Well, the answer here is, the library user tells me which titles he/she is interested in, I do all the setting up of the etocs, then we simply circulate them to the appropriate list by email. Where we have full online access, I make sure they have the necessary passwords to access.
I still can't say I use RSS. Most of our users use the intranet only intermittently, but seem much more comfortable dealing with straightforward email.
Keeping it simple seems to be the key, certainly as far as the users are concerned.
Rosemary Legg
Electronic Services Librarian
Blackpool, Fylde & Wyre Health Library
-----Original Message-----
From: An informal open list set up by the UK Serials Group
[mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of MacLeod, Roderick A
Sent: 31 January 2006 11:31
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Charging for alerting
What a great deal of effort seems to be expected from an average
academics who might want to keep up to date with tables of contents.
They need to:
1. Understand the concept of RSS, download a feed reader or register
with a web-based reader, locate relevant feeds from places such as the
helpful list at: http://www.liv.ac.uk/library/techserv/ejrnl/rss.html or
notice the 'RSS' or 'XML' graphics on some sources, and then load these
individually into their readers, periodically check individual feeds,
etc etc. This is not an easy process. An average academic might be
interested in numerous titles from numerous publishers, and the process
requires quite a bit of effort.
And/Or
2. Find email alerting TOC services, such as Zetoc or Injenta or
Contents Direct or numerous others, register, select titles of interest
from these various sources, and then wait for the barrage of individual
emails. They have to remember different usernames and passwords, and in
order to edit profiles may have to visit numerous sites. Sometimes the
email alerts will contain links straight through to the content, and
sometimes not. Even a nice service like Zetoc covers only a proportion
of available titles.
And many journals still don't have feeds or email TOCs.
Surely there's an easier way?
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