How Do I Create a Persistent Link?

• Articles |
• E-books |
• Searches |
• Databases |
Journals

Persistent linking allows you to provide links to articles, databases searches, and books within online courses, emails, and projects. Persistent links, also called durable or stable links, are URLs that remain consistent and do not change over time. For example, the CityU Library home page can always be found at http://library.cityu.edu.

Copying and pasting the URL from your internet browser address field will not always create a consistent, stable link. Most URLs from online library databases work for a short period - 20 minutes to a day - then become invalid because databases often create their links at the moment of access.  In addition, the URLs won't work for off-campus students. Use the instructions below to create persistent, useable links to articles, database searches, books, and videos that can be integrated into Blackboard and used by students at any location. If you need additional help linking resources to your curriculum, please ask a librarian.

Copyright
Articles integrated into a course management system such as Blackboard are subject to copyright.

• U.S. Copyright law (Title 18, US Code) applies to items you might wish to place or post in to your Blackboard course or on a web page.
• Rather than place or upload an article in a Blackboard course, faculty should provide links to materials for students. Linking to materials available through library databases is often the most efficient method of providing materials to students. For more information on Course Management Systems and Copyright, visit http://www.copyright.com/media/pdfs/Using-Course-Management-Systems.pdf.
• Copyright also requires that you include complete citation information with links. The text of the link should include author, title, publication, volume and issue number (if applicable), copyright year and page numbers.

Long URLs
URLs can get long, unattractive, and break when sent via email. To shorten an internet address, use a service such as TinyURL (http://tinyurl.com) or bit.ly (http://bit.ly), which will take a long Web address and create a shorter address that will not break in an email posting.

Articles

1. Complete a search
2. Click on a record from the list of results
3. The persistent link is located at the right of the page, under Tools - click Permalink Show me
4. Copy and paste this link into Blackboard, email, etc.

Proquest databases: Accounting and Tax with Standards, Education Journals, Ethnic Newswatch, Research Library, ProQuest Newspapers, etc.

1. Complete a search
2. Choose an article from the list of results
3. Click on the Citation/Abstract link
4. Scroll to the very bottom of the page and find the Document URL. Show me
5. Copy and paste this persistent link into Blackboard, email, etc.

Alexander Street databases: American History in Video, Counseling and Psychotherapy Transcripts, Counseling and Therapy in Video

1. Complete a search
2. Click on a record from the list of results
3. Click the Embed/Linkicon
4. Copy and paste this link into Blackboard, OR insert the embed code into the HTML code of your Blackboard page (this will create a thumbnail of the video which is playable directly within your page).

Credo Reference and ACM Digital Library

1. Complete a search
2. Open an article by clicking its title
3. Copy the URL from your browser's address bar
4. Paste into Blackboard, email, etc.

Passport

1. Complete a search
2. Open a report by clicking its title
3. Click the Adobe PDF icon
4. Copy the URL from your browser's address bar
5. Paste into Blackboard, email, etc.

IEEE Computer Society

1. Complete a search
2. From your results list, click "Abstract" or "HTML" for the article you need
3. Copy the URL from your browser's address bar
4. Paste into Blackboard, email, etc.

LexisNexis Academic

1. Complete a search
2. Open an article by clicking its title
3. Click the "Copy Document Link" icon Show me
4. Right-click the bold link and select "Copy Shortcut" or "Copy Link Location" Show me
5. Paste into Blackboard, email, etc.

Morningstar

1. Complete a search
2. Click on a record from the list of results
3. Copy the URL from your browser's address field
4. Paste this link into Notepad or similar text-only editor
5. Copy and paste http://proxy.cityu.edu/login?url=to the beginning of your URL in Notepad
6. Copy and paste the entire URL from Notepad into Blackboard.
   Example: http://proxy.cityu.edu/login?url=http://library.morningstar.com/Fund/fund-analyst-report?country=USA&t=FAIRX

E-books

 To create a persistent link to an e-book in our Books24x7 database:

1. Complete a search in Books24x7
2. Open an e-book by clicking its title
3. Click the yellow envelope icon near the top of the page Show me
4. Copy the link from inside the "Link to content in Books24x7" box Show me
5. Paste this URL into Blackboard

To create a persistent link to an e-book located in any database, use CatalogPlus:

1. Search for the title of your e-book in CatalogPlus
2. Under "Refine My Results," click eBooks (if necessary to find the item you need)
3. Once you see the e-book you need, click Details Show Me
4. Under Links, right-click "Click here to view E-book" and select Copy Shortcut Show Me
   
   NOTE: If you do not see links under the Details tab, please Ask a Librarian
5. Paste into Blackboard, email, etc.         

Searches

1. Complete a search
2. Click Alert/Save/Share in the upper-right Show me
3. Copy the URL underPersistent link to search (copy & paste)
4. Paste this link into Blackboard, email, etc.

Proquest databases: Accounting and Tax with Standards, Education Journals, Ethnic Newswatch, Research Library, ProQuest Newspapers, etc.

Article Search:

1. Complete a search
2. Click "Recent Searches" at the far upper-right of your screen Show me
3. Click the yellow drop-down arrow next to "Actions" by your search, and choose "Get link" Show me
4. Copy this URL and paste into Blackboard, email, etc.

Journal in ProQuest database:

1. Go to our Journal Finder
2. Search for your journal
3. Click the ProQuest database that contains the journal
4. Copy the URL from your address field
5. Paste this link into Notepad or similar text-only editor
6. Copy and paste http://proxy.cityu.edu/login?url= to the beginning of your URL in Notepad
7. Copy the entire URL from Notepad
8. Convert this link to a TinyURL
9. Copy and paste this shortened link into Blackboard, email, etc.

CatalogPlus

1. Complete a search
2. Copy the URL from your browser's address field
3. Delete from the URL the "date stamp" indicated by &dstmp= and the following numbers.
4. In this example, you would delete the bold red text:
   http://primo3.hosted.exlibrisgroup.com/primo_library/libweb/action/search.do?rfnId=rfin0&dstmp=1321984314014&srt=rank

Databases

1. Go the the Databases by Title page
2. Right click on the link to the database and select Copy Shortcut
3. Copy and paste this link into Blackboard, email, etc.

Journals

1. Go to our Journal Finder
2. Search for your journal
3. Right-click the journal title from the results list and select Copy Shortcut
4. Paste into Blackboard, email, etc.