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"Get it @ VCU" problem

Posted August 17, 2005 8:34 AM

Go back to the old way of accessing online journals that VCU has a subscription to. It is frustrating that the Get It VCU icon comes up on every article even if we don't have it. For example, I was looking at PMID 15939196. When I click on Get It VCU, the screen has Publishers site, then We May Own This (VCU catalog). I clicked on that and it took me to the catalog with 3 search results came up, the last one being electronic resource and shows a link that says Available to VCU Users at http... If you click on that the Get It VCU screen just comes up and you are in a never ending loop. I talked to the person at the TML desk and she said that the fact that the publisher's site is the first choice on the Get It VCU screen means that VCU DOESN"T have it. This should be stated on the screen! I would prefer that we go back to the system where the user can know from the original pubmed screen whether it is available as an online resource. There are many options available for basic information and online availability often is what determines what one I might look at. The TML librarian said this new system was being tried to make it easier to request interlibrary loan articles. I never found the old system for ILL difficult. In the interim, please put a notice on the main library page about the change!!!
From: Lea Ann

Lynne Turman, Head of TML Collections, replies...
Thank you for submitting your comments about the Get It @ VCU service. This is a new technology designed to offer better options for linking to our online journal subscriptions and related library services. The service was implemented in July and you can link to the announcement and an online demonstration at http://www.library.vcu.edu/whatsnew/news_result.cfm?ID=842 . As with any new system or service, we are finding some unanticipated problems and are actively working to seek solutions. Comments and reports such as yours are key to helping us pinpoint where modifications are needed.


Get It @ VCU has several enhanced features not offered by PubMed's LinkOut. For instance, the new service:


  • Links to all versions of a subscribed journal: The Get It @ VCU window shows multiple ways to access the journal. The Libraries may have more than one subscription to an electronic version of a journal because it may be part of different packages from individual publishers or vendors. PubMed's LinkOut worked with a limited number of publishers and did not include the option for us to link to all of our subscriptions. In addition, the Get It @ VCU screen will show links to the Catalog if we have (or previously had) a subscription to the print copy of the journal.
  • Links to the ILLIAD service: If the Libraries do not have a particular journal, Get It @ VCU will facilitate ordering a photocopy through the ILLIAD service. After you click on the ILLIAD link and login, the citation information from PubMed is automatically copied into the proper fields of the ILLIAD form, saving you from retyping the article information into the form. The ILLIAD service is also used to order copies of items from our print collections. This service is particularly helpful to our distance education students.
  • Links to help report problems or get assistance: The last few links on the Get It @ VCU screen point to special forms for reporting any problems you encounter with using the system. This helps us troubleshoot the system and make corrections or offer additional advice to you for getting the articles.


The Get It @ VCU system expands what was offered by LinkOut and works with many of our databases, including Web of Science, PsycInfo, CINAHL, and others. Therefore, when we make corrections they become active in all of the databases without spending staff time to go into each one and make a change. We are hopeful that as you become more familiar with the options offered by Get It @ VCU, you will find it easier to use and more complete than the information previously available through PubMed's LinkOut. Thank you again for contacting us about the particular journal problem you encountered. As a result of your report we have changed the Catalog entry for the title so users won't be caught in the loop that you described. Please let me know if you have additional questions or if we can help you in any way.