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FAQ | |
Frequently Asked Questions General Questions on OpenURL and Link Resolvers
OpenURL is a standard format for transporting metadata and identifiers (normally describing a publication) as a URL for the purpose of context sensitive linking. The resulting URL can then interact with online services. OpenURL is the mechanism that underlies today's open, web-based linking of scholarly material. A link resolver is a system that parses an incoming OpenURL and provides links to the appropriate resources based on the knowledgebase of local holdings and entitlements stored by an Institution in its link resolver. As libraries often have multiple copies of the same article available, a link resolver is able to resolve to the appropriate copy of the article or service as defined by the Librarian. For more information on OpenURL, please see OCLC's http://www.oclc.org/research/projects/openurl/default.htm or the Wikipedia article http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OpenURL. One of the most used Link Resolvers, SFX, maintains a good overview at http://www.exlibrisgroup.com/sfx_faq.htm.
Please simply complete the details requested on our "Submit Library Settings" form. Once a member of our Customer Support Team has verified your submission, your settings will be included in our system and your Customers will be able to choose your Institution's resolver in their search preferences. The Library Partner service is provided completely free of charge. With Scirus' OpenURL implementation, this is not required. Once you have registered your Link Resolver settings with Scirus, your Customers need only select your institution from the drop down list in their search preferences. If you would like to have the appropriate Link Resolver settings applied for all of your patrons automatically, please see the "What is cookie pushing?" section below. Yes, this is possible. The option is available to you during completion of the "Submit Library Settings" form. The images used in Scirus should be 101 x 15 pixels. The image should contain a graphic or short text label that provides a clear description of what the underlying target of the link is. Images can be in either .gif or .jpg format, and will be displayed on a white background. By means of image-based linking, institutes that subscribe to a link resolver that supports this technology (SFX, 1Cate, TOUResolver, Discovery:Resolver) are shown links to the entitled full text in the Scirus interface as a "Full Text" image link. Depending on the link resolver configuration, when users click on the "Full Text" image link, they will be taken either directly to the full text or to a resolver-specific entitlements screen from which they must choose the appropriate full text or alternative service. Please contact us at
The CookiePusher offers a pragmatic solution whereby an information resource can be notified about the existence and the location of an OpenURL link resolver server like SFX or 1Cate. The knowledge of the existence and the location of the user's link resolver are essential for the information resource to build the correct link. Authentication cookie pushing can be used as follows: The administrator places a small image on a secure page, e.g., the list of electronic resources, on their site. When the user navigates to this page, the link resolver authentication cookie is placed on the browser. To use the CookiePusher mechanism, a simple adaptation at the side of the information resource is required, as well as at the side of the institution that runs the OpenURL-compliant service component and that accesses the information resource. If an institution's information resource installed the CookiePusher script, as a means to detect the institution's preferences regarding an OpenURL-compliant service component, than the institution must make sure it connects its users to that resource via its CookiePusher. There are several ways in which an institution can do this. For instance: If you are unable to push the cookie by click through, Scirus offers a Cookie Activator which you can offer to your users. Please bear in mind that you will also have to provide the cookie value with the Cookie Activator file, otherwise it will not work. Steps to follow: The easiest way for a Scirus user to activate their Library Partner links is via the Search Preferences Page. Users need only click on the first letter of their institution from the alphanumeric list; and choose their institution from the drop-down menu. Once a user has made their selection and hit the save button, Scirus will add this preference to the users Scirus Cookies. |
