eBook access models
Our current main supplier of eBooks is ProQuest LibCentral. Titles are available in one or more access models. Our Acquisitions staff will select the best eBook option for purchase, depending on the number of students expected to enrol on the course*. Not all access models are available with each title and/or price may be a limiting factor.
- UA - Unlimited access model – any number of users can borrow unlimited titles concurrently for any number of days per year, up to 365 days. The pricing of this model reflects the unlimited access of the model.
- 3U - 3User access model – allows three concurrent users at a time, with no limit of days. Once a user exits the book, it is freed up for another user to view it. In this model, we usually disable capacity for “full book download” to enable more access to other users. Users can download a particular chapter, exit the book, and it is then free for another user.
- NL - NonLinear access model – allows any number of users concurrently, limited to a set number of days per year, e.g. 100, 200, 325, depending on the publisher. Note that the "days" are not actual sequential days. If you have high a volume of users, the quota can get used up very quickly. If, for example, 30 students access the eBook in any one day, this equates to 30 days being used from the total allocation. For this reason, the 3-user access model is sometimes a better option, depending on demand.
- 1U - 1User access model – as above, but one user only at a time.
*Wherever possible, we will try to purchase unlimited access titles, however this model is not often an option for the majority of the ebooks we are asked to purchase. For items which you anticipate will be in high demand, i.e. a prescribed/required text for the course, we strongly recommend that it be a requirement for students to purchase their own physical copy. The library can still purchase one or more e-versions, if available, but these can’t be relied upon for all student access. A limited number of print copies may also be purchased.
