Re: Constantly losing E-access in the beginning of the year Ohler, Lila A. 21 Feb 2007 17:35 UTC
Similarly, we have started a project to modify the use of our traditional print serial controls to allow us to routinely check the online access for each electronic subscription title we carry at least twice a year. Yes, it is a lot of work to set this up, and to redirect staff toward new workflows. But in the end, it is worth it for two reasons. First, given the amount of time it can often take to regain access once lost, it would pay libraries to be proactive in resolving these before it comes to the "crisis" point, meaning when the patron discovers a lack of access at their point of need. I believe routinely waiting for the patron to discover the problem can seriously damage the library's reputation for providing effective, timely, and consistent service. And second, to my mind, given the amount of money spent on electronic titles these days, it is simply financially irresponsible not to ensure that these materials are "on the shelf." Past that, I look forward to the day that librarians, serial vendors, content/system providers, and publishers all agree to use a uniform set of standards for this process! Thanks! Lila (Angie) Ohler Acquisitions Librarian University of Oklahoma Libraries Serials Dept, LL211 401 West Brooks St. Norman, OK 73019 Phone: (405) 325-2142 Fax: (405) 325-1893 Email: lohler@ou.edu -----Original Message----- From: SERIALST: Serials in Libraries Discussion Forum [mailto:SERIALST@LIST.UVM.EDU] On Behalf Of Hutchens, Chad Sent: Tuesday, February 20, 2007 4:21 PM To: SERIALST@LIST.UVM.EDU Subject: Re: [SERIALST] Constantly losing E-access in the beginning of the year I've been toying with the idea of doing a random access check every day. Just drop a list of titles or packages (with access url's) to which you subscribe into an array and have a php or perl script randomly select one every day of the week and print it to a webpage where you could just click on the link and go. That way you'd be proactively checking access year-round rather than reactively during problem periods. In most cases I imagine all would be well and you could go on with your day and other times, but less often, you'd discover a problem before it became a problem. Opinions? Chad E. Hutchens Electronic Resources Librarian Montana State University Libraries P.O. Box 173320 Bozeman, MT 59717-3320 (406) 994-4313 phone (406) 994-2851 fax chutchens@montana.edu -----Original Message----- From: SERIALST: Serials in Libraries Discussion Forum [mailto:SERIALST@LIST.UVM.EDU] On Behalf Of Andrea Serra Sent: Tuesday, February 20, 2007 2:52 PM To: SERIALST@LIST.UVM.EDU Subject: Re: [SERIALST] Constantly losing E-access in the beginning of the year Patty, I would be interested to hear how others are handling this problem. I tend to check access as the confirmations come in as well as checking the "worst offenders" at this time of the year but would love to hear if someone's discovered a more efficient way. Of course, our reference librarians and patrons will tell us if something is not working but it would be nice to have a jump on it. Andrea Library Assistant, Electronic Serials Vassar College Libraries anserra@vassar.edu At 04:16 PM 2/20/2007, you wrote: >Hello Colleagues, > >Every beginning of the year (about January-March) our library loses access to >several online journals of which we actively subscribe. We work through a >serials vendor, and they contact the publisher whenever we lose access. The >reason for lost access may be a payment discrepancy, license signing need, >IP address question or some kind of incorrect information in the publisher's >record for our subscription. > >I know this problem of early-year lost access occurs with many libraries. I >would like to hear your ideas or best practices on how to avoid losing online >access. > >Some ideas that I have considered: >--Requesting a letter from each publisher in December verifying that we have >paid for the subscription and that we will have access (we would have our >agent do this, but it is still time-consuming) --Requesting a refund >for each day that we do not have access > >Please share your ideas. I will summarize for the list. > >Patty Wood >Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc.