E-journal users familiar with ThomCat and Cyber Café often ponder the differences between the two. The pros and cons of searching one interface over the other have not always been clear. Fortunately, thanks to recent enhancements to Cyber Café and ThomCat, the content in both places is much more consistent. It’s now possible to find all of our e-journals in both places, regardless of the starting point you prefer. In addition, a new search feature lets you toggle between Cyber Café and ThomCat to compare print and electronic holdings with speed and accuracy.
If ThomCat is Your Starting Point...
From the main Thomcat search screen, an Exact search by Periodical Title will yield all the versions of that title contained by the library:
From your preliminary search results, it’s easy to determine what formats are available:
Users may also jump directly to the journal from the catalog entry without having to enter the Cyber Café. Holdings statements are also available to detail the range of coverage at a glance.
If Cyber Café is Your Starting Point...
As you scan the available titles in Cyber Café, you will note that some contain a blue Search icon in the Print Version column. This enables linkage from Cyber Café directly to the ThomCat record of the print version, when the library maintains print holdings. This is especially useful in cases where an e-journal is available, but a specific year of interest is not included in our subscription range. This lets the user determine if the article is available in print, without having to leave Cyber Café to initiate a separate ThomCat search.
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