MyAthens in your browser toolbar

Eduserv Athens have developed a browser toolbar which replicates the features of MyAthens and can be used to access Athens-authenticated resources.

Features

The toolbar includes the following features which are available on a drop down list labelled “Athens Options”:

• Go to MyAthens. If you are not logged in, clicking on this option will display the MyAthens front page. If you are logged in, the list of resources in MyAthens will be displayed.
• Account details. This option displays information created with the account.
• Change password. This option displays the page in MyAthens that allows users to change their Athens password.
• Help. This option displays the Help page available in MyAthens.
• Refresh resource list. A drop-down list of resources is available after logging in. There have been some intermittent cases of the resource list failing to display a complete list of resources; using this button will refresh the list. Selecting one of these resources will redirect you to the service URL for that resource.

Other features of the toolbar include:

• status section. This indicates whether you are currently logged into Athens. If you are, it will display the Athens username you logged in with.
• A drop-down list of resources is available after logging in. Selecting one of these resources will redirect you to the service URL for that resource.
• Logout. This button logs the user out of Athens.

AthensDA users will also find the toolbar useful, although the Status section does not display the account username after the user has established an Athens session, and the Account details, Change password and Help buttons are also hidden. There is not currently a means of connecting to the login page for AthensDA users, but this is a feature we are exploring for future releases of the toolbar.

Browsers

The toolbar is currently only available for use on the following browsers:

Firefox 1.5
Mozilla 1.7
Netscape 7.2

We are aware that Internet Explorer is still the most popular browser, and we are currently investigating the feasibility of developing a version for use in Internet Explorer.

Installation

The toolbar installation instructions can be found at https://update.mozilla.org/extensions/moreinfo.php?application=firefox&id=337
(users of Netscape and Mozilla should click on the ‘Download Extension’ link and then use File | Open to locate and install the toolbar).

We would like to invite you to try the toolbar, and to send your comments to the Eduserv Athens Service Desk.

Comments from other users

“Athens toolbar - what a genius bit of customisation. Congrats to all involved.”
“An excellent extension for any researcher.”
“Very important extension for any researcher.”
“What a fantastic extension.”
“This is a great extension and saves loads of time.”
“Recommended. This works really well.”
“This is fantastic. If you only get one Firefox extension, get Adblock; but if you use Athens, get this one too.”
“Brilliant. It's actually a lot easier to use than the University library link!”