[BOAI] Fwd: Use of e-print request button

Thu Jun 27 13:59:45 BST 2013

[This is an informed, positive testimonial about the e-print Request Button
on DSpace. Please also send information about implementing it on
Eprints<http://wiki.eprints.org/w/RequestEprint>,
where it originated.]

From: Michael White University of Stirling
Date: Thu, Jun 27, 2013 at 5:25 AM
To: JISC-REPOSITORIES at jiscmail.ac.uk

Apologies for the delay replying – but I’m not sure if you got any other
replies, so thought I’d chip in with my experiences of using “Request a
copy” with DSpace (it looks like you are using DSpace, although we are
still using the JSPUI not the XMLUI).

** **

We implemented the DSpace “Embargo” and “Request a copy” add-ons back in
their earliest days (around 2007) when we introduced our Institutional
Policy that required immediate deposit of full text of Journal Articles to
the repository on acceptance – obviously, due to Publisher embargoes, it
isn’t really possible for a policy like that to be successful without a
method to handle embargoes/copy requests . . .****

** **

As we have upgraded through the versions of DSpace, I have simply tweaked
our existing implementation of the Request a copy add-on to make it work in
the latest version (a process I have just completed for v3.1 this week!) –
i.e. we are still running our own, locally customised version of the
original version of the “Request a copy” add-on, so I can’t comment on the
later releases of this add-on. I do know though, from a discussion just
this week on the DSpace Tech email list, that colleagues at a Spanish
institution are just putting the finishing touches to a release of the
latest version of this add-on for the XMLUI interface . . . .****

** **

Of course, DSpace handles “Embargoes” out of the box now (in a different
way to the original add-on we installed), so I’ve had to extend the Request
a copy add-on to be able to deal with Embargoes implemented using the 2
different methods. Personally I believe that “Request a copy” is the other
side of the Embargo coin, so I for one would really love to see the
“Request a copy” functionality become part of the DSpace core at some point
in the (not too distant!) future J****

** **

Another issue that we had to address pretty quickly with the DSpace add-on
is that, by default, it sends the email request to the original submitter
of the item – even since our earliest days, in many cases, articles were
deposited by departmental admins or other delegated “proxy-depositors” on
behalf of academics, which meant the eprint requests were going to the
“wrong” person – the email does include a note to say that only an author
of the original article can respond to the request so the request should be
forwarded on but this was far from ideal. So I added a new metadata field
to hold a “Contact Email Address” on a Publication record and extended the
add-on to use this address if the Publication record had one, or use the
submitter’s email if not – this has the added benefit that, if a member of
staff leaves, we can simply update the “Contact Email Address” on their
Publication records, and they will continue to get eprint requests – this
is also very useful for embargoed PhDs (we have an eTheses mandate too), as
Research Students have to submit using their University login (we have
authentication linked to Active Directory which picks up their University
email address), but Research Students usually leave just after submission,
so it is great to be able to add an external email address in the “Contact
email” filed so that they can receive requests after they have left.****

** **

Also, I removed the facility for the “request responder” to submit a
request to have the item’s embargo removed, as embargo removal is handled
automatically by the system.****

** **

Finally, we have recently integrated our Repository with our Research
Management System, so submission of all Publication data (including
“Contact Email”) is now via the RMS, and, when full text is attached, this
is automatically pushed across to the Repository (subject to Workflow,
policy checking, embargo setting, etc all carried out in RMS) – this means
that all publications in our repository are now submitted by our RMS –
therefore, without the ability to send eprint requests to the Contact Email
in the metadata, all the eprint requests would be directed to the RMS’s
DSpace account!****

** **

This RMS integration has caused one issue – updates to records in RMS
automatically update the corresponding record in DSpace. Unfortunately the
RMS updates by removing the original record and adding a new record with
the same handle – for normal end users, they don’t see a difference, but
the removal and addition results in the associated full text getting a new
bitstream ID in the system. However the Request a copy feature uses the
bitstream ID to note what has been requested and what should be sent if the
request is responded to – so if an item is updated between being requested
and that request being responded to, the bitstream ID of the associated
full text has changed, and the attempt to respond to the request fails –
this generates an Internal Server Error, and I get an email, so I know that
it has happened, and, from the token in the request email, I can reverse
engineer what was requested and “fix it”, but it is a bit of a nuisance –
fortunately it doesn’t happen very often now that things are settling down
in our RMS.****

** **

I can’t really comment on time savings for academics, but I know our
academics are very happy with the service and it provides an easy mechanism
for them to respond to eprint requests (and I’m assuming it involves less
clicking and hunting around than responding to “traditional” reprint
requests) . . .****

** **

Bottom line, I heartily recommend this add-on and believe we could not run
our repository without the functionality it provides! J****

** **

I hope that is helpful and of interest.****

** **

Regards,****

** **

Mike****

Joint STORRE Manager****

http://storre.stir.ac.uk/****

Michael White
eLearning Liaison and Development (eLD)
Information Services
S8, Library
University of Stirling
Stirling SCOTLAND
FK9 4LA ****

Email: michael.white at stir.ac.uk
Tel: +44 (0) 1786 466877
Fax: +44 (0) 1786 466880****

http://www.stir.ac.uk/is/staff/about/teams/aldt/#eld****

** **

*From:* Repositories discussion list [mailto:
JISC-REPOSITORIES at JISCMAIL.AC.UK] *On Behalf Of *Joseph Greene
*Sent:* 20 June 2013 10:28
*To:* JISC-REPOSITORIES at JISCMAIL.AC.UK
*Subject:* Use of e-print request button****

** **

Hello,****

** **

We are considering implementing an e-print request button to increase
access, but also in the hope that we can save some time in certain areas
researching publishers’ policies.****

** **

I wonder if anyone who has implemented the e-print request button in the
last few years would comment on your decision to implement it, and if you
have seen any time savings as a result?****

** **

Many thanks in advance,****

** **

Joseph Greene****

Research Repository and Systems Librarian****

James Joyce Library****

University College Dublin****

(353 0)1 716 7398****

(353 0)1 716 7686****

joseph.greene at ucd.ie****

** **

http://www.ucd.ie/library****

http://researchrepository.ucd.ie****

** **

** **

** **
------------------------------
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