Posts tagged Google

Don't let Google Scholar lead you astray!

Google Scholar is a great place to scan across a lot of sources at once, but if it doesn't know that you have rights to access online articles and other sources from a library, it might send you to a page like this - which asks you to pay for the article you want:

The journal in this example is in the OSU Libraries' collection, and OSU students, staff and faculty have the right to access it (and articles in lots of other journals) from any computer with an Internet connection.  With a few adjustments to your preferences, you can tell Google Scholar to point you to the resources that the library provides for the OSU community.

Start your search in Google Scholar (google.scholar.com).  A typical results screen looks like this one.  The first result on this list is the one that led to the pay-per-view screen example above.

To find out which of your results are available from the OSU Libraries, go to the Scholar Preferences link, just to the right of the search box:

In the middle of the Scholar Preferences page, there is a section called Library Links.  Students, faculty and staff at OSU should search for Oregon State because they can access content from OSU online.

Click the boxes next to both OSU options:  Find it at OSU, and Get This Item at OSU.

Now, when you do a search, your result list will look like this.  Notice the new links to the right of each title:

There are also some new options like Get This Item at OSU, or Get This in Print at OSU in the list of links at the bottom of each entry on the result list.

Clicking on these new links will now take you to the library's collections.  If you are in the library, or at an IP address recognized as an OSU address, this process will be immediate.  If you are not on campus, you will need to prove that you have access to the sources the library has paid for.  You do this by entering your ONID login and password at this screen:

This process works well, but it doesn't work perfectly.  If there is an article you want, and you can't get it this way, ask a librarian how you can get it.

Good luck!  If you have questions, contact me or leave a comment.

Launched in 2004, Google Scholar provides a way to use the power of Google to search for scholarly articles, presentations, reports and more.  While Google Scholar can be a great tool for finding scholarly sources, those sources aren't always free.  Anyone who has used this tool has clicked on a likely-looking resource, only to be taken to a page where they can get the article, if they pay for it.

The OSU Library spends a lot of money every year to give OSU students, faculty and staff access to those articles.  Here's how you can set up your Google Scholar to let you know when the articles you find are available at the library.

Go to Google Scholar - http://scholar.google.com (if you click the link right now, it will open in a new window).

Click on the Scholar Preferences link next to the search box.

The next page will let you set your preferences.  Look for the section headed Library Links.

Enter the name of the library you want Google Scholar to connect to.  You can include up to 3 libraries.  Enter Oregon State University to connect to OSU Libraries' holdings.

Click all of the OSU options.  Now, when you search in Google Scholar, you will also get information about the OSU Libraries' subscriptions.

This is what the results of a simple search on "overfishing" look like before changing the preferences --

And this is what they look like after changing the preferences.  Look for the Find it at OSU link to the right of each result.

Clicking the Find it at OSU link takes you into the OSU Libraries' holdings.  If the source you want is something that the library had to pay for, you will need to log in with your ONID information to prove that you are from OSU and allowed to access the library's subscriptions.

If the system can, it will link you directly to the article.  You may have to link to the journal, and then browse to the article.   If the article is not available in print, you may have to get access to the print copy in the library.  If any of these options do not work, or if you have any questions, ask a librarian and they will be happy to help you get the article you want.

Good luck!