Using Get VText service
After you have searched for an article in a database, you’ll want to access the actual article. Some, but not all, our our databases will include full-text articles. When the article needed is not available in the database, look for the Get VText button or link to access the article elsewhere.
We have configured many of our subscription databases to present a Get VText button when a full-text article is not available. The button will appear regardless of whether the article is available online or in print in the Virginia Tech Libraries (no prior lookup is performed). Only after clicking the button does a lookup occur. Again, the presence of the Get VText button does not guarantee instant access.
Get VText is not a search engine. It does not index individual articles and never searches against a list of articles. The lookup is based solely on a simple table of journal titles and date ranges.
When you click the Get VText button, citation information is sent to the Get VText server; information including the journal title and ISSN; volume, issue and page number; and date of publication is used to determine if the article is available online. When possible, a link to the specific article is presented; sometime the article's vendor does not allow for article-level linking, other times not enough information is sent to construct an article level link. In these cases, you will often see a Journal link. Click the journal link and then either manually drill down to the volume, issue, and page number you need or search for the article title at the site. If any physical copies are available, a link to Addison will also be present in Step 1. Use this link to determine what date range is available in print or microforms.
If no online access is found in Step 1, links to Addison will be presented under Step 2. This step is required if you are attempting to access something other than a journal article, such as a book, a book chapter, or a conference paper. Try searching for the journal's ISSN or the book's ISBN then the journal's or book's title to see if the item is available in print. If a search result is returned in Addison, check your item's citation information, including date, volume and issue to verify if the item is available.
Finally, if no online link is presented, and you get no results from Addison, Step 3 will present a link to request the item through interlibrary loan. Click the Interlibrary Loan link, login to ILLiad (or setup a profile) and a filled-out article request or book request form will be presented. Verify that all required information is filled in and submit the request. ILLiad will keep you apprised of the status of your request.
