Frequently Asked Questions - Get it

This message indicates one of two things:

• the article is recent and has yet to be loaded on the site which means Get It! cannot retrieve it until the publisher places it on its site, OR,
• the Get It! links are incorrect and need to be updated.

Please use the "Broken links? Report problems to librarians" link at the bottom of the Get It! window to report the problem.

A pop-up blocker will prevent Get It! from functioning properly. Simply disable the pop-up blocker to enable Get It!

Sometimes Get It! can only take you to the table of contents for a journal; from there you'll have to navigate to the full-text article using the volume, issue, date and page information from the article citation.

• This may mean that the library does not have a subscription for this journal. However, it may also mean that the Get It! service and the database don't talk to each other well.
• To be sure if we have a journal online for the volume and year you need, follow the instructions here to search for the article using our e-Journals search tab:
  • I have a reference to a specific journal or article; how do I find it?
• If no online vendor listed in the e-Journals search has the volume and year you need, you can request the item via RACER (Interlibrary Loan).

Generally, the library only subscribes to a journal once and thus only one link to full-text should appear. However, if the library subscribes to a package that contains a duplicate of the same journal, we provide the alternate link as well so that if one of the access points become inaccessible, you will still have access to the title. Please note that we try not to duplicate resources; however these "aggregator" packages do not always offer flexibility regarding the content of their service.

Get It! opens up 3 windows for each article: clicking on the button opens a menu screen; selecting a service associated with that article opens a second window; and the 3rd window appears for all Get It! generated activities (the resource that you choose). Remember to close the windows once your search is completed.

The most likely reasons are:

• there is no electronic full-text version available, OR
• the library does not have a license for the full-text for that journal.

Click on the catalogue link in Get It! to see whether the library has a print subscription to the requested item. In rare cases, the recent article may not yet be loaded on publisher's web site.

There are 3 possible explanations or fixes:

1. Most, but not all, of the databases to which the library subscribes have the Get It! service enabled. You may be using one which doesn't. 
2. The Get It! button will not appear if the JavaScript function in your browser is disabled. If this is the case, simply re-enable JavaScipt to make the button visible.
3. If you are searching Web of Science you must allow the first page to load completely so that the Get It! button is visible in your browser.

All McMaster University faculty, staff and students can access Get It!. Get It! is a project of the Ontario Scholars Portal developed by the Ontario Council of University Libraries. Get It! uses SFX software developed by the Ex Libris Group.

Get It! links database citations, also known as references, to full text when available, and to other supporting resources provided by McMaster University Libraries. When you see the Get It! button in a database, click on the button to see a menu of options including:

• View the full text of the item if the library has a subscription
• Automatically search the library catalogue to see if the library has the journal or book
• Access other library services (Interlibrary Loan, etc.)
• Download the citation into RefWorks