When looking at the results screen of an EMU Library database search, you
want to answer the question "Which articles are available for me to read
via the EMU Library?" In general, the library does NOT subscribe to all
the journal article content contained in databases. There are three categories
of article content availability you will encounter.
- The article content is available online
For a growing collection of journals,
the library is paying for online access to articles. You can read the articles
on- or off-campus, and then print and/or save the content to your computer.
- The article content is available in the library building (print/microform)
The library subscribes or subscribed to journals whose full-text is available
in the library building, either in paper format or in microfilm format.
- The article content is not subscribed to by the library in either
digital or physical format
The EMU Library will obtain a copy of any
article we do not subscribe to via our InterLibrary Loan service.
The FindText+ button (  )
or text link is a technology tool you'll see on database result pages that
can assist you in determining, "Which articles are available
to read via the EMU Library?"
Full-text available online (direct link to full-text evident in search results)
For most researchers, the best case is when you discover the text
of the article is immediately available online. In the example below, yellow
highlighting calls attention to text that indicates that the article is available
online in two different formats, plain-text html format and pdf format. Most
people prefer to view/print the pdf format because it looks like the printed
page and includes pictures, graphs, and charts. Clicking either yellow-highlighted
link will display the article on the screen.
Full-text available online (no direct link to full-text evident in search
results)
In the example below, there is no visible link
to electronic full text.
NOTE: The OCLC FirstSearch service adds the turquoise-highlighted
phrase 'Eastern Michigan University Library' as a visual cue that the search
service thinks the EMU Library subscribes to the journal that contains the
article of interest, in this case, Instructional
Science .
While this is useful to know, you should also be aware that the search service
DOES NOT KNOW about the large number of journals that the library has electronic
access to. That is, the database vendor might not display
the turquoise highlight in the ERIC citation (because they think EMU does not
subscribe to the journal) even though the EMU Library can provide immediate
electronic access to the text of the article.
How do you determine if the EMU Library subscribes
to the journal that contains the article? Click on the article title ...
... and you
will next see a screen with more information about the article. The
key to finding if the EMU Library subscribes to the journal is to look for,
and click on, either the FindText+ button or the EMU FindText+ link.
Clicking on either the button or the link will open up a new tab or window
displaying the FindText+ menu. The example below illustrates what most researchers
hope to find--electronic full text of the article is available. You can tell
this because the first banner below the article Title and Source is headed Electronic
Full Text. Clicking the GO button following 'Full text available via
...' will open up another window.
What you see in the new window will vary greatly:
- Sometimes you will see the text of the article.
- Sometimes you will be taken to a publisher's page that displays an abstract
of the article and you will have to look for a link to click to bring up
the full text.
- Sometimes you will be taken to a search screen and you will
have to enter information about the aricle, e.g., author and/or title, to
call up the text of the article.
In the example below, you are taken to a publisher's page with a description
of the article.
To read the article you have to seek out a link to the full text. Often, you
should look for the word PDF. In this example, it is a little
trickier because you have to click the phrase 'Open: Entire
document' to see the full text.
Finally, the full text in pdf format...
In the example below, the citation displays no visible link to full-text
and no turquoise-highlighted visible cue that the EMU Library subscribes
to the journal. Do not conclude that the article is not available via EMU!
It is worth making two mouse clicks to find out, first on the article title...
... to bring up a fuller description of the article, and second, on the FindText+
button or link...
... to bring up the FindText+ menu, which reveals that the full text of the
article is immediately available online. Clicking the appropriate GO button
will open up a new window displaying the text of the article.
Full-text available in library building (in print or microfilm format)
In the example below, the citation again displays no visible link to full
text and no turquoise-highlighted visible cue that the EMU Library subscribes
to the journal. What journal are we looking for? The Source: field
says it is the American Journal of Distance Education, Volume 11,
published in 1997.
It is worth making two mouse clicks, first on the article
title...
... to bring up a fuller description of the article, and second, on the FindText+
button or link...
... to bring up the FindText+ menu.
In this instance there is no Electronic Full Text banner.
The first menu banner says Library Print and Microform
Holdings. This means there is a very good chance that Volume
11 of the American Journal of Distance Education is available in
the library building in either a print format or microfilm format. Clicking
the appropriate GO button ...
... opens up
a new window displaying the Library catalog page for The American Journal
of Distance Education.
So where do we find the article? We need to scan the catalog page looking
for the library location of the journal volume number and year we seek--Volume
11 published in 1997. Volume 11 is located on the Periodical Shelves on
the 2nd floor of the library building, arranged alphabetically under the
name of the journal--American Journal of Distance Education.
Full-text NOT owned by library (request it via Interlibrary Loan)
In the example below, the citation again displays no visible link to full
text and no turquoise-highlighted visible cue that the EMU Library subscribes
to the journal. What journal are we looking for? The Source: field
says it is the Canadian Journal of Program Evaluation published
in 2000.
It is worth making two mouse clicks, first on the article
title...
... to bring up a fuller description of the article, and second, on the FindText+
button or link...
... to bring up the FindText+ menu.
In this instance there is no Electronic Full Text banner
and no Library Print and Microform Holdings banner.
The first banner says Request from another library. This means
the Canadian Journal of Program Evaluation is NOT OWNED by the Library in any
format. Clicking the appropriate GO button ...
... opens up
a new window displaying the EMU Interlibrary Loan login screen.
The EMU Library will obtain, at no cost to you, a copy of the article
within 1 to 1 1/2 weeks. About 90% of the time we will receive a pdf-formatted
copy of the article. We will send you email when the article arrives at
the library. If the article is in pdf-format, we will provide a link in
the email message which will connect you directly to the digital copy.
If the article is in print-format, we will ask you to pick up the copy
of the article at the Library Circulation desk. (Extended education students,
who do not take at least one on-campus class per week, will be mailed a
copy of the article.)
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