N - JSTOR interface update

On 21 August 2010 JSTOR released a new interface. One feature, the ability for any user to submit a search against all JSTOR content, drew strong reactions from many in the library community. Their key concern was that JSTOR users at participating institutions with a subset of JSTOR collections could get search results pointing to content they could not access, and that JSTOR had not yet enabled OpenURL for all articles. This could make it difficult for libraries to redirect users to other copies of the articles that might be available to them.

In response, JSTOR issued an update to the interface changes. The default option for authenticated users on all search forms will be to search licensed content only. Authenticated users include those on campus or logged in via remote access. This change should reduce any potential frustration for authenticated users until JSTOR can extend support for OpenURL linking throughout the platform, at which point librarians will be able to direct their users to alternative options for accessing content not licensed through JSTOR.