetgrass Resource Center, London, Ontario. February 2005 to April 2005.
Installed, configured and maintained the library management system (ResouceMate) and OPAC.
Negotiated with the vendor regarding licenses and support issues.
Trained volunteers and staff to catalogue library materials and to use the library management system.
Catalogued a number of library materials using AACR2, DDC, LCSH, MARC, and other cataloguing tools.
Research/Teaching Assistant, School of Computer Science, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China. January 2001 to June 2003.
Participated in several research projects as a member of the multimedia lab.
Instructed undergraduate students in labs and projects; graded assignments and aided students in their learning objectives for the class.
Published 5 articles in Chinese scholarly journals.
Information Specialist, Resource Center, Electric Power Testing & Research Institute of Hubei Province, Wuhan, China. July 1997 to September 2000.
Reference Service/Information Retrieval
Provided reference services to staff and customers for research and testing in the subjects of electrical engineering, computer engineering and applied physics using a variety of resources, receiving an excellent evaluation from users.
Collection Development
Acted as liaison to the Electrical Measurement, Systems, and several other departments; selected and purchased books, journals and reference materials that support these departments.
Training and Instruction
Developed guides and instructions on the use of electronic resources, new equipment and software systems.
Coached clients and staff in the use of these resources and devices in group workshops and one-on-one sessions.
Information Management
Designed and managed the intranet website for the Resource Center, achieving more than 99% uptime.
Developed and maintained an effective database management system for the Electrical Measurement department containing data about staffing, research projects, testing, equipment, etc., thus increasing work efficiency by 100%.
Administrated about 40 PCs in a local area network and performed troubleshooting, maintaining 98% uptime.
Library assistant (part-time), Huazhong University of Sci. & Tech. Library, Wuhan, China, 1995 to 1997.
Circulated library materials and provided quick reference to patrons.
Computer Skills
Online Resource: Lexis/Nexis, Dialog, OCLC First Search, ProQuest, Gale, Web of Knowledge, INSPEC, CAS databases, Google, etc.
Operating Systems: Microsoft Windows 98/2000/NT/XP, RedHat Linux 9.0, DOS
Scripting/Programming: Javascript, PHP, ASP, HTML/XHTML, CSS, XML, Java, C/C++, SQL
Database: MS Access, Sybase, MS SQL Server, MySQL, Foxpro
Applications: MS Office, MS Frontpage, Dreamweaver, Photoshop, MS Project, Crystal Reports, SQL Advantage, Horizon ILS, Koha ILS, ResouceMate ILS, MarcEdit, other software applications
Hardware: Specification, installation, operation, support and troubleshooting of most microcomputers and peripherals.
Honors and Awards
Donald K. Norrgard Award, University of Western Ontario, London, Canada, 2005.
Excellent Graduate Student Award, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China. 2003
Languages
Fluent in Chinese; basic knowledge of French and Japanese.
Professional Affiliation
Ontario Library Association
Member, Ontario Library and Information Technology Association.
Other Activities
Enjoy travelling, culture studies, literature, playing basketball, music and movies from various countries.
References
Available upon request
If I describe all my hobbies to you, that could make another guide. So I would list just several of the most important ones here
Movies
A good movie is just like a good book, in which you can find some things that touch your heart. Good movies lead me to a different world, bring me exciting life experience, and let me forget all the stress in the real world. Please visit my blog for my latest movie reviews.
Some of my favorite movies: The Shawshank Redemption (1994), Schindler's List (1993), The Silence of the Lambs (1991), Se7en (1995), Leon (1994), L.A. Confidential (1997), Forrest Gump (1994), Sideways (2004). Check IMDB for the introductions of these movies. I'll put some posters of these movies later on this page.
Music
I always believe every human being loves music. Just imagine it has existed as long as the human history. I enjoyed many sorts of music, including soft-rock, classic, folk, jazz, some pops and some heavy metal.
Some of my favorite performers: Dire Strait, Cranberries, Cold Play, the Beatles, etc.
Books
Books are always sincere accompanies of a librarian. My reading interests include pop fictions, detective novels, Chinese literature, technology books.
Travelling
Travelling always makes me excited. A real trip is worth a hundred books. That's true to me. The cities or sites I have visited in China are Hubei, Hunan, Sichun, Henan, Jiangxi, Beijing, Shanghai, Jiangshu, Zhejiang, Shanxi, Yunnan, Guangxi, Guangdong, and Hong Kong.
In Canada, they are Toronto, London, Niagra Falls, Huron, Regina and Moose Jaw. Please feel free to contact me if you are planning to travel to those places.