UW Libraries Search: LibKey Nomad

Not all article searches start within the confines of the UW Libraries catalog or its many subscription services. Researchers discover citations not just in library catalogs, but also on research sites like PubMed, Wiley, and Wikipedia. 

Prior to LibKey Nomad, these researchers would need to capture such citations manually, and then perform an additional search in the UW Libraries catalog or in a UW subscription database.

Thanks to LibKey Nomad, UW researchers can now enjoy direct, one-click access from many citations found on the open web. No more awkward duplicate searches for citations found outside the confines of UW Libraries Search.

LibKey Nomad adds an icon and link next to citations on sites such as PubMed that take you directly to the content. No extra searching required!

Examples below:

Example of an Ebook with the Nomad button

Example of Nomad button in PubMed Database

Anyone can install and use LibKey Nomad. Your access to any linked articles will depend on your UW Libraries privileges. Open Access articles linked by LibKey Nomad can be viewed by anyone.

LibKey Nomad supports all major browsers and installation only takes a minute. To install:

1. Simply click the link below matching your browser and click ‘Get’, ‘‘Add’ or ‘Install’ (depending on the browser) to install the extension.

   • Chrome

   • Edge

   • Firefox

   • Brave

   • Vivaldi

   • Safari

You can also search the browser extension store of your choice for “LibKey Nomad.”

2. After installation is completed, you will be prompted to select your organization. Search for and select ‘University of Washington.’
   
   

3. That’s it! You’re all done.

When installing the browser extension, you may see a notice indicating, “This extension can read and change all your data on the websites you visit.” While this sounds alarming, it really isn’t.

This notice simply refers to the fact that LIbKey Nomad can, on specified domains, alter the appearance of the website by inserting links that enable downloading of full-text articles. On these specified domains, the only data sent to the LibKey server are UW's LibKey ID, an API Key, a DOI and/or PMID, and the requesting IP. This IP is used only for standard web server log data and when determining authentication requirements.

For further information, refer to Third Iron's LibKey Nomad Technical FAQ page. 

Using LibKey Nomad is easy and simple.

1. Conduct your research on the web just as you normally would.
2. When LibKey Nomad finds a matching citation on a supported website, LibKey generates a linked icon. Depending on the type of item or the availability you might see a few variations of the icon.
   
    In a single click, you should either see a PDF on their screen or be prompted to immediately download the PDF. 
   
   
   Indicates that the University Libraries provides access to the article and will take you to a page where you can view the article. 
   
   
   LibKey Nomad enhances your access to e-books held by the library. If the publisher site or supported website references an e-book available from the library, LibKey Nomad will connect you to the e-book. 
   
   
   Access Options will appear if there are additional ways to access the item (physically in the stacks, via Interlibrary loan etc.).
    
3. Click on the button to navigate directly to the article, Ebook or website. 
4. If authentication is required, you will be prompted for your UW credentials prior to being directed to the content. [This is all done within the UW authentication system.]
5. In addition, when a webpage contains one or more links to articles or Ebooks provided by LibKey Nomad, you will see the LibKey Nomad logo in the lower left or right corner of your screen. This will jump to the sections of the page that include LibKey links.
   

The LibKey Nomad extension is active only on specific domains, such as supported publisher pages like Wiley, and sites researchers frequently visit looking for scholarly and medical content, such as PubMed and Wikipedia. On other websites, the LibKey Nomad browser extension remains dormant and unobtrusive. You can find a list of LibKey-supported publishers here. 

Keep in mind that LibKey Nomad only works for articles that have a DOI (Digital Object Identifier) or PMID (PubMed Identifier). Therefore, articles from newspapers, newsletters, conference proceedings, trade journals, or magazines are not supported. 

Key security and privacy elements of LibKey Nomad include:

• No LibKey user accounts are needed. Users never provide personal information.

• LibKey Nomad does not read, copy, or cache your UW credentials--any verification for UW credentials run through UW authentication systems only. 

• LibKey Nomad is active only on specific domains, such as supported publisher pages like Wiley.com and sites researchers frequently visit looking for scholarly and medical content, such as PubMed and Wikipedia. When active on specific domains, LibKey Nomad runs scripts in the browser that look for unique article identifiers, such as DOIs and PMIDs, then sends the identifier information to our LibKey API service.  The API returns linking information to forward the user to the article of interest LibKey is inactive on any other site.