| Display and Test Version | Download and Modify Locally Version |
Full Ovid JumpStart URL documentation can be found at:
http://www.ovid.com/documentation/features/jumpstart.htmInformation about EZProxy can be found at:
http://www.usefulutilities.com/ezproxy/This utility allows an instructor to construct an Ovid Jumpstart URL without having to understand the JumpStart syntax. Eventual end users need only select the database where a full-text article resides and enter its accession number in the URL Maker form. A URL is constructed that will send users directly to a fulltext article in an Ovid database, and immediately log them out thus freeing up user licenses.
The URL Maker actually creates two JumpStart URLs. One URL is for local use and will only work when the person clicking on it is accessing Ovid from a valid IP address. The other URL depends upon an EZProxy proxy server; the end user in this second case is first passed to the local EZProxy validation form, then passed on to the fulltext article.
Note that there are two versions of the URL Maker. The Display and Test Version displays the prefix needed to get a user to an Ovid database, as well as the prefix for entering an EZProxy proxy server login screen. This version is designed primarily for testing.
The Download and Modify Locally Version DOES NOT DISPLAY the Ovid and EZProxy prefixes. This is the web page that should be modified for local use.
The default Ovid Prefix which should work in almost all cases is:
http://gateway.ovid.com/ovidweb.cgiThis is the part of the URL that is prefixed to the constructed URL. If your campus is accessing Ovid databases and being validated by IP address this prefix should work. However, you may have to experiment with this in order to get it to work. If you need to include an automatic login id and password (NOT recommended for security purposes) consult the Ovid JumpStart documentation.
For local use, modify the URL Maker with the local URL for entering Ovid. Simply modify the URL Maker HTML code replacing the above URL with your own. The prefix above occurs only once in the actual HTML URL Maker document. The line where it appears looks like this:
<INPUT TYPE="hidden" NAME="ovidsiteprefix" VALUE="http://gateway.ovid.com/ovidweb.cgi">If needed, just the change the URL in the code above to the local one that works.
EZProxy Prefix
The UM-St. Louis EZProxy prefix is:
http://www.umsl.edu:2048/loginModify the downloaded URL Maker with your local URL for invoking the EZProxy login screen. Simply modify the URL Maker HTML code replacing the above URL with your own. The prefix above occurs only once in the actual HTML URL Maker web page.
This is the part of the URL that is prefixed to the Ovid prefix (above) and the constructed URL. Since EZProxy accepts a target URL passed to it, the user is first prompted with the local EZProxy login screen for validation, then passed on to the target JumpStart URL. The example above will connect a user to the UM-St. Louis EZProxy validation form - since you are likely not affiliated with UM-St. Louis you will be unable to proceed. In order to use this feature, you must enter the URL for your own EZProxy proxy server. The line where ththe EZProxy prefix occurs looks like this:
<INPUT TYPE="hidden" NAME="ezproxyprefix" VALUE="http://www.umsl.edu:2048/login">The EZProxy documentation for User Authentication allows IP address ranges to be "Excluded" from authentication. This implies that if your local EZProxy configuration is set up to exclude local campus IP address ranges then the EZProxy version of the URL created is a universal URL to an Ovid fulltext resource.
Ovid Database List
You will likely need to modify the HTML code to reflect your own set of databases. Please refer to the comments inside the HTML document for guidelines. Note that you will have to modify a JavaScript function called "parsedoctype" as well as the corresponding HTML "SELECT" code that users will see for selecting a specific database. In general, the JavaScript code which lists each database must be in the exact order as the HTML SELECT statement later in the document. There MUST also be a one-to-one correspondence between the JavaScript list of databases, and the HTML SELECT list of databases.
Ovid databases can be divided into two broad categories. The first type is a true full text database (e.g., Journals@Ovid). An entire publication is covered and graphics are typically included. The second type is a bibliographic citation database which just happens to have a field in it that contains the full text of an article. When modifying the code referring to a specific database you will need to note these differences. The part of the JumpStart URL for each type of database differs. Again, refer to the internal documenation for guidelines.
Modifying JavaScript function "parsedoctype"
You will need to connect to an Ovid database and inspect the URL string in the "Location" or "Address" box at the top of your Web Browser. Look for the part of the URL with:
. . . D=xxxx& . . .The four letters ("xxxx" above) is the abbreviation for the database. For example, Periodical Abstracts might look like:
. . . D=peri& . . .Retain the four letter code as it uniquely identifies the database you wish to add. You will add code per the instructions below.
If you have downloaded the URL Maker web page, inspect the source code and look for the area starting with:
function parsedoctype(doctype)As you scroll down in the source code, you should see a block of JavaScript starting with:
switch(doctype)To add a database to this list, insert the unique four letter code you discovered by inspection above into the lines above that start with "result=". There are two different types of code("Real" fulltext or "Bib" fulltext). Most databases will be "Real" but you may have to try both versions to see what works. For example, by inspection you note a database "peri" for Periodical abstracts. You want to add that database so you insert new lines of code like this:
{
case 1:
result = "ovft&PAGE=fulltext" // Journals at Ovid - "Real" fulltext;
break;
case 2:
result= "info&PAGE=reference&F=ftwarn" // ABI/Infom Bib fulltext
break;
. . .
}
or
case 3:
result="peri&PAGE=fulltext"
break;
You should test this. If one version doesn't work, try the other. You aren't finished yet. You must ALSO modify the SELECT OPTIONS Pulldown list of databases from which a user will choose.
case 3:
result="peri&PAGE=reference&F=ftwarn"
break;
Modifying SELECT OPTIONS Pulldown list
Looking at the source HTML code of the URL Maker, scroll down until you see the section of HTML code
<SELECT NAME="databaseselected">If you added or modified any part of the code in the JavaScript function "parsedoctype" you MUST insure that it corresponds with the SELECT NAME code above. That is, if you added a new database called DATABASE with the code "dbas" as a new 7th database, your JavaScript modification might look like:
<OPTION VALUE="ovft" SELECTED>Journals@Ovid
<OPTION VALUE="info">ABI/Inform
<OPTION VALUE="nursing">CINAHL
<OPTION VALUE="mesz">MedLine
<OPTION VALUE="peri">Periodical Abstracts
<OPTION VALUE="psyh">PsycInfo
</SELECT>
and the corresponding SELECT NAME code would look like:
case 7:
result = "dbas&PAGE=fulltext" // DATABASE - "Real" fulltext;
break;
<OPTION VALUE="dbas">DATABASEThe code above would have to be the 7th choice in the SELECT NAME block of HTML. It is essential that you have a a one-to-one correspondence between the number of databases, and the order of databases in both the JavaScript AND the SELECT NAME code.
Though this may be confusing, the end result will be a local URL Maker that will reflect your own institution's Ovid databases. The users of your modified utility will not need to understand the JumpStart syntax as you have done all the work for them. All they need to know is the name of the database where an article can be accessed, and the Accession Number of the article.
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© 2001 by Raleigh Muns (Reference Librarian, UM-St. Louis Libraries)
http://www.umsl.edu/~muns/urlmakers/ovid/instructions.htm ; updated Tuesday, April 25, 2001 08:36:51