Kia ora koutou
We are (finally?) going to go live with OpenAthens as a replacement to ezproxy over the mid-semester break (April 11 – 29th). Apologies for the long post that follows – maybe save as some holiday reading (Easter chocolate will make it better)?
What will we actually be doing to go-live?
Basically, we will be updating all the library links to electronic resources we can find (there are a lot) and re-configuring apps like Multisearch and 360link (full text link resolver used by Multisearch and other abstract and indexing sites like Google Scholar, Scopus, CAS etc.) to direct users to OpenAthens rather than ezproxy.
The work will start with Intota (our ERM system that drives Multisearch, and 360 link) on Monday 11th. It’ll take time for changes to flow through to Multisearch etc. so probably won’t see much change that week.
The next step will be updating the Horizon/library catalogue links – we anticipate these will be done in the second week of the break 20-22th April. LibGuides database assets will also be updated to use the new proxy prefix. This should mean most of the links about the library ecosystem will be updated by the end of the mid-semester break and we may even get in a week of troubleshooting and tweaks.
We’ll also be releasing a new link-maker for academics (and library staff) to be able to make stable links for LEARN etc. by end of the break. We’ve opted not to try and tackle the vast quantity (and variable quality) of pre-existing links in LEARN just yet but will get these done before the start of semester 2.
Ezproxied links in LEARN and bookmarked by users will continue to work up until we switch off Ezproxy (current subscription runs out end June). This gives us some breathing space to hunt down any stray links/connections we’ve not thought of yet.
What you/users will notice
The main difference people will encounter is the screen they now get directed to, to sign in for e-resource access. Instead of the old faithful “Remote Access Login” you’ll see a Microsoft sign in (same as you get for Tū ki te tahi, Outlook etc.). This requires UC email address instead of username. For students that is the username@uclive.ac.nz format. For staff, MFA may be required at times (students don’t yet have to use MFA but this is likely to come very soon).
Behind the sign-in scenes there are 2 access groups (one staff and one student) that control access to OpenAthens. Access is limited to current-ish staff and students. If users are not in an access group they will get an error message after entering their credentials – please report those cases to Library Digital Services and we’ll investigate eligibility and refer to IT for fixing.
Shiny New Stuff
OpenAthens makes it possible to sign in from vendor/publisher websites directly when users are searching outside of the Library ecosystem. There are “Sign in with your institution” and “OpenAthens sign in” options dotted about behind “sign in” buttons on the likes of Elsevier, Wiley, Sage, Taylor&Francis, Springer, EBSCOhost etc. that users can utilise.
This functionality has actually been live for a while now and has been used a lot without any publicity from us at all.
How are we communicating all this?
Posts will go out on Tū ki te tahi and Tūpono to alert our users to the change. ITS/Digital Services staff will be informed via the Change Advisory Board process and Teams.
Problems/Troubleshooting?
Aside from the “I can’t login” problems mentioned above we anticipate there may be a few issues with resource/full text links. We have done a fair bit of testing throughout the implementation but won’t have tried every variation each publisher/vendor has for resource links. Multisearch may also throw up a few curveballs as this is something we have to test live.
If you do notice anything that doesn’t quite work (e.g. error messages or pages not loading correctly) please report those to Library Digital Services.
Ngā mihi,
Romy (on behalf of Library Digital Services team)