360 KB: Freely Accessible Journal Databases FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

How does Serials Solutions decide if a particular journal should be included in a freely-accessible collection?

If a journal is included in a freely-accessible existing collection such as PubMedCentral or Electronic Library of Mathematics, and with at least as much coverage as in the existing freely-accessible collection, then it will not be included in the Freely Accessible Journals databases.

If the journal is available through another paid service such as EBSCOhost EJS, then it will be included in the freely-accessible list as well.

Freely accessible journals must be accessible to anyone with access to the internet, without cost, though they may require some form of free registration before one can access the content.

The site should include substantially all of the print version of the journal, and ideally should have an identifiable start date of coverage. A web version of a newspaper or popular magazine likely wouldn't be included in this collection, because patrons cannot reasonably expect to find the full text of any specific article that they're seeking from that journal.

Typically a journal will be listed in only one of the subject lists of journals.

How have you separated the various titles, and what subjects are in each collection?

We have created seven subsets of freely accessible journals. The titles of these databases, and the subjects included within each database, are listed below. These lists of subjects are not all-inclusive and may grow over time:

• Freely Accessible Arts & Humanities Journals -- arts, music, humanities, library literature, linguistics, film
  
• Freely Accessible Business Journals -- business, economics
  
• Freely Accessible General Interest Journals -- location-specific titles, such as city newspapers and regional magazines, general-subject titles
  
• Freely Accessible Science Journals -- physical sciences, mathematics, medicine, computing, technology
  
• Freely Accessible Social Science Journals -- education, law, public policy, theology, philosophy, religion
  
• Freely Accessible Journals -- journals that are not placed elsewhere; there should be few, if any, journals in this collection
  
• Freely Accessible Pre-Print Services -- content from pre-print services such as arXiv and e-LCC

Why did you create these subsets of journals?

We thought that some libraries might want to have all business journals listed in their products from us, but may not want to have all science journals listed in those products. If you decide to select individual journals from a collection, then you will not receive all new journals as they are added. We felt that by giving clients general options for these subject areas, you would be better able to select only the free journals you choose, with minimal management. Since journals should only appear in a single subject area, you can select all databases if you would like to receive information about all freely accessible journals as they are added.

Can I change the title you've assigned to a particular collection?

Yes, you can change the title for any database by clicking on the database name in the Client Center, clicking on Edit next to the database name, and then typing your preferred name in the Custom Database Name field. You can change all subject titles to the same title, such as "Free Internet," if you so choose.

Can I select specific titles to include (and identify titles to not include) from these lists?

Yes, you can. When you click on the database name in the Client Center, you can select the button that reads, "We subscribe to only some of the journals in this database." You can then choose which journals to include, and therefore exclude all others. It's important to note, however, that if you choose this option, you will not automatically receive every new journal that's added to these collections.

What's the difference between freely accessible journals and single journals?

Single journals are those titles that are not free and are sold as individual titles by the publisher. Freely accessible journals do not require any type of paid subscription (though some may require some form of free registration before accessing the site).

If I'm a 360 MARC Updates client, will I receive MARC records for these titles?

Yes, as long as a record is available. We track these databases the same as other databases in our collection, and aim to provide as many MARC records as we can. If we have not provided a MARC record for a title, and you know that a CONSER record is available, please send us the LCCN and we will make the association.

How do I suggest individual free journals that could be added to 360 KB?

Follow the instructions here.

Why are our freely accessible databases not hyperlinked from our E-Journal Portal?

See this document for more information and some solutions.

• Date Created: 9-Feb-2014
• Last Edited Date: 21-Feb-2014
• Old Article Number: 8399