Use UC-eLinks and Citation Linker

UC-eLinks is a service available through most UC Library databases. It provides links to:

online full-text of articles (when available);
holdings (call numbers and locations) of print materials in UC Libraries;
forms for requesting books and articles through interlibrary loan.
forms for asking a reference question
forms for reporting problems with UC-eLinks

To get started, choose one the following options:

If you have a research topic but no exact citations, search an article database and display citation results for the articles or books you need. Then click on the UC-eLinks button next to the desired citation . Hint: A citation contains specific information (for example, author, title, place of publication and year of publication) that describes an information source.

If you have the exact citation for the book, article, or video, go directly to the Citation Linker forms, online at: http://ucelinks.cdlib.org:8888/citation_new/sfx_local. These forms are also linked from the Interlibrary Loan and the Electronic Resources lists. Include as much information as you have for the needed article or book. After submitting the form, the UC-eLinks window will appear with the following options.

Option 1. Find the electronic full-text.

Click the arrow to open a new window, linking to the journal’s home page. You may need to scroll through the list of issues or articles to find the desired citation.

Please note: This option will not be listed if the article is not available in full-text.

At the journal article's homepage, read the article or click on the PDF link to view the article as it was originally published, with original page numbers and formatting.

Option 2. Find the call number and location of the article or book.

The eLinks box contains the complete citation for the desired article or book.
Click the "See if your campus has this" link to open a new window. UC-eLinks will search the MELVYL catalog for the book or periodical in the citation.

At the MELVYL Catalog Web page, click the "Full Record" link next to the search result that most closely matches the name of the book or periodical in your desired citation.

Read the UC Santa Cruz information carefully. Look for the call number and holdings for the print copy of the journal. The holdings will list the volume numbers, issues, and years the library owns for the journal. Compare the holdings with the date of the article you need. If UC Santa Cruz is not listed in the libraries that own the book or periodical, move to the next section and request the item through interlibrary loan.

In the example above, the print holdings began in 1982 and continue to the present. The call number for the journal is HM1.C65. The online holdings of the journal began in 1972 but the latest five years are not available in electronic format. The article in the example was published in 2002, so the article is available in print only.

Please note: You now have at least three windows open in your browser:

the database citation screen
the UC-eLinks options screen
the MELVYL catalog or journal homepage screen

You may need to move or change window sizes to view the information in each window.

Option 3. Request the item through interlibrary loan (ILL).

If the item is not available online or in print at UCSC, staff, students, and faculty may request the item through ILL. It usually takes 24 hours to one week to receive the item.

Click the "For Interlibrary Loan" link to open a new window with a form for requesting the item.

Fill the form out and press the continue button. The system will confirm your order and prompt you to submit it.

Note:
If you request a book, the UCSC Library will email you when your book has been received in the library.
Articles may be web-delivered (scanned and posted on-line) or mailed via campus mail to the requestor's address. Article requests default to web delivery. Unclick "Web delivery" and check "Paper copy" if you prefer to have a paper copy of the article mailed to you.
Undergraduate students can pick up their requested books at the Science and Engineering or McHenry Libraries.
Faculty, staff, and graduate students may have books delivered to their campus addresses by selecting "UCSC Campus Delivery" from the Pick-up location menu.

Have a question? Ask a Librarian

Having trouble interpreting the UCSC holdings from the Melvyl screens? Not finding the articles or books you need? Have a question of any kind? Choose the "Need help" link to go a form for submitting a question to a librarian. Library staff will review and answer questions daily. Responses will be sent to the email address submitted on the Ask a Librarian form.

Report a problem

The UC-eLinks project combines the services of three to four different systems and we rely on feedback from patrons for making improvements. If you receive an error or have feedback on the system, please use this form to report it to library staff.