If you have a link that still has the EZproxy prefix, you can remove it by deleting http://ezproxy.liberty.edu/login?url= from the URL. However, if you see EZproxy in the middle of the URL that is not the standard prefix, please contact us for help at jflmetadata@liberty.edu for assistance
You may be wondering, “is the workflow for manually creating off-campus links any different from EZproxy?” In short, the answer is yes. If a vendor does not provide a permalink function compatible with OpenAthens, you will need to manually create an off-campus link. To create an EZproxy link, you would copy and paste the EZproxy prefix at the beginning of a link. With OpenAthens, you paste the link into the OpenAthens Link Generator.
When you paste a URL into the OpenAthens Link Generator, you will notice that the characters in the URL change. This change is expected behavior. OpenAthens links are different from EZproxy links because OpenAthens links are “encoded.” An “encoded” link means that certain basic characters in a URL, such as a dash or a dot, are changed into encrypted characters, such as a percentage sign, that are easier for a computer to read. Links created using the OpenAthens link generator tool are encoded to provide more reliable access to electronic resources.
There are a few common mistakes when creating OpenAthens links that you should keep in mind. First, is using the URL in the address bar when a database, such as ProQuest, provides a permalink. In some cases, using the URL in the address bar with the OpenAthens Link Generator is appropriate, but a way that you can tell that the URL in the address bar will break is if it has the letters “sid” in the URL. This string of letters indicates that this URL will only work for a temporary session and will not provide long-term access. If you have questions about when to use the URL in the address bar, please refer to the OpenAthens libguide. Another pitfall to avoid is simply putting the OpenAthens prefix at the beginning of the link just like an EZproxy link. This process might break access to the link because the URL is not encoded. It is important to keep in mind that you should always test your links before sending them in an email or adding them to your courses.
No, DOI links are not recommended with OpenAthens.
This recommendation is for three primary reasons:
