Have you ever had that frustrating experience of searching on the web and finding a useful resource, but not sure whether the Library has access to it? Searching for academic content online can sometimes feel like a complicated process, but luckily the Library now has LibKey Nomad, an easy-to-use free browser extension that will link to academic articles, e-books and other materials which are available open access or though Library subscriptions.
LibKey Nomad works with many scholarly publishers’ websites and also works with sites like PubMed and Wikipedia.
In the same way that ‘Findit@Edinburgh’ links (which you will see on databases like Web of Science or may have activated yourself for Google Scholar), LibKey Nomad’s floating button is connected to DiscoverEd – the Library’s catalogue and discovery service. A LibKey Nomad button will appear when the website you are viewing includes content the Library has purchased or which is freely available full-text. This may not work for every online provider of library-related materials, but it will work on sites which have an agreement with Third Iron – the company which produces LibKey Nomad.
When it does appear, the LibKey Nomad floating button is usually purple with a green and white teardrop. However, the button text will change depending on the relationship the Library has to the site or resource detected. The text on the floating button will read ‘Provided by’ where an access agreement is recognised.
‘Download PDF’ opens the PDF for you to read (and/or download) whereas ‘Article Link’ and ‘View E-book’ take you to a source for the item you’ve found, adding University of Edinburgh authentication credentials at the same time. You can then go on to read complete articles, e-books or e-book chapters in whichever format the publisher makes them available (e.g. PDF, html, etc).
In addition to asking you to login with your University of Edinburgh account details (if you’ve not already done so), the ‘Download PDF’, ‘Article Link’ and ‘View E-book’ buttons open new browser tabs. The ‘Access Options’ button also opens a new browser tab but takes you to a DiscoverEd record or page showing how you can access.
It’s worth repeating that LibKey Nomad will not indicate everything you can read from the Library. As for anything you find online which does not provide direct full-text access, please check DiscoverEd to find out if we have alternative full-text options.
Library staff are always happy to help, so please just ask if you’re having problems finding full-text – Library Help
When the LibKey Nomad button turns red, this is to let you know the paper you have landed on has been retracted. The button text will change to ‘Article Retracted’. If the article remains available, you should read with caution or try looking for another source.
Another feature of the LibKey Nomad browser extension is the option to export data into reference managers such as EndNote and Zotero. When the mortar board icon appears on the floating button, you can choose to export to selected reference managers or request a BibTeX file.
LibKey Nomad is already installed on University open access computers and you can also install the browser extension on your own computer (it’s available for several browsers including Google Chrome, Firefox, Edge and Safari). You will have to activate the extension on each browser you use. Check the Library’s LibKey Nomad page for more details about how to download and use LibKey Nomad. Once the extension is installed and activated, you’ll see the LibKey Nomad logo pop-up across different websites whenever content is available from the University of Edinburgh Library or from open access sources.
Hopefully LibKey Nomad will help make literature searching more rewarding and a bit less frustrating!
[Text: Rowena Stewart & Ishbel Leggat]