From the 15th April you will notice a slight change to how you login to Te Waharoa and also access resource. In Te Waharoa you will now be presented with a 3rd option when you click Sign in:
When you click on OpenAthens (All Users) or when you try to access resources for the first time in a session, you will be presented with the following options:
Why is this happening?
The reason for this change is to streamline authentication for all users of the library to authenticate through OpenAthens, which is currently used for providing access to subscription resources through OpenAthens. This will now allow Alumni to discover and access resources directly through Te Waharoa and where the license allows access to visitors.
What does this mean for me?
Current Staff and Students
The main change you will see is the OpenAthens sign-in screen will be displayed when you try to access an online resource for the 1st time in a browser session.
Clicking on Staff and Students, you will be passed to the Universities single sign-on (SSO) system.
Alumni
You will login by clicking on Alumni and other users, you will now have the option of logging in using your email address or your user id*. You will also be able to reset your password if you have forgotten it.
* Your user ID will be the same but prefixed with wgtn (e.g. if your user ID is 123456 then you would enter wgtn123456).
You will also now be able to search and access resources that allow Alumni access through Te Waharoa. You will no longer have to access databases through the Alumni page, instead they are listed in Te Waharoa in the Databases search (https://tewaharoa.victoria.ac.nz/discovery/dbsearch?...).
You will receive an Activation email before the switch, this will provide instructions on how to setup your password and activate your OpenAthens account.
Community Borrowers
You will login by clicking on Alumni and other users, and you will be able to login using your email address or your user id*. You will also be able to reset your password if you have forgotten it.
* Your user ID will be the same but prefixed with wgtn (e.g. if your user ID is 123456 then you would enter wgtn123456).
You will receive an Activation email before the switch, this will provide instructions on how to setup your password and activate your OpenAthens account.
Next Stage
The plan is to switch over fully to OpenAthens as the primary authentication method for Te Waharoa, before that we want to ensure that there are no issues for our users and will do extensive testing in the coming weeks. If you experience any issues or have questions please email library-systems@vuw.ac.nz.
What is OpenAthens?
OpenAthens is a service designed to simplify access to digital resources through a single sign-on system. It allows users to access various online resources with just one username and password, making it easier for librarians, publishers, and service providers to manage and provide access to content. OpenAthens is used by over 3,000 organizations in more than 80 countries.
OpenAthens is currently used for providing on and off site access to library services and online resources (e.g. Te Waharoa, reading lists, digitised readings, thesis deposit, etc).
Where supported It also allows you to login directly with databases and vendor sites without the need to go through Te Waharoa, where supported you will see a Login with OpenAthens option.