Q: I cannot access a certain paper or article. Why?

R: Direct access to licensed electronic content should work from your PC at your Max Planck Institute. If you encounter any problems, please see Campus Magic Support. If you are trying to read a paper from home or while travelling, you ought to connect to a Max Planck Institute campus service. See Travel Magic Support for more information.

Q: Does the MPG provide an alternative to IP authentication (e.g. Shibboleth)?

R: Not at present. Even remote access as described by Travel Magic works through a proxy service authenticating by means of its IP address in the background. Campus-based access grants access to the full range of content available to a Max Planck Institute. This is one reason why overall access through an MPG-wide proxy is not supported.

Q: How often are IP updates provided to publishers?

R: IP registration is updated in bimonthly cycles (i.e. every two months). More frequent updates have proved to cause errors and inconsistencies.

Q: But sometimes I have off-campus access to licensed content. How is that possible?

R: Some publishers support extended user sessions or similar mechanisms to streamline access for users authorized earlier, see Elsevier for an example. Nevertheless, you cannot rely on this access option because it may suspend if the browser is closed or the cookie expires. In this case, please connect to a Max Planck Institute campus service like Travel Magic instead.

Q: Where can I keep informed about terms & conditions for access to electronic resources?

R: Please find general access conditions on the Max Planck Digital Library homepage. Specific usage conditions are linked from record full views of the resource navigator MPG.ReNa.