Getting Started

Welcome to ebrary’s Help and Support site!
This site will help you understand ebrary's services and explain how to use the ebrary Reader to assist you in your research.

Please be sure to read our Terms of Use and Privacy Notices!

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System Requirements for the ebrary Reader:

Windows

• Microsoft Windows XP (Home or Professional) or 2000 Professional or Windows Vista (IE only).
  • Me, 98, and NT 4.0 Workstation are no longer supported as of July 1, 2006
• Minimum 128 MB of RAM; 512 MB or more is recommended.
• Any one of these browsers:
  • Netscape Communicator 7.1 and newer
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.5 or newer
  • Firefox 1.0.4 or newer (with the latest ebrary Reader)
  • Mozilla 1.7 or newer (with the latest ebrary Reader)
• Access to the Internet (via dial-up or broadband connection).
• The AOL browser, MSN browser, Netscape 6, Opera, and ISP-branded browsers (versions of Internet Explorer your ISP provided to you) are not supported.

Macintosh

• Mac OS X 10.1 or newer
• Mac OS 9 no longer supported as of December 2006.
• Minimum 128 MB of RAM; 512 MB or more is recommended.
• Any one of these browsers:
  • Safari 1.1 or newer
  • Firefox 1.0 or newer (with the latest ebrary Reader)
• Access to the Internet (via dial-up or broadband connection).
• The AOL browser, Netscape, Internet Explorer, Opera, iCab, Camino and Mozilla (non-Firefox versions) are not supported.

Linux/Unix

• Linux/Unix are not supported at this time, but we are actively working on a solution for these platforms. If you would like to try to use our Windows plug-in with WINE emulation, you are welcome to do so by following the instructions here. If you would like to be notified when the Linux/Unix plug-in is available, please Contact Support.

To begin using ebrary, you must first install the ebrary Reader, our software application that gives ebrary its sophisticated functionality.

The ebrary Reader installs quickly. There is no need to restart your computer, though you may need to refresh your browser. Once you have installed the ebrary Reader, simply click on a book title and the software will automatically open within your browser. Detailed instructions for installation are in the sections below.

Before installing, ensure that you have cookies enabled in your browser; if you use a pop-up blocker, ensure it is configured to allow pop-ups from our site. If you use firewall or security software, you may need to perform additional configuration prevent it from blocking our site. Consult your software documentation for information on how to do this.

Installation - Windows using Internet Explorer

To initiate the installation of the ebrary Reader using Windows with Internet Explorer, just click on a book title. Internet Explorer will detect that you need a copy of the ebrary Reader ActiveX control and, with your permission, download it and activate it. You will be prompted to accept our License Agreement. Then you will be viewing your first document. If you have Windows XP with Service Pack 2, you may need to click your Information Bar and choose "Install ActiveX control" or you can enable "Automatic Prompting" for ActiveX downloads. To do this follow the steps below.

1. In Internet Explorer, click "Tools" and choose "Internet Options".
2. Click the "Security" tab and the icon for "Internet" should be highlighted. If not, just click it to highlight it. Then click the "Custom Level" button near the bottom of the window.
4. Change the "Automatic Prompting for ActiveX Control" from "Disable" to "Enable".
5. Click "OK" and then "OK" again and proceed to installing the ebrary Reader by clicking the link below.

Please note that this setting only changes the prompting settings; it does not allow any ActiveX control to be automatically downloaded without you agreeing to it first.
If you have any difficulties installing, please refer to this troubleshooting guide.

Installation - Windows using Netscape

To install ebrary Reader using Windows with Netscape, you need to download the installer and run it. In some cases you may also need to refresh or restart your browser.

1. Click this link to download the ebrary Reader installer (ebraryReader.exe) and save it to your Desktop.
2. Depending on your browser settings the installer may launch automatically. If not, double-click the "ebraryReader.exe" and run it.
3. Follow the installer directions and the ebrary Reader will be installed.

Installation - Windows using Mozilla Firefox

To install ebrary Reader using Windows with Firefox, you need only to view a document, and accept our License Agreement. In most cases, Firefox will then handle the rest of the installation for you automatically.

If the ebrary Reader is not installed automatically by Firefox, then perform the following additional steps:

1. After clicking the installation link, click on the puzzle piece that says, "Click here to download plugin."
2. Click on the "Manual Install" button. This will open an ebrary download page in a new window.
3. Click the "Download ebrary Reader for Windows Now" link. Depending on your security settings, Firefox may display a plugin security warning at the top of the page and refuse to download the plugin. If this happens, you must:
1. Click the "Edit Options..." button.
2. Click "Allow" to add ebrary to the list of trusted sites.
3. Click "OK" to update your options.
4. Click the "Download ebrary Reader for Windows Now" link again to download the Reader.
4. Once the plugin downloads, click the "Install Now" button to complete installation.

If you experience difficulties installing, please check this troubleshooting guide.

Installation - Windows using Mozilla

To install ebrary Reader using Windows with Mozilla (this is not the same as Firefox), you need to download the installer and run it. In some cases you may also need to refresh or restart your browser.

1. Click this link to download the ebrary Reader installer (ebraryReader.exe) and save it to your Desktop.
2. Depending on your browser settings the installer may launch automatically. If not, double-click the "ebraryReader.exe" and run it.
3. Follow the installer directions and the ebrary Reader will be installed.

Installation - Mac OS X using any browser

Installing the ebrary Reader on a Mac OS X computer will make the Reader available for every browser installed on that computer. To install ebrary Reader for Mac OS X you need to download the installer and run it.

1. Click this link to download the ebrary Reader installer (ebraryReaderInstaller.dmg). If prompted, save the file to the Desktop; most browsers will use this as the default download location.
2. The file downloaded is: "ebraryReaderInstaller.dmg" Double-click it to mount the installer. Your browser may do this for you automatically, depending on your settings.
3. An installer file with a blue VISE logo called "ebrary Reader Installer" will appear inside the folder, double-click it.
Follow the simple directions and the ebrary Reader will be installed:
• Quit your browser.
• Read and accept the license agreement
• Click Install
• Click Quit when the installer reports that installation is complete.
4. Launch your browser.

Using ebrary

Using the ebrary system is quite simple:

• Do a simple or advanced search.
• Select a book of interest.
• Read the book in full-text.
• Easily navigate throughout the book using the ebrary Reader.
• Use InfoTools to expand your research.
• Save and manage research on your Personal Bookshelf.

An illustrated example:

• Search — Enter a search term, for example Teddy Roosevelt and click the Search button.
  
  
  
  
  
• Select a book — Click on the cover, title or View link. You will be taken to the first page on which your search term appears.
  
  
  
  
  
• Navigate — Click the Next Search Page button to find the next page in the book with your requested search terms, or flip through pages using the arrow buttons.
  
  
     
  
  
• InfoTools — Use the InfoTools menu to link to additional resources in the Dynamic Content Platform (DCP), your library and on the Web. InfoTools can be activated from the ebrary Reader Toolbar, or by selecting text and right clicking.
  
  If you set Toggle Automenu to "on" the InfoTools menu will come up every time you select text.
  
  For details see the InfoTools section.
  
  
• Bookshelf — Automatically save links to Highlights, Bookmarks and Notes as you conduct your research. Store them on your Personal Bookshelf for future reference. See the Bookshelf section for details.
  
  
• Viewing another book — When you are done with a given book use the Search tab to return to your search results or request a new search.
  
  
  
  
  
• Sign out — At the end of your session, please remember to sign out. This step is particularly important if your computer is in an unsecured area, or it is shared with other users. If you do not sign out, it is possible that others could charge copies and prints to your account, or access your Personal Bookshelf and personal information such as your email address.
  
  
• To learn more — For more information about the ebrary DCP system, please proceed to the next section about Searching.