| What
is SFX?
SFX provides
direct links from a database citation to the full text of
the article (if available) and other supporting resources.
When you find a record in a database or periodical index,
click on the SFX button to:
- See
if the full text of the article is available online for
immediate access;
- Check
the University Library catalog
to see if the journal or book is in the library;
- Order
from Document Delivery if full text is not available and
the Library does not have the journal or book.
- Do
a Web search using words from the article's titles
- Get
assistance from a librarian.
Why
is the full text not always available?
The full
text option appears only when the Library owns that item.
We don't subscribe to all titles, and not all titles are available
online.
Can
I use the SFX service from home?
Yes,
any Cal Poly Pomona student, faculty or staff member can use
the SFX service from off-campus, via the proxy server. Remember
that you will need a Library PIN/Password.
Why
don't I see any SFX buttons?
Sometimes
you need to click on the actual database record in order to
see the SFX button.
Why
are there multiple windows when I'm using SFX?
When
you click on the SFX button, it opens a new browser window
that displays the menu of services. Selecting a service from
the menu then opens a third window. Generally, you will not
have more than three or four windows open at a time. Remember
that you can resize the windows to suit your viewing preferences.
Sometimes windows are hidden behind other windows.
When
I click to get full text, sometimes I end up on the journal's
home page or table of contents. Can't I go directly to the article?
The journal
publisher controls whether we are able to link directly to
the article. We are asking publishers to provide direct access
to their articles. In the meantime, you may have to navigate
through the publisher's web site to get to the article you're
looking for. Because the database record is still visible
in its own window, it is easy to see what volume and issue
is needed.
Why
are there multiple links to full text?
Sometimes
an article is available in more than one database, such as
Academic Search Elite (EBSCOhost) or ABI/INFORM, so we link
to both. You can choose which version you want to access.
If one is temporarily not working, it helps to have a backup
choice.
When
I click to get the full text, my article isn't there. Why not?
Possible
reasons why the article is missing:
- Sometimes
the article citation appears in a database before the publisher
has made the full text available. Use
Ask
a librarian on the SFX menu to have us confirm
this.
- The
publisher or author withheld the full text of this article.
Please let us know about any missing articles by using the
Send
suggestions or comments to a librarian service.
Then, search
Cal Poly Pomona Catalog from the SFX menu to see
if the library has the paper version.
- SFX
uses the citation information (volume, issue, and page number)
to attempt to link directly to the article. If there is a
typographical error in the citation, SFX cannot find the article.
In many cases, you can use the publisher's site to search
for article title or author(s) to locate the correct citation.
If
there's no full text service listed in the SFX window, does
that mean the article isn't available online?
Not always.
There is a chance that SFX is not aware that the full text
is available online. Search Cal
Poly Pomona Catalog from the SFX menu to see if
there is a link to full text. Please let us know if you discover
there is full text access but it does not show up in SFX.
What
if my question isn't answered here?
Use
Ask
a librarian,
and we'll try to answer you
directly within a day.
Page
Maintained by Gina Roth
groth@csupomona.edu
04-27-06
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