UPDATE: Library Systems Down July 24th

UPDATE:  The Suffolk Universities Libraries (Sawyer, Law NESAD, Madrid) are migrating to a new automated platform on July 24^th.

Much of Sawyer Library’s online functionality (and the functionality of the Law, NESAD and Madrid Libraries) will be unavailable for most of the day on Wednesday, July 24, 2013.

The Library is migrating our Innovative Millennium System to the new Sierra platform, in order to establish improved functionality in library operations.

What does that mean to users?  The Library systems will be down from 4-6 hours.  This means the catalog will not be accessible.  You cannot look up books in the online catalog, look at your circulation record, or renew books online.   Checking-out a book at the Sawyer Library will be handled manually on the 24^th.  Since our off-campus authentication system, our proxy server, is also part of our Innovative Millennium System, you will not be able to access databases from off-campus on much of that day.  If you are ON campus, the database should pick up a Suffolk IP address and let you in, so if you can visit the Boston (or Madrid) Campus--and it doesn't have to be the Library itself--you should still be able to access the databases through non-proxyized links that you can find here. (Just click the tabs on the guide for the alphabetical lists of links to all our databases.)

And here is another work-around.  The free web version of WorldCat allows you to look up a print book and then set your zip code to pinpoint a library that owns it.  Set your zip code as 02108 and Sawyer or the Law Library should come up if we own it.  If you click the link for our book or library, you might get an error but if that happens, just click on a different library on the list and get the call number from their catalog.  Since most academic libraries use the same call number, you can take their call number to our stacks and probably find the book.  If you are ON campus, you can also use this version of WorldCat. Look for the green tag for "Sawyer Library" when you search.  The base call number will be listed in the "Class Descriptors" field following LC:

We are sorry for any inconvenience this service interruption will cause.  But we are doing this to provide a better, more flexible, and more secure library system that will make it easier for us to provide the best library service possible.

Updates will be provided via social media.  So, on the 24th, keep an eye on our Facebook and Twitter feeds for when things are back to normal.

Alert: Library System Downtime June 6th

UPDATE TO THE BELOW 6/6/13 (3:45pm) Server upgrade is complete and our testing indicates we are back to normal.  As always, please contact us if you experience any issues with the online catalog or our databases.  And thanks for your patience while we did this important maintenance.

We want to give everyone plenty of fair-warning to avoid unnecessary frustration, so here's the warning:  Much of Sawyer Library online functionality (and, in fact, functionality at the Law, NESAD and Madrid Libraries,too) will be unavailable for most of the day on Thursday, June 6th, 2013.

The Library needs to upgrade both our Integrated Library System (ILS) and our server.  Step one is to move from a physical on-site server to a "Cloud" (SaaS) server.  That is what will happen on the 6th.  Because we are shifting all our data and workload from one server to another, there will be unavoidable downtime.

What does that mean to our users?  Well, if you check out something in the Library that day, we will likely be using a manual system.  You won't be able to look up books in the online catalog, look at your circulation record or renew books online.  But here's the real downer:  Since our off-campus authentication system, our proxy server, is also part of our ILS, you will not be able to access databases from off-campus on much of that day.  If you are ON campus, the database should pick up a Suffolk IP address and let you in, so if you can visit the Boston (or Madrid) Campus--and it doesn't have to be the Library itself--you should still be able to access the databases through non-proxyized links that you can find here. (Just click the tabs on the guide for the alphabetical lists of links to all our databases.)

And here is another work-around.  The free web version of WorldCat allows you to look up a print book and then set your zip code to pinpoint a library that owns it.  Set your zip code as 02108 and Sawyer or the Law Library should come up if we own it.  If you click the link for our book or library, you might get an error but if that happens, just click on a different library on the list and get the call number from their catalog.  Since most academic libraries use the same call number, you can take their call number to our stacks and probably find the book.  If you are ON campus, you can also use this version of WorldCat. Look for the green tag for "Sawyer Library" when you search.  The base call number will be listed in the "Class Descriptors" field following LC:

We are sorry for any inconvenience this service interruption will cause.  But we are doing this to provide a better, more flexible, and more secure library system that will make it easier for us to provide the best library service possible.

Updates will be provided via social media.  So, on the 6th, keep an eye on our Facebook and Twitter feeds for when things are back to normal.

Technical Issues: Library System Downtime

The Library's infrastructure system, or ILS (integrated library system) will experience some downtime this coming Thursday, March 17th.

How does this affect our users? In several ways. For one thing, our Online Catalog (or OPAC) will be down. This will prevent you from looking up specific books and ebooks, and from accessing your personal circulation record to do things like renew books.

But here's the key issue: Our Proxy Server, the means of authenticating as a Suffolk user before being relayed into research databases, will also be down. THIS MEANS THAT OFF-CAMPUS ACCESS TO OUR LIBRARY DATABASES WILL NOT BE POSSIBLE DURING THIS SYSTEM WORK.

The library will be closed for Evacuation Day, which is also St. Patrick's Day, and in the middle of our Spring Break Week. We chose this day, specifically, as the one weekday that would be convenient for Innovative, our ILS company, but which would also create the least amount of disruption for our users.

If you happen to be ON campus, say, in a faculty office, you may still be able to access databases, by hitting them directly (and being authenticated through IP recognition, rather than Proxy Server authentication). To do this, our electronics librarian, Amy, has created a handy guide that lists database links without the proxy parts of the URLs.

This guide is http://suffolk.libguides.com/noproxy

But remember, this will only work from an ON-campus location where your IP can be detected (and recognized as being that of a Suffolk subscriber) by the database's server.

Here are the details on the downtime:

Date: Thursday, March 17, 2011
Time: At about 12:30 PM, EST--for approximately TWO HOURS

Please plan your research accordingly. And our apologies for any inconvenience!

Database Alert: Shifting Shortcuts at Hoover's Online

This past week, we got an email that our Hoover's Online "account" had been "Transitioned Successfully" to a new platform and URL. The only problem is that there were still a few technical issues to be resolved in the new interface and it appears that in attempting to resolve those issues with a "patch," the company has compromised access to the new platform. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. Meanwhile, we received another email that the access to the older URL would be lost this weekend!

Since our homepages, controlled by University Web Services, take one or more days to publish out, we're not sure how to set the shortcuts, if the old one is about to be turned off but the new one isn't working properly!

So, let's give our users a few options and work-arounds.

If the new platform is working, it is probably better to use it. Here is a link:

http://0-subscriber.hoovers.com.library.law.suffolk.edu/

As always, off-campus you will need to login with your name and Suffolk ID number. But do not be surprised if, after login, you get one of those ominous gray error boxes that reads "Google has disabled use of the Maps API for this application. The client ID provided is not valid for this site." Just click OK and continue.

In case the new interface produces a "502 Bad Gateway" error, you can try the old link:

http://0-premium.hoovers.com.library.law.suffolk.edu/subscribe/

And if THAT doesn't work, remember that much of the Hoover's content, minus a few bells and whistles, is in LexisNexis Academic. For that substitute content, see:

Hoover's Company and Industry Reports

http://0-www.lexisnexis.com.library.law.suffolk.edu/hottopics/lnacademic/?verb=sr&csi=3746


Hoover's Company Records - Basic Record

http://0-www.lexisnexis.com.library.law.suffolk.edu/hottopics/lnacademic/?verb=sr&csi=220619


Hoover's Company Records - In-depth Records

http://0-www.lexisnexis.com.library.law.suffolk.edu/hottopics/lnacademic/?verb=sr&csi=220620


Hoover's IPO Reports

http://0-www.lexisnexis.com.library.law.suffolk.edu/hottopics/lnacademic/?verb=sr&csi=256338


We hope to get Hoover's stabilized shortly. If you have any questions, please talk to us at the Reference Desk.

Technical Issues: Scary Browser Warnings When Accessing Databases

All internet browsers are increasingly conscious of security challenges these days. They want to warn people who use their software of any possible scams like phishing schemes (wherein a crook tries to steal sensitive information from you by creating a fake website that pretends to be a legitimate one). But in an attempt to protect internet users from cyber-thieves, browser developers have ended up frightening nice, unsuspecting library users who only want to do a bit of online research!

How? Well, many security warnings are based on the browser spotting a mismatch of a known URL (web address) or a website's recognized secure (SSL) certificate. This looks like a evil phishing masquerade to the browser software, but--in the case of library databases--is completely innocent. Libraries authenticate users by sending them through a proxy server. A proxy server redirects the user, verifying their bona fides (when they not at a campus IP) before sending them into the database. To do this, the shortcut/link is altered.

As an example, the base URL for Ebsco's Academic Search Complete is http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?authtype=ip,uid&profile=asp

but if you write this for our proxy server, it looks like http://0-search.ebscohost.com.library.law.suffolk.edu/login.aspx?authtype=ip,uid&profile=asp

There are extra bits to the address. In other words, there is a mismatch. This causes warning triggers in some browsers in some situations. We at Sawyer Library see this problem most often with Firefox.

What sometimes happens is that you click on a link at our Library database lists or other resource links and all of a sudden you get a scary screen:

Understandably, when a browser offers a button that says "Get Me Out of Here!" many people are going to click it. But in the case of using our library links to get to a database, this is not the right choice. (Not if you really want to do some research!) Instead, look for the bottom option on the error message that reads "I Understand the Risks"

When you click that option, the area expands underneath the statement. It says that if "you understand what's going on," you can add an exception that gives the browser permission to make the connection. See below:


The thing to do is to click the button to add an exception for connecting to the database. This brings up yet another scary screen. The URL is indicated, and the option at the bottom is to "Confirm Security Exception."


Click that button, making sure that the little box is clicked that says "Permanently Store This Exception." (That will keep you from having to go through this procedure again for this database.)

Since most libraries use proxy servers, other libraries have experienced similar issues. For example, to see this page from Bowling Green State University's Librarie. And here's a support blog entry from Firefox on the "This Connection is Untrusted" error that has a bit more information on this message.

To state the obvious, there are times when you do not want to go to an untrusted site--like when you receive an email purporting to be from your bank, and it instructs you to verify your password! But the Sawyer Library links to our databases can be trusted. Do not fear! Confirm the exception. Login in with your name and Suffolk ID if you are off-campus. And Happy Research!

Database Alert: IE 7 Causes Scary Warnings and Blocked Connections

Library database access is a fairly sophisticated process involving several systems and applications working in harmony together. Unfortunately, some harmony is hard to achieve--especially with the constant changes with both databases and browsers. We have discovered some issues with database access related to Internet Explorer 7, the latest upgrade to the most popular web browser.

The problem appears related to IE7 balking when a library user tries to access a database through the proxy server--and all of our database run through the proxy. (The proxy server is the library tool that allows you to be authenticated as a Suffolk user and then allows you to be referred into the database, off- or on-campus.)

Since the "security certificate" of the database belongs to the database company, it doesn't include the parts of the URL (or web address/link) that sends the connection through the proxy. Therefore, IE7 throws up a "Danger, Will Robinson!" message that can either frighten the library user, or in some cases, actually interfere with your access to the database.

Right now, we know that this happens when JSTOR users try to access their MyJSTOR accounts. (In this case, you just get a scary warning.) It also happens in Country Commerce, where the warning screen actually interferes with your successful login to the database.

Here is the problem and how to solve it:

If I try to access Country Commerce using the standard installation version of Internet Explorer 7, I first get this scary screen, when it tries to connect:

IE7 thinks it is doing you a favor by telling you not to attempt to connect to the next page. If you click the Continue to this website (not recommended) option, in Country Commerce, the referral will fail and you will not get into the database. Instead, you'll reach the site, but it will demand that you "login." As in this screenshot:


Since we do not use database manual logins, you would not be able to access the database.

What you need to do, to not face this issue, is to tell IE7 that it doesn't need to worry about website security certificates and whether they seem to match.

To adjust this setting. Look at the top menu settings on your Internet Explorer 7 browser. Choose the Tools option

Then click on the bottom Internet Options

Click on the far right Advanced tab. And then scroll to the bottom

UNclick (remove the check mark) in the box that reads "Warn about certificate address mismatch."

Then click the Apply button at the bottom, and then the OK button at the bottom.

See, too, the starred note at this option. It indicates that this change will not go into effect until you restart (close and re-open) your IE7 browser.

This adjustment should allow you to turn off the scary warnings in some databases and avoid the interference that occurs in others.

We are in contact with our database vendors about this issue, but this is a work-around that will alleviate the problem, for now.