SFX Frequently Asked Questions
(FAQ)
- What is SFX?
- What does SFX offer?
- What does SFX do?
- How do I access SFX?
- Which databases have the SFX buttons in
them?
- Can I use SFX off-campus?
- Why didn't I get a full text link for my
article?
- Why is there more than one option for
full text for some journals?
- Why don’t I see any SFX buttons?
- Why are there multiple windows when I am using SFX?
- When I go back to make a second selection from the SFX window, nothing seems to happen.Why does this happen?
- What does the address “about:blank” mean?
- I clicked on "Get Full Text Online
From", but I only got to the journal's home page. Why?
- Why did I get no results when I clicked
on "Find a Print Copy at UWI"? I'm sure UWI must own this - what
happened?
- What do I do when I get a "bad
URL" or "Error 404", or some other "not found" message?
- In Web of Science, why do I get an error
when I click on the SFX button?
- What is the technology behind SFX?
- What is the UWI Libraries' OpenURL
resolver address?
- Who do I contact for additional help or
for answers to questions about SFX?
SFX stands for "special effects." SFX is
a link server that The University of the West Indies (UWI) Libraries’ has licenced
from Ex Libris (USA) Inc. There's more information about SFX on their website: SFX Overview. SFX is
a tool to help you link from an article citation in a database to the full text
of that article. This is necessary because some of our databases contain full
text and others just contain citations to articles. Before SFX, these databases
did not link to one another.
The SFX menu offers
options and services related to that article. You may:
- Link to the full text of the article from another
database or e-journal.
- Check availability for print versions in one of The University of the West
Indies (UWI) Libraries’ catalogues.
- Get help from librarians with your research using the Ask
a Librarian service.
- Access the SFX FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions).
If the full text of
the article is not available online, you may:
- Request the item via Interlibrary Loan at your library
- Request the item via the document delivery service at your library
Not all of our
databases are configured to work with SFX yet, but more will be added. Some
databases do not currently support the SFX technology.
Click on this button
to access SFX services: 
SFX provides direct links from database
citations to related content that is available from the UWI Libraries. From any
citation, click on the SFX button to:
- Connect
to the full text, if it's available online
- Search
the Libraries’ catalogues (OPAC) to see if a print copy is in one of the
UWI Libraries’
- Request
the item through Interlibrary Loan or Document Delivery services (type of
service differs at each campus).
- Export
a citation to citation management software such as EndNote or Reference
Manager
- Search
the Web using the keywords from the citation title
- Get
assistance from a librarian by email or chat
There are two ways to access SFX:
·
During a Database Search:
When you enter a search in a database, you retrieve a list of citations that
match your search. Many times a citation includes a link to full text online.
When a citation does not link to full text, just click the SFX button 
(located at the bottom of the
citation) to start an SFX search.
· From the Electronic Journals A-Z List:
You can use the Electronic Journals A-Z list to verify whether the library has the
full text of a journal, either online or in the print collection. When you
click on a title in the Electronic Journals A-Z List, you will start an SFX
search.
Databases with the SFX
service enabled will have this symbol: 
For a complete list of
databases enabled with SFX see: http://mainlib.uwi.tt/sfx-sources.
- EBSCOHost
SFX links will appear
in databases licensed for The University of the West Indies (UWI). These
databases and SFX links are available to anyone using computers on the Mona,
Cave Hill, St. Augustine and Open campuses. All UWI staff and students have off-campus access.
This is probably because there is no full-text
version available or the UWI Libraries’ does not have a license for full-text
access. However, there is a chance that SFX is not aware that the full text is
available online. Search The UWI Libraries’ catalogues from the SFX menu to see
if there is a link to full text. Please let us know if you discover that there
is full text access but it does not show up in SFX.
Possible reasons
include:
- An online full text version is not available through
the UWI Libraries.
- SFX linking has not yet been enabled for the journal
your article is in.
- Very recent articles may not yet be loaded on the
publisher's web site.
In any of these cases,
check any of the UWI Libraries’ catalogues for online or print versions.
There is overlap among
our electronic journal collections and databases, so sometimes you will find
that the full text is available from more than one source.
Sometimes you need to click on the actual database
record in order to see the SFX button. You will not see SFX buttons if:
- You are
off-campus and not using a UWI account.
- JavaScript is not enabled in your browser. Check your browser
settings. In Internet Explorer,
choose Internet Options from the Tools menu. Click on the Advanced tab and check the box next to "Use
Java." In Netscape,
choose Preferences from the Edit menu. Select the Advanced category and
check the box next to "Enable Java."
- Try cleaning out your browser's cache.
When
you click on the SFX button, it opens a 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. Use Alt-Tab to easily
navigate among windows.
When I go back to make a second selection from the SFX window,
nothing seems to happen. Why does this happen?
This problem is limited to
Internet Explorer. When you first click on an option in the SFX window, IE
opens a secondary browser window on top of your open windows. However, when you
make another selection, that secondary browser window does not get promoted to
the top again.
One solution is to drag the
secondary browser window to another portion of your screen so it's not blocked
by the SFX window. However, it could still be blocked by any other window
(including the original search window, if you've moved it to the top), so you
may occasionally have to go looking for it.
Another solution, of course, is to
use Netscape or some other browser.
This is another Internet
Explorer quirk. When you select a service that requires SFX
to re-search a database that address is displayed while the search is taking
place. Once the results are displayed, the address goes away.
SFX will try to get
you as close as it can to the full text of the article. Often, because of the
structure of the journal publisher's web site, SFX cannot link directly to full
text. Sometimes the best SFX can do is to take you to the table of contents or
the journal's home page, and you will have to navigate the publisher's site
yourself to get to the full text. Essentially, a full text link in SFX means
that full text is available, but you may have to follow a few extra links to
get to it.
Why did I get no results when I clicked on "Find
a Print Copy at UWI"? I'm sure UWI must own this - what happened?
The SFX option for
checking availability in UWI Libraries’ catalogues is a very convenient feature
that works most of the time, but it isn't 100% accurate. Because of differences
in cataloging and indexing practices, the search will occasionally not find
materials that UWI does own. Think of SFX as a convenient shortcut most of the
time, but if it turns up no results you should try searching the UWI Libraries’
catalogues yourself. If you do not find what you are looking for, ask a
librarian for help - Ask a Librarian-
Reference Enquiries Online.
If the article you
need is a very recent article from a journal, it's possible the article has not
been loaded on the journal publisher's web site, so SFX cannot retrieve it.
Unfortunately, you have to wait for the publisher to add it to their site.
Another problem could be that our SFX links are not functioning properly and
need to be updated. Please let us know about any problems: Send a Report.
When using Netscape to
access Web of Science, you need to set your preferences to allow popups (in
Netscape, go to: Edit > Preferences > Privacy & Security > Popup
Window > select "Allow popups").
SFX uses the OpenURL
standard. The OpenURL is a protocol for interoperability between an information
resource and a service component that offers localized services in an open
linking environment. It is in effect an actionable URL that transports
metadata, or keys to access metadata, for the object for which the OpenURL is
provided. The target of the OpenURL is the user's institutional service
component (ISC). The remainder of the OpenURL transports the object's metadata.
The format specification for OpenURL can be found at http://library.caltech.edu/openurl/Standard.htm
The UWI OpenURL resolver address is: "http://sfx7.exlibrisgroup.com/uwi/ “.
If you have questions
please ask a librarian - Ask a Librarian-
Reference Enquiries Online.