Tech help #1
Having trouble accessing one of the Library's databases?
First, check to see that your library card is in good standing.
Then...
Call the Library to report that you are unable to access the database(s). Library staff will test the link to the database(s) in question and see if it(they) works remotely from another computer. We will respond to your question by calling you back to tell you the results of our check.
Some questions for you to consider...
_____Have you tried turning off your spam blocker? Have you turned off your pop-up blocker?
_____Have you checked your security settings to make sure the site you are trying to access is permitted?
_____Do you have firewall settings that may be interfering?
_____Have you installed the current edition of your Internet browser?"
Another posssibility...
The site you are trying to access could be down for updating or maintenance; try again in a few hours or tomorrow.
Trouble with printing?
If you are having trouble with the transmission of a document to your email account, do you have the proper applications on your computer to open the kind of file the database is sending to you? (PDF, Word document, HTML, etc.)
Tech help #2
the http referrer header
Symptoms:
If you see one of the following messages when you attempt to connect to the library databases, the problem may involve blocking of the http referrer header:
"Authentication failed due to insufficient credentials." [red letters on white page - EBSCO]
"1011: ProQuest is unable to authenticate your user account." [ProQuest]
background:
Normally, when you browse the internet and you click a link on a webpage (let's call it Site A) that leads to a different webpage (Site B), your computer sends certain information to site B. Most of it is information that Site B needs in order to fulfill your request for a page, but one piece is more informational: the "HTTP referrer header". When you click a link from Site A to Site B, the HTTP referrer header provides the address of Site A to Site B, where it is typically kept as part of a large archive of information about page accesses. Web administrators will sometimes analyze these archives -- "server logs" -- to learn more about how people are finding and using their sites.
However, some users are concerned about the privacy implications of this information transfer. The risks are quite limited -- the "referrer header" only includes a single URL of the page you were on just a moment before, and it is only sent if you click a link from Site A to Site B (that is, If you are looking at Site A and select a bookmark or enter a URL to reach Site B, no referrer header is sent). However, because of the perception of privacy concerns, several popular personal internet security software products include features that block the "HTTP referrer header" by default -- that is, automatically upon installation and until configured otherwise.
Resolution:
Below please find a list of products that we know can interfere with database access. Please click the appropriate product name for more details on correcting the problem.
If you are experiencing the error messages shown above when you try logging into one of our library databases, but you do not own one of the products listed above, please report the problem to the Information Desk at RH Stafford Branch Library.
