University Press Scholarship Online (UPSO) provides content from monograph collections published by a variety of academic presses around the world. Currently, over 10,000 titles are available from 24 distinct subject areas. The academic presses involved include Oxford University Press, American University in Cairo, University of California Press, Edinburgh University Press, University Press of Florida, Fordham University Press, Hong Kong University Press, University Press of Kentucky, Manchester University Press, and Policy Press. Subject areas range from Anthropology to Economics and Finance; from Film, Television and Radio to Palliative Care.
Users of Oxford Scholarship Online (RR 2005/122) will be familiar with the form and functionality of the platform. The visual presentation is clear, well organized and augmented with colourful book jacket images. Main functions are consistently available throughout the site. Each page contains search, browse and advanced search functions as well as viewing options. Users may search or browse by subject area across all presses or by individual press, regardless of subscription level and status. Faceted searching and browsing allow users to filter the scope of their investigation. When searching a single press, users should note that the range of subject categories available is reduced to the specific collections held by that press.
The browse function features a carousel view for select highlighted titles from within the category browsed, an interesting but not critical addition. All titles listed in the results window can be accessed by clicking on the title to view details. Rolling the cursor over any title brings up the abstract and keyword listing. The quick search has the same subject selection and filtering options as the browse feature. Advanced search provides 15 focused search options including limit by book title, chapter title, tables, and publication date.
The left menu bar highlights results figures by press and subject area. Results can be viewed or filtered by press, subject area, access level and/or date. In some cases, additional options including book reviews or related content are also available. Search results viewing options such as display detail, number of results per screen and sorting options can be adjusted from the middle and bottom menu bar. Options to print, save, and e‐mail results are available above the results listing. Bookmark and share technology allows users to share individual results via Facebook, Twitter, etc., using the DOI provided. Citations can be downloaded directly to EndNote, Reference Manager, RefWorks, Zotero, BibTex, and ProCite. A full results list in PDF format is available for download. Personalized accounts can be created to save searches and results.
Users should take note that a padlock icon following a title means that access to the full text is restricted to subscribers only. Book abstracts and chapter abstracts, however, are freely available for viewing, which is a welcome feature.
For subscribers, full text of books can be accessed through the table of contents which allows jumping off points into sections and chapters. A progress indicator (sliding rule) indicates where you are in the book. Links to material in the bibliographies are available for some titles. Chapters can be read online or downloaded in PDF format. Note that copyright‐related restrictions allow downloading of one chapter per book or 5 percent of a total item, whichever is greater. A feature which will be a welcome addition for faculty is the ability to link books or chapters into online courseware by copying and pasting the book or chapter DOI to the standard organization prefix.
There are a few features of note for librarians. MARC21 records are available. All material is dark archived for preservation in Portico. Annual subscriptions or material purchase are available by individual press or by subject area for concurrent users or with unlimited access.
UPSO is a well‐designed product with high quality content. The breadth of subject matter available is an important factor in determining its worth. The potential for its future growth make it an attractive choice for libraries. This site is easy to navigate with a consistent format between press collections. Options such as the DOI linking and bookmarking feature indicate that the producer understands the changing requirements of its users and is willing to facilitate those changes. The amount of freely available content is another positive addition. I recommend this product for all levels of users in academic institutions.
