A number of researchers have recently asked of the Library staff, "Should I use Ingenta or Interlibrary Loan to get journal articles that are not available from the Research Libraries?"
Answer: It depends.
Although features of the Libraries' new ILLiad system for interlibrary loan have diminished some of the differences between it and the Ingenta (formerly UnCover) document delivery service, helping our users to understand the strengths and weaknesses of the two services may help them decide which one to use. (Interestingly, cost is not a major factor, because research libraries frequently charge each other as much as commercial suppliers charge to handle document requests, and Rensselaer interlibrary loan subsidies almost always cover these costs.)
The Libraries have put together the following lists of advantages and disadvantages for both Ingenta and the Interlibrary Loan Service.
The Ingenta document delivery service supplements Rensselaer's print and electronic collections by providing Rensselaer faculty and graduate students with a direct alternative to using the interlibrary loan network to obtain copies of recently published journal articles that typically might be part of a more comprehensive research collection.
Main Advantages>
Disadvantages
Interlibrary Loan is a comprehensive service dealing with all kinds of publications. Journal articles are frequently ordered from Ingenta, but "ILL" also regularly works with more than 800 libraries to obtain books and journal articles. More than 50% of requested journal articles are now "delivered" to library users as pdf's.
Main Advantages
Disadvantages
If you have any questions about either of these important Library services, please phone ext. 8330, direct e-mail to ill-support@rpi.edu, or refer to the URL http://www.lib.rpi.edu/services/ill/index.html.
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