Passwords

Welcome back everyone, and welcome to the annual password post!

Passwords have gotten simpler, but with a few twists. Last year, MySCSU (with Banner), Vista, and the general computer logon were synchronized to a "Network ID". You can also download software (like MS Office with Windows and Mac), from the SCSU Software Share site, and log onto the wireless campus network. For those off campus, this will also get you into https://remote.southernct.edu/ (network file access and services--some access and services are only available off campus), and your southernct.edu webspace (you can also access your web files via the remote site from off campus).

Twist #1: The new student email, Owls Mail, is on the Microsoft Live system. That password is currently separate, but will be synchronized in a few weeks. In the meanwhile, be sure to 1) use a separate, non-identical password, and 2) add a separate (non-SCSU) email to your account so that you can get your password changes if needed. Until the synchronization happens, SCSU IT won't be able to help you with your Owls password.

If you need to change your Network password, you can visit an IT Service Desk, or use the online form. More help is available by phone (203-392-5123) or email (helpdesk@southernct.edu). Don't forget to identify yourself as an online student if you can't come to campus.


Library access (online databases and resources, library record viewing, online renewal, intra-campus requests, & online reserves) is still via your ID number (70xxxxxx), and a separate library PIN/password. If you don't know your ID number, log into MySCSU and look for Account Information and View SCSU ID Number under Settings on the main MySCSU page. You can set or check your library access via the CONSULS login page. The 'Forgot your PIN?' link on this page will send a link to the email address we have on file, which is whatever is in Banner. If you have not changed your Banner info, it's possible we still have whatever email address you first registered with (i.e. a non-SCSU address). You can change this in the library system by logging in to the CONSULS Library Catalog and selecting the Modify Personal Info button on the right. Email is the only thing you can update online (though, of course, you have to be able to log in in the first place.) You can also call the Circulation Desk at 203-392-5756 to wipe out an old PIN, so that you can set a new one. They can also help you update your contact information. This will not update your email address in Banner, so you might want to check that in MySCSU (Settings, View email address(es)). More on setting/resetting your Library PIN.

Twist #2: The new ILL system uses your network ID and password to login. There also seems to be a lag in the synchronization here, so if you have recently updated your Network password and can't get into ILL, try your old password.

Twist #3: You can use the Browse function in https://remote.southernct.edu (offcampus only) to access the library databases. This makes it look like you are on campus, so the databases will let you right in. Some materials may not be available, since there restrictions on web access; but it's a good backup if you are having PIN problems.

That's all I have for passwords this semester.

More outages

The Library Catalog system will be down for an upgrade, this Friday, Oct 23, 2009, from 5pm to 8pm. (The library itself is closed for that time, as we usually are Friday evening.) For off campus users this will affect using the library catalog, CONSULS, including e-reserves, and logging into the databases from off campus.

If you have research that you can't put off, I would suggest working in Google Scholar to find likely prospects and using the library preferences and the Journal Locator to see if we ought to have the article you want. You won't be able to get into anything until 8pm, but you can save your citations until then. (This is a good strategy for anytime that you can't get into our databases, whether it's because of a network issue, system down time, or account problems.)

The Journal Locator will be down on Saturday, Oct. 24, 2009, from 2am-8am (updated). You will be able to search the databases, but not use the Find Article @ SCSU. I would suggest saving the citations you are interested in (either by email, in database folders for the databases you can set personal accounts for, like EBSCO and ScienceDirect, or in an outside citation manager like EndNote Web) and then checking them once the system is back up.

Speaking of Journal Locator, we have having issues with one component listed, EJS (EBSCO Journal Service). It is currently showing up for more journals and years than we actually own. If you see it come up and you click through and get a No Access message, it's probably that we really don't have that journal/year. The results should be getting better as the next 2 weeks go on, as Periodicals is manually updating the EJS records, all 22,000 of them. Sorry for the confusion and the frustration.

New Library URL's

Hi folks, long time no write. (Sorry.)

Don't worry, the library home page is still http://library.southernct.edu/

The Proxy Server (what allows you to log into the databases from off campus) got a new URL at the end of the summer. (No, it wasn't our idea.) You now have the security of logging in to the databases securely.

If you have old links that go directly to the databases, or to articles (etc.) in the databases, those links will not work now. If you like to make your own edits, you'll need to change the .csulib.ctstateu.edu/ to .www.consuls.org/ so that a link to JSTOR was http://0-www.jstor.org.csulib.ctstateu.edu/ and is now http://0-www.jstor.org.www.consuls.org/

If that made no sense to you, just go back into the databases using the links on the library website and find your database/article again. If you can't find it, let me know and I'll see if I can find it.

The second URL change is for the research guides. We are now using a service called LibGuides for our subject research guides and help pages. So if you had linked to one of our guides, you will need to use a new link. The old pages are getting redirect notes, and the Research Guide link on the library homepage now goes to the new site: http://libguides.southernct.edu/

We think we've found most of the old links on our site and changed them, but if you find something that doesn't work, please let me know!

CONSULS outage

Sorry there hasn't been anything more interesting than outages here recently.

Wednesday, Nov 12 at 6:30AM (Eastern), CONSULS will be down for about half an hour for some maintenance work. The catalog, staff functions, and login to the databases will be down. I'm pretty sure if you are already in a database you will be fine, since the needed cookies will be set, but you won't be able to log into the databases during the outage. I'm not sure about switching from one database to another--I suspect that changing within a vendor would be fine, but maybe not between vendors. (I.e. you could switch from Academic Search Premier to ERIC, both on EBSCO, but maybe not to Library Literature, on FirstSearch.)

Sorry for the inconvenience.