EBSCOhost

EBSCOhost® and EBSCOadmin® Frequently Asked Questions

EBSCOhost Databases - General and Content Related Questions

What is EBSCOhost?
EBSCOhost is an online subscription reference service that is provided free of charge to all MOREnet customers.

What types of materials are available through EBSCOhost?
Collections are constructed with different periodicals and resources, and are geared towards thorough coverage of topics available in that database. Resources include magazines, journals, newspapers, reviews, pamphlets and resource books. Supporting references, such as dictionaries, directories and image collections, are available from inside database search screens.

Which EBSCOhost databases do MOREnet's customers have access to?
See the list, along with the database descriptions, under Available Databases on MOREnet's EBSCOhost page at http://www.more.net/online/ebscohost/index.html.

How do I access EBSCOhost?
EBSCOhost is access through a browser, through the URL http://search.ebscohost.com.

I thought the URL for EBSCOhost was http://search.ebscohost.com. Has this changed?
Yes, the domain for EBSCOhost has changed from ebscohost.com to ebscohost.com. EBSCO Publishing made the change in the summer of 2006. Both URLs will work fine until the summer of 2007, when ebscohost.com will be phased out entirely. URLs for EBSCOadmin and EBSCO Support have not changed to the new domain yet.

How can I get notification of upgrades and other changes made to EBSCOhost and EBSCOadmin?
MOREnet distributes notifications on EBSCO and other MOREnet-provided online resources through the e-mail announcement service, Accunounce. Subscribe at: http://www.more.net/services/accunounce/form.html. MOREnet Accunounce gives dates of upgrades and MOREnet-specific information, which may not be available from EBSCO's lists directly. Accunounce subscription is open to all MOREnet customers, not just MOREnet contacts. EBSCO Publishing gives in-depth information about current and future releases on their products at EBSCOhost Support at http://support.ebscohost.com.

What new databases are added to EBSCO on July 1, 2005?
Business Source Premier, Regional Business News and Newspaper Source are new database additions to EBSCOhost. MasterFILE Elite is upgraded to MasterFILE Premier. MAS Ultra: School Edition and Military & Government Collection are added for all MOREnet customers.

What is Business Searching Interface?
Business Searching Interface (BSI) is a specialized search interface for Business Source Premier. Business Source Premier can be searched through Business Searching Interface or through EBSCOhost Web or EBSCOhost Text Only. A Flash tutorial on BSI can be found at http://support.ebscohost.com/training/flash_videos/BSI_fix.html. All customers will have Business Searching in the Select Service page by default.

What is Student Research Center?
Student Research Center (SRC) is a specialized search interface for students in grades 6 to 12. The interface provides easy searching through keyword or topic, and can be limited by source type. A student basic and advanced search is available, and can search MAS Ultra - School Edition, Newspaper Source, Health Source: Consumer Edition, American Heritage Dictionary and Columbia Encyclopedia. A Teacher Resource search screen is also available, which searches Academic Search Elite. Additional databases, purchased directly, are supported. See EBSCO's Support Center at http://support.ebscohost.com/ for more information. All customers have Student Research Center in the Select Service page by default.

What is Kids Search?
Kids Search (SRCk5) is a specialized search interface for students in grades K through 5. The interface design is similar in approach to Student Research Center. A student basic and detailed search is available, and can search EBSCO Animals, Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia, Newspaper Source and Primary Search. A Teacher Resource search screen is also available, which searches Academic Search Elite. Additional databases, purchased directly, are supported. See EBSCO's Support Center at http://support.ebscohost.com/ for more information. All customers will have Kids Search in the Select Service page by default.

Is Kids Search replacing Searchasaurus?
No, absolutely not. Searchasaurus has been newly redesigned as of January of 2007, and serves the K-3 market. Searchasaurus, Kids Search and Student Research Center have been designed with a similar search flow, so that the basic patterns children learn in the Searchasaurus interface will carry through as they transition through Kids Search and SRC.

American Humanities Index and Communication & Mass Media Complete no longer appear in the database list. Why?
EBSCO Publishing provided American Humanities Index and Communication & Mass Media Complete as complementary trial products in 2004. This trial period ended on Dec. 31, 2004.

Are all resources full-text within EBSCOhost collections?
Most EBSCOhost databases include both full-text and abstracts. The only entirely full-text selections are references, Clinical Pharmacology and Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia.

Are there any full-text resources that were removed from EBSCOhost databases?
Availability of full-text resources, abstracts and indexes are dictated by agreements that EBSCO Publishing negotiates with resource publishers and distributors. These publishers and distributors can choose to pull distribution of their materials through online resource vendors, reset terms of publication to include blackouts of certain materials or choose embargo periods. EBSCO Publishing endeavors to achieve consistency in its offerings, but maintains that their services should not be considered a replacement for print titles.

I cannot find a title that has been recently added. Why?
Check the current title list for the publication dates and embargo period. Some journals may have infrequent publication times. New journals may take some time to be added into the collection.

Where can I find titles and dates of the resources in the EBSCOhost databases?
Database coverage lists are available at http://www.ebscohost.com/titlelists.asp. Listings are available in Adobe Portable Document Format (.pdf) and Microsoft® Excel formats, and may be available in .html format, directly viewable in a Web browser.

If our institution purchases other databases from EBSCO Publishing, can these be merged for use with the MOREnet supplied EBSCOhost databases?
Yes, administering and delivering both under a single account is preferable because of the IP filtering method used. For the accounts to be merged, the purchase of the other databases must be for the entire institution, and not just a building or subsite of the campus.

Does EBSCO provide training materials for their products?
Training, documentation and other supporting materials for EBSCOhost and EBSCOadmin are available at EBSCOhost Support at http://support.ebscohost.com/. Short tutorials in Macromedia Flash, which offer voice instruction along with step-by-step animated guidance, are available in the Tutorials area. Live training sessions are offered direct from EBSCO Publishing, through electronic conferencing. To request training, fill out the form at http://ejournals.ebsco.com/support/training/training_request.asp. User Guides, Help Sheets and other documentation are available in the Support Materials area.

How is access to EBSCOhost authenticated?
Authentication to EBSCOhost is done by IP recognition. MOREnet provides EBSCO Publishing weekly reports on current customer IP range assignments. EBSCO edits a filter file, adding and subtracting ranges from unique customer IDs. Computers accessing http://search.ebscohost.com are identified by IP address at the EBSCOhost server authentication gateway, which checks the filter list, and forwards the search query to correct customer profiles. If the IP is not found in the filter file, the user will see a username and password prompt instead of search screens.

Is remote access permitted for our faculty/staff/students/patrons/employees and how can that be achieved?
Remote access is permitted to EBSCOhost databases provided through MOREnet. The decision to make remote access available is made by each member organization, and must be managed by each organization. The organization is responsible for assuring that only authorized persons are allowed access to EBSCOhost. If a user leaves the organization, that user's remote access must be terminated. There are a number of technical solutions for remote access that can be employed by the organization. For more information on proxy methods, MOREnet document Remote Access Methods for Online Resources at http://www.more.net/online/remote.html.

EBSCOhost Features

What EBSCOhost interfaces are available for MOREnet supplied databases?
EBSCOhost can be accessed through:

• EBSCOhost Web: Full featured search interface for images and text.
• EBSCOhost Text Only: Gives users with text only needs a full set of searching features comparable with EBSCOhost Web. Fully ADA compliant.
• Business Searching Interface: A specialized search interface for Business Source Premier.
• Kids Search: New search interface designed for students from grades K-5. Includes age-appropriate search materials, including EBSCO Animals, Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia, Newspaper Source and Primary Search.
• Student Research Center: Search interface designed for students from grades 6-12. Includes age-appropriate search materials, including MAS Ultra - School Edition, Newspaper Source, Health Source: Consumer Edition, American Heritage Dictionary and Columbia Encyclopedia.
• Searchasaurus: A colorful and easily navigated interface for elementary and middle school students. Includes appropriate search resources, including EBSCO Animals, Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia, Primary Search, American Heritage Children's Dictionary and Image Collections.
• Z39.50: Client and server access to EBSCO databases through the Z39.50 protocol.

What happened to the EBSCOhost Web No Frames interface?
EBSCO Publishing has discontinued support for the No Frames interface. It has been removed from all customer profiles as of March 3, 2003. The interface EBSCOhost Text Only has replaced EBSCOhost Web No Frames.

Is Lynx supported by any of the EBSCOhost interfaces mentioned above?
With the discontinuation of the EBSCOhost No Frames interface, there will be no support for the Lynx interface. The usage statistics for Lynx (which are quite small) has not warranted prioritizing this type of compatibility.

What happened to the EBSCOhost Windows® client?
EBSCO Publishing discontinued support for the Windows client as of Oct. 1, 2000.

Can I telnet directly to EBSCOhost?
No, direct telnet is no longer supported.

Can my institution limit EBSCOhost results to full-text results only?
Yes, a permanent limiter for full-text can be set in the EBSCOadmin utility. In EBSCOadmin, choose the advanced settings for the profile to be altered, and check full text as a permanent limiter.

Is there a way to link to an article or citation directly, through a URL, without entering the search screens first?
Yes, this technology is called persistent linking. A URL with certain static parameters, which can be used in webpages, e-mail messages and shortcuts, is generated after article or citation selection, through the Links tab in EBSCOhost E-mail Manager or the EBSCOhost Save Manager. This URL can be used to link users with access to EBSCOhost resources to the selected resource directly.

What is My EBSCOhost?
My EBSCOhost gives each user the ability to save search results and customized searches, and set up search and journal alerts. No specific administration is necessary, as users set up their own accounts if they wish to use these features, and can retrieve their login information from the system if lost.

What options do EBSCOhost users have to retain information for later use?
Searchers have multiple options to retain data:

• Printing: The EBSCOhost Print Manager can be used to print citations, full-text and article listings. A page estimator is available within the print function. EBSCOadmin can be configured to limit or repress printing on the network.
• E-mailing: The EBSCOhost E-mail Manager allows the searcher to e-mail citations and full-text articles, persistent links and persistent links for specified searches. Users may send these options to an e-mail address of their choosing.
• Saving: The EBSCOhost Save Manager allows the searcher to save citations and full-text articles locally, in .txt or .html formats. The links option allows users to cut and paste persistent links and persistent links for specified searches from the browser window.
• My EBSCOhost: My EBSCOhost allows the searcher to save results in their own account within EBSCOhost.

EBSCOadmin

What is EBSCOadmin?
EBSCOadmin is a utility for customizing EBSCOhost to fit individual site needs.

How does EBSCOadmin work with EBSCOhost?
Each EBSCOadmin account includes default product configurations for EBSCOhost, which can be modified. Computers accessing EBSCOhost by IP authentication or a remote access method will be pointed to the customer account which contains the customizations made through EBSCOadmin.

How can an organization request an EBSCOadmin customer ID and password?
A designated MOREnet Contact can reach MOREnet Technical Support by phone or e-mail to obtain an ID and password.

Who can use EBSCOadmin?
An institution is free to assign the responsibility to any employee. A librarian who is well familiarized with periodical resources usually does EBSCOhost administration. Because the EBSCOadmin administrator can modify local configurations, it is strongly recommended that the number of administrators be limited to two people. EBSCOadmin administrators do not have to be MOREnet Contacts, but MOREnet may insist on authorization from a registered Contact before providing technical support services to the unlisted EBSCOadmin administrator.

If I don't use EBSCOadmin, will my site still be able to use EBSCOhost?
Yes. If a site chooses not to customize EBSCOadmin to reflect local holding information, EBSCOhost users will see the MOREnet default configuration set.

Do I need to set up EBSCOadmin to get statistics for my organization?
Yes, to get individual usage statistics for one organization or specific sites within an organization, EBSCOadmin must be used. MOREnet-wide usage statistics can be viewed at http://www.more.net/online/ebscohost/index.html.

Working With EBSCOadmin

How do I access EBSCOadmin?
EBSCOadmin requires Microsoft® Internet Explorer 5.5 or later or Netscape 6.x or later. Use of cookies and Javascript in the browser is required. EBSCOadmin can be accessed at http://eadmin.ebscohost.com/eadmin/login.asp.

How do I use EBSCOadmin?
See the MOREnet document "Customizing EBSCOadmin" at http://support.ebscohost.com/CustSupport/UserDocumentation/ebs_2064.pdf for instructions. Online help and an online tutorial are also available within EBSCOadmin.

Is there a limit to the number of profiles that can be defined in EBSCOadmin?
Up to 20 profiles have been used successfully, but there is no predetermined limit.

Can I include all locally held print titles in a collection?
No, only those print titles that EBSCO indexes.

I don't see the Export button in collections and profiles. Where is it?
The need to export profiles and collections was eliminated in an upgrade in early 2002.

Once the Library Administrator submits the changes or configurations in EBSCOadmin, how long is it before our EBSCOhost users see them?
Usually, the changes are effective immediately.

Troubleshooting

When I try to access EBSCOhost, I get an access denied error or a prompt for username and password. What's the problem?
Some of the IP addresses assigned to the computers may not be properly entered into the IP filtered access list at EBSCO. IP authentication can be checked at http://search.ebscohost.com/testauth.aspx. IP authentication data will be shown on the line for Detected IP address and associated account authentication. Provide this information, and the range of IP addresses of machines that cannot access to MOREnet Technical Support.

I've waited a long time and the customizations are still not showing up in EBSCOhost. What's the problem?
If the wait is over an hour and there has been no announcement of EBSCO product upgrades or problems, contact MOREnet Technical Support so that the situation may be investigated.