Database Platforms

FirstSearch

Address

OCLC Online Library Computer Center, Inc
6565 Kilgour Place
Dublin Ohio
43017-3395 USA

URL

http://www.oclc.org

Contact Email

Information not provided

Contact Tel

Information not provided

Databases

• ABI/INFORM
• AGRICOLA
• Alternative Press Index
• Alternative Press Index Archive
• Applied Science and Technology Abstracts
• Applied Science and Technology Index
• Art Abstracts
• Art Index
• ArticleFirst
• Arts & Humanities Search
• ATLA Religion
• ATLA Serials Database
• BasicBIOSIS
• Biological & Agricultural Index
• Biology Digest
• Biography Index
• Book Review Digest
• Books In Print
• Business Dateline
• Business and Industry
• Business Organizations, Agencies, and Publications Directory
• Business and Management Practices
• Chemical Abstracts, Student Edition
• Clase and Periodica
• Consumers Index
• Contemporary Women's Issues
• Disclosure Corporate Snapshots (Disclosure)
• Disclosure Corporate Snapshots (DisclosureS)
• Dissertation Abstracts Online
• Electronic Books
• Electronic Collections Online
• EconLit
• Education Abstracts
• Education Index
• Environmental Sciences and Pollution Management
• ERIC
• Essay and General Literature Index
• FactSearch
• General Science Abstracts
• General Science Index
• GEOBASE
• GeoRefS
• GPO Monthly Catalog
• Humanities Abstracts
• Humanities Index
• Inspec
• Index to Legal Periodicals & Books
• Library Literature
• Media Review Digest
• MEDLINE
• MLA International Bibliography
• Newspaper Abstracts
• PAIS Archive
• PAIS International
• PapersFirst
• Periodical Abstracts
• Philosopher's Index
• ProceedingsFirst
• PsycARTICLES
• PsycBOOKS
• PsycCRITIQUES
• PsycFIRST
• PsycINFO 1887
• Readers' Guide Abstracts
• RIPM Retrospective Index to Music Periodicals
• RILM Abstracts of Music Literature
• SIRS Researcher
• Sociological Abstracts
• Social Sciences Abstracts
• Social Sciences Index
• Wilson Business Abstracts
• Wilson Select Plus
• WorldCat (The OCLC Online Union Catalog)
• WorldCat Dissertations and Theses (WorldCatDissertations)
• World Almanac
• Worldscope
• WorldscopeS

Summary

As the list of FirstSearch databases confirms our wide range of subject areas includes resources of interest to researchers in the sciences, business and industry, fine arts, humanities, and social sciences. We also offer databases of general interest.

Content

Restrictions

All databases are included in full.

Embargo Rules

Periodical Abstracts, PsycBOOKS, and Wilson Select Plus include a small percentage of embargoed titles.

Update Frequency

Up to daily - update frequency varies by database.

Content Classification

Users may begin a search by selecting one of the following categories and entering their search term, narrowing the list of FirstSearch databases to the most relevant:

• Arts & Humanities
• Biography
• Business & Economics
• Conferences & Proceedings
• Consumer Affairs & People
• Education
• Engineering & Technology
• General
• General Science
• Life Sciences
• Medicine/Health, Consumer
• Medicine/Health, Professional
• News & Current Events
• Public Affairs & Law
• Quick Reference
• Social Sciences
• Alternative Press Index Plus
• Library & Information Science

Users may then select up to 3 databases for simultaneous search.

Alternatively, users may go directly to any database listed.

Access Control

Authentication

• Username/Password
• IP Address
• Classic Athens
• SAML Compliant (e.g. Shibboleth)
• Member of UK Access Management Federation

Notes

Also supported: Web script, IP Referrer, and NCIP.

Concurrency Limit

Access options vary by database publisher. Subscription pricing is based on an institution's or consortium's number of patrons, with unlimited access provided as a result. Port-limited access is available from publishers as well, thereby limiting access by concurrent users.

Restrictions

OCLC complies with all applicable import/export regulations.

Free Trials

Yes. Access is provided via usernames/passwords valid for the following periods and databases:

90-day Free Trial

• Alternative Press Archive
• Alternative Press Index
• ATLA Religion
• ATLAS Serials
• Books In Print
• Books In Print w/Reviews (FT BIP)
• Business & Management Practices
• Business Dateline
• Clase & Periodica
• Contemporary Women's Issues
• Disclosures
• ERIC
• FT ATLAS
• FT BAMP
• FT Business Dateline
• FT Contemporary Women's Issues
• FT Disclosures
• FT SIRS Researcher
• FT WorldScopeS
• GeoRefS
• GPO Monthly Catalog
• MEDLINE
• OCLC Base Package
• OCLC Collection
• RILM
• RIPM
• SIRS Researcher
• World Almanac
• WorldCat
• WorldScope
• WorldScopeS

60-day Free Trial

Applied Science & Technology Abstracts
Applied Science & Technology Index
Art Abs
Art Index
Biography Index
Biological & Agricultural Index
Book Review Digest
Education Abstracts
Education Index
Essay & General Lit
FT Wilson Select Plus
General Science Abs
General Science Index
Humanities Abstracts
Humanities Index
Index to Legal Periodicals
Library Literature
MLA Bibliography
PAIS Archive
PAIS International
Philosopher's Index
Reader's Guide Abstracts
Social Sciences Abstracts
Social Sciences Index
Wilson Business Abstracts
Wilson Select Plus

30-day Free Trial

ABI/INFORM
Dissertation Abstracts
FT ABI/INFORM
FT Periodical Abstracts
FT PsycARTICLES
FT PsycBOOKS
FT PsycCRITIQUES
Newspaper Abstracts
Periodical Abstracts
PsycARTICLES
PsycBOOKS
PsycCRITIQUES
PsycINFO

Search

Features

• Advanced Search
• Boolean AND
• Boolean NOT
• Boolean OR
• Exact Phrase
• Keywords
• Search by Author
• Search by Citation
• Search by Content Type
• Search by Date
• Search by Language
• Search by Subject
• Search by Title
• Search by Series Title
• Simple Search
• Spell Check
• Wildcards

Notes

Search features vary by database.

Indexing

Many databases provide additional indices based on content.

Cross Database Search

Yes, patrons may select up to 3 databases to search simultaneously.

Web Search

OCLC WorldCat offers the option of including Internet Resources as a type of item that is listed under a separate results tab. Results are then presented under separate tabs in order of most items to least. Users may further limit those results by audience and content.

Saved Searches

Yes. Users may easily save searches once they log in to their FirstSearch account.

Search Tips

Search Tips
Yes. Database-specific help is provided.

Search Results

Features

• Include Abstracts
• OpenURL linking

Notes

Sort searches, limit searches, search related authors and subjects, full text.

Ordering

Author, title, source, date, and number of libraries that hold the item.

Exporting

• Endnote
• RefWork
• Email
• Text file

Other Functionality

Citation Linking

None at this time.

Full Text Linking

FirstSearch provides access to the full text of 9,000 journals and the full images of more than 4,000 journals. Our full-text databases link search results to their own articles. Libraries can add links to the full-text resources of OCLC NetLibrary eBooks, the JSTOR archives, and the Infotrieve document delivery service as well as to their own resolver via OpenURL.

Help Information

• Help pages
• Contextual Help
• Training

Training

FirstSearch is a web-based service and require little or no end-user training.

If required, training can be offered at the daily rates as detailed below. The offer will be based on four-hour training sessions for a maximum of 12 trainees per session. Training will aim at users learning the basic search and retrieve options, which will be shown and practised during the training-session.

FirstSearch offers an extensive online help-function and the FirstSearch 'Closer Look' tour.

If required:

• Training delivered on-site at the customer library
• Fees will include travel and subsistence costs for the trainer plus a daily rate of £450 plus VAT
• Training delivered using the training suite at OCLC PICA Birmingham
• Fee per participant £100 plus VAT
• Minimum of 6 registrants required per session

Interface Customisation

Library staff can set preferences for:

• Interface color scheme (four presets, or create a custom scheme)
• Search type (basic, advanced or expert) that FirstSearch displays when a user begins a new search
• Maximum number of databases your users can search
• Availability of saved searches, letting patrons with registered user accounts store results for future reference
• Availability of the Find Related feature, which locates additional records that match the current search
• E-mail notification when the number of remaining searches (for any database purchased on a per-search basis) reaches a specified threshold
• Within search results, limiting to items in the local library or highlighting items in a specified library group
• Display of ownership information from other libraries
• Display of Union List data
• Availability of shelf status information retrieved from your (and other libraries') Z39.50-compatible catalogs

Libraries subscribing to the WorldCat database as part of their FirstSearch package can also create custom library groups. Users can then limit their search results to libraries in the defined group.

Alerting

Not at this time. We plan to add this functionality in the future. General FirstSearch database announcements, information, and documentation updates are provided via subscription to FIRSTSEARCH-L.

Usage Stats

• Available Online
• COUNTER Compliant Vendor

Technical Integration

Users can link from FirstSearch results and detailed records to other internal and external resources, including:

• Their library's online catalog (OPAC), Web home page, and other Web services such as a virtual reference desk
• Z39.50 catalogs
• Other full-text services such as JSTOR and Infotrieve
• Resources connected by OpenURL links, with control of icons or text displayed
• Online booksellers or information partners
• Translation via Linguistic Systems Inc.'s Select Translation Service
• Web search engines

In many cases, linked content is presented inside a FirstSearch frame with a Return button.

VLE Integration

No. We can do OpenURL outbound and inbound linking for most databases

Social Bookmarking

No

Language Support

The FirstSearch interface currently supports seven languages: English, Chinese (traditional), Chinese (simplified), French, Japanese, Korean, and Spanish. If users find a full-text article via Web access that is not in their preferred language, FirstSearch provides translation options. A Translate button connects them to the Select Translation Service if you maintain an account with the service.

Other

Statistics

Librarians can view usage statistics from the most recent 25 months to help track user capacity and evaluate which databases are searched most often. Statistics, which may be viewed at the consortium, subgroup, and institution levels, include data on authorizations, sessions and turnaways, searches, documents ordered, and port capacity/limits. This helps staff members:

• Make adjustments to how they purchase databases or journals or to the number of simultaneous log-ons purchased
• See which low-usage subscriptions to promote or cancel
• Change user limits on databases for mid-year additions or annual renewals

Accessibility

W3C Compliance

OCLC works to [[http://www.oclc.org/support/documentation/firstsearch/managing/guide/connect/connect.htm#wai][support Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) guidelines]] that are supported by Web browsers.

We offer a template on our conformance to Section 508.

Browser Compatibility

PC

• IE
• Netscape

Only MS IE and Netscape are recommended browsers, so we do not fully test all of them.

Plugins Required

Adobe's Acrobat 6.0 Reader or higher for full text in PDF.

Availability & Uptime

24/7 Uptime

Yes - with the exception of scheduled maintenance windows.

Downtime (as specified in service level agreements)

While we do not specify acceptable downtime, OCLC is well known in the library community for maintaining a highly reliable infrastructure for our member services. Our central location in Dublin, Ohio houses a fully staffed, 30,000 square-foot, two-story, raised floor computer operations facility. Our attention to reliable systems reaches from building power supply through service delivery with application and network monitoring. Outside of scheduled maintenance, we experienced approximately 4 hours of system downtime last year.

Mirror Sites

All OCLC production servers have fail-over systems. The database server uses fail-safe, internally redundant systems. We perform daily backups of databases and transient files to a network-attached storage system. We back that system to tape, using commercial software for back-up and recovery.

In the event of a local disaster, OCLC's goal is to recover its critical systems within 48 hours of a business interruption. To facilitate this recovery, OCLC maintains an agreement with SunGard Recovery Services. SunGard provides a hot-site recovery service that allows for periodic exercises of our recovery plans. Two hot-site exercises are scheduled during each calendar year.