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Database Access

Are you having trouble accessing a LIAS database? Access to a database is determined by who you are and where you are. In addition, the browser and its version determine how much functionality you will have in many of the databases. For details read below.

Blue Ball Who
The who is your affiliation with Penn State. Some databases such as The CAT, PubMed, etc. are available to all users, both at PSU library LIAS workstations or from a remote workstation, i.e, a workstation not physically located in a PSU library. However, the majority of LIAS databases are licensed for current Penn State students, faculty and staff only. This means that you must identify yourself (i.e., authenticate) as a valid PSU user  when you access a licensed database from a remote workstation.  Please note that alumni are not considered current Penn State students, and do not have remote access to the licensed databases.

Blue Ball Where
The where is both your physical location (e.g., in a PSU library or at a remote location such as a dorm, home or office) and how you have connected to the Internet (e.g., via the Penn State network or via a third-party Internet Service Provider such as America Online (AOL), CompuServe, etc.).

Our database license agreements require that access to the majority of databases be from an IP address on the PSU Network. When you connect via a third-party ISP, you do not get a PSU IP. In that case, for authenticated PSU users, we use proxy server software which sends your request to a server in the libraries, and then sends it on to the database. Because the server is in the libraries, it has a PSU IP and the database will accept it. Unfortunately, there are several problems with the proxy server software which means that we cannot always provide remote access to a database, and therefore, it does not appear in your list of accessible databases.

Blue Ball Browser Info
The majority of LIAS databases and resources require Netscape 5.0 or higher or Internet Explorer 5.0 or higher for optimum functionality. In general, the higher your browser version, the better you'll be able to take advantage of the features built into the databases.

For full functionality in The CAT, you must use Netscape 5.0 or higher or Internet Explorer 5.0 or higher.  In addition, your browser must be JavaScript enabled and must accept cookies. Many of the external resources also require cookies, and if you do not allow them, you may be denied access to the database, may not be able to download pages, etc. 

Blue Ball Notes

Access IDs. Faculty, Staff and Students must use their PSU Access ID and password to authenticate when accessing the licensed LIAS databases remotely.
PSU Network Access. If you connect to the Internet via the Penn State Network, LIAS detects that you are a valid PSU user, and does not prompt for further authentication when you access a licensed database.
No Remote Access. Some databases are available only on library workstations, and cannot be accessed remotely no matter who you are or how you have connected to the Internet. Our goal is to make all databases accessible remotely to PSU users, and we are working with our database and proxy server software vendors to resolve the problems.
Troubleshooting. If you continue to experience problems getting  to a database after you have read all of the above and checked your database in the table to make sure you should be able to access it, Contact Us. Include all of the following information:
  • Date and time of the problem
  • The browser and version number you are using (e.g., Netscape 4.5, Netscape 4.61, etc.).
  • How you are connecting to the Internet (e.g., workstation in library, PSU Network, AOL, etc.).
  • The specific name of the database/resource you are trying to access. "LIAS" is not specific enough.
  • The error message you get (exact text really helps).
  • How you are authenticating (e.g., Access ID and password or PSU ID number and last name).

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