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HPB Access
Login and search the HPB
CERL members and others who have authorisation can login and search the HPB free of charge. If you know your authorisation code and password, login using OCLC's FirstSearch.
Free Trial Accounts
Individuals from institutions which are not CERL members may obtain a free trial account for access to the HPB Database by sending an e-mail to CERL’s Executive Manager, Marian.Lefferts@cerl.org.
Please ensure that your e-mail address and other contact details are included in the body of the message.
HPB Access
The HPB Database is hosted by OCLC, where it is available on a number of different platforms, each with its own special features. We recommend that you read the detailed information available to the OCLC website (see URLs below), as the information below offers only a short outline of all available options.
FirstSearch
FirstSearch is an online service which gives access to a rich collection of reference databases. In addition to searching on a large number of indexes which can be combined in any number of ways, the platform also offers
- cross searching of up to three databases,
- multiple interface languages,
- search options that include operators for proximity and plurals, as well as wildcards, and
- highlighting of search terms in search results.
The FirstSearch interface was enhanced to incorporate CERL’s Assisted Searching functionality (based on the CERL Thesaurus and offering variant place and personal names) and the Annotations Facility that had already been successfully integrated in the CERL Thesaurus – allowing HPB users to share their views on the record contents with other users.
The following website provides you with a first introduction into the FirstSearch search capabilities http://www.oclc.org/support/documentation/firstsearch/; another useful resource is http://www.oclc.org/support/documentation/firstsearch/using/basicsrefcard/FSbasics.pdf.
In the FirstSearch environment, the HPB Database is also available through Z39.50 and by making use of IP recognition (see below).
Read more about using FirstSearch with Internet Explorer 7 here.
Use statistics
In the past, CERL members were sent monthly search statements, outlining the search activity in their institution for the past month. At OCLC, CERL members can examine their own search statistics; CERL will therefore no longer distribute monthly search statement. To access the search statistics, CERL members can log on via http://www.stats.oclc.org using the FirstSearch account and password information that was sent to them in September 2007.
Scripted Access / IP Recognition
CERL encourages its Members to allow public access to the HPB database through one or more terminals in the institute’s reading room(s). Since it is important that a member’s account and password do not become known to members of the public, CERL recommends that the terminals in the reading rooms log-on with the aid of scripted access. Please note that IP recognition of terminals is only possible for access via FirstSearch. IP recognition can also be set up for staff members.
Many CERL members are making use of IP recognition to access the HPB Database. Please ensure that all URLs begin with firstsearch.oclc.org. More information may be found on http://www.oclc.org/support/documentation/firstsearch/getting_started/ipweb/default.htm.
Connexion
CERL is now, for the first time, able to offer an editing facility for HPB Database records. Those organisations that have contributed records are given the opportunity to edit those records directly in the HPB, through OCLC’s Connexion facilities. Connexion is OCLC's cataloguing service: a powerful, flexible suite of tools with built-in access to WorldCat, used by many libraries to create and edit bibliographic and authority records.
The HPB is made available through the OCLC Connexion Browser, which is MARC21 based and Unicode compliant, supports record creation in Latin script and record viewing in a number of scripts including Cyrillic, Greek, and Hebrew, and which offers interfaces in English and French. Records may be exported in MARC-8 format, either to a file for downloading or to a local system via TCP/IP. A recording of a demonstration of the Connexion browser is now available at Using the Connexion Browser to access the HPB. Alternatively, you may simply view the power point slides.
In addition, the HPB is available through OCLC’s Connexion Client, MARC21 based and Unicode compliant Windows-based software that supports record creation in Latin and some non-Latin scripts (such as Cyrillic, Greek and Hebrew), and interfaces in English, German, Spanish as well as a number of non-European languages. Records may be exported in MARC-8 or Unicode (UTF-8) format, either to a file on a PC or to a local system via TCP/IP.
Public Access
More information can be found on Public access to the HPB.
Free Access for Cluster Libraries
More information can be found on Access for Cluster libraries.
HPB Access in the RLG environment
From 30 September 2007 the HPB Database is no longer available via Eureka on the Web, RLIN21 or Zephyr.
