The CUP problem of changing URL links highlights the situation facing
organisations for every publisher, host or vendor. Most of all, however, it
illustrates the enormous amount of duplicated effort required by individual
institutions in ensuring links to titles do not suddenly "disappear".
One of the major benefits for libraries of using a system like TDNet, the
e-journals interface and management system, is that links are updated and
maintained centrally for all customers in a single transaction by nightly
"spidering" of the web, therefore users can remain confident that their
titles will be permanently accessible, with no individual effort required
by themselves.
Keith Renwick,
TDNet Sales Manager,
Everetts.
At 12:36 PM 5/30/01 +0100, you wrote:
>Hi,
>
>Have most publishers learnt nothing from all our comments over the years!!??
>We are their ultimate customers at the end of the day - surely caring and
>responding to the needs of the customers should be one of their highest
>priorities, especially in a time of constant change.
>
>The problems we face maintaining up to date links are a major headache and
>workload for all of us, most of us don't have the time to constantly check
>our links, many of us have to rely on helpful users to inform us of any
>problems like loss of access, changed links, changed online coverage etc..
>However many problems remain unreported?? It is a strange world indeed when
>the customer has to do all of this work themselves.
>
>In response to the original question I do have a copy of an email sent to
>this list about forthcoming changes to CUP Online dated 07/09/00, so CUP did
>make an effort to inform us of possible impending changes to their service -
>however that is the only email I ever saw and it didn't mention changes in
>the URLs. If I remember correctly I had to make a note to keep going back to
>their site on a regular basis to see if the changes had occurred, so that I
>could make appropriate amendments to our links.
>
>We seem to be lucky in that our existing URLs still work e.g for
>Environmental Conservation we are using
>http://www.journals.cup.org/owa_dba/owa/ISSUES_IN_JOURNAL?JID=ENC, although
>they are no longer in the format that is recommended on the CUP pages.
>However, I was told that these links will continue to work, and that it was
>up to me if I wanted to adopt the new format.
>
>What I can't understand is that why as the named account administrator for
>many of the journals/journal services I hardly ever receive information
>about changes to services, links, increased online coverage etc. via this
>route. Yet, surely this would be the best route for keeping us up to date.
>
>Earlier this year we found that all our links to the Optical Society of
>America journals had changed + they had extended the online backfiles, yet
>there was no communication from OSA about this, even though the account
>under which the online access was set up had my name attached. Again I only
>found out because a helpful user and friend of mine informed me that our
>links were no longer working. I found out that the problem arose because
>they had begun to host their journals inhouse. Since we are paying for
>print/online access is it not an obligation on the publisher to make sure
>it's customers are informed of such changes.
>
>Whilst this list is a useful vehicle for bringing such issues to the fore, I
>believe that the onus should be on the publishers to communicate with the
>named contacts/administrators of their services.
>
>Cheers
>Lesley
>
>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>Lesley Crawshaw, Faculty Information Consultant, LIS,
>University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, AL10 9AB UK
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>e-mail: [log in to unmask]
>phone: 01707 284662 fax: 01707 284666
>web: http://www.herts.ac.uk/lis/subjects/natsci/ejournals/
>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>
>
>
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: An informal open list, set up under the auspices of the United
>Kingdom Seri [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of
>M.Tattersall
>Sent: 24 May 2001 14:22
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: Change to CUP e journal URLs
>
>
>We have discovered that CUP have changed the URLs for all their
>titles. This means that we need to change our local URL exclusion
>table to bypass the JANET cache, amend our Web pages and
>OPAC records. If CUP journals were covered by any linkage service
>we use, then our records for that would have to be altered too.
>
>Several questions arise from this experience:
>1 would it be useful to this sort of change to the lis-e-journals list?
>2 did other libraries get advance notice of these changes by other
> means?
>3 do other libraries have a similar workload arising from them?
>4 would other libraries welcome the opportunity to evaluate changes
> to e journal services ahead of their full implemenation?
>
>I would be very interested to exchange experience both on this
>particular case and the general area of keeping tabs on ejournal
>supply.
>
>Regards
>marion Tattersall
>
>
>
>
>********************************************************************
>Marion Tattersall email:[log in to unmask]
>Electronic Library Group phone direct:0114 222 7281
>Main Library fax: 0114 222 7290
>University of Sheffield http://www.shef.ac.uk/~lib
>Sheffield S10 2TN
>******************************************************************
>Not normally available on Fridays
>******************************************************************
>
>
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