How to Access Databases like NetLibrary and Toronto Star Pages of the Past
- Go to www.picnet.org and click on Research
- Pick the category you are interested in. Databases are organized by subject
- Click the Search Now link for the product you want. You will be prompted to enter your Pickering library card number or Pickering postal code
- Click submit. You will be redirected to the database of your choice. You are now logged in
TIP: Once logged in, you can return to this screen and view another database without having to enter your library number again as long as you don’t close your web browser.
Troubleshooting Norton Products
Many new computers come bundled with Norton Internet Security (NIS) or Norton Personal Firewall (NPF) already installed. By default NIS and/or NPF block all referring web pages. The result of this action is research databases not loading up properly. Some Web pages require referrer information before allowing you to view their page. Rules can be created to allow Norton to properly connect to affected sites. If you want to allow referrer information to pass to a particular Web page, you must create a rule for it (netlibrary.com or proquest.com are good examples of affected sites).
To create a rule in Norton that permits referrer information:
- Open Norton Internet Security or Norton Personal
Firewall - Do one of the following:
* In Norton Internet Security or Norton Personal Firewall 2003: Click Options then Internet Security, and then click the Web Content tab
* In Norton Internet Security or Norton Personal Firewall 2004 or newer: Double-click Privacy Control, and then click Advanced - In the bottom of the Advanced window, click Add Site
- In the New Site/Domain box, type the name of the site that you want to receive the referrer information (netlibrary.com, proquest.com, etc), then click OK. The site name appears in the left frame of the Options window
- Click the name of the new site (netlibrary.com, proquest.com, etc)
- On the Global Settings tab, under the Information about visited sites section, uncheck Use default settings
- Click Permit
- Click OK to close the Options window
Problems Accessing NetLibrary or other Databases
From time to time, you may be unable to connect to some or all of the research databases. Possible reasons include but are not restricted to the following:
- Internet problems. Because of the open nature of the Internet, it is possible that at the time you were trying to connect to one of the databases, there were overall Internet problems. Try navigating to another web site (good examples include Google or Yahoo). If you are able to navigate to other sites, then your Internet connection is working (go to troubleshooting procedures below). If you are unable to navigate to other web sites, your Internet Service Provider (ISP) may be experiencing problems. Please wait a few minutes and try again or contact your ISP for help in getting your connection.
- It is possible that you have your browser security settings set on too high a level (e.g. cookies disabled, scripting disabled). Please consult your browser documentation on customizing your browser settings
- Spyware and viruses can cause certain functions on a web page to stop working (e.g. online forms such as login boxes for library card number). Please check your computer for possible malicious programs and/or viruses (TIP: Internet Explorer browser is particularly susceptible to spyware and viruses. An alternative option would be to use a different more secure web browser such as Mozilla Firefox)
- If you are able to view one research database (e.g. EbscoHost) but not another (e.g. NetLibrary), then the database is most likely down temporarily. Please wait a few minutes and try again. If you are still unable to access the research database you need, please contact library staff at 905-831-6265 ext. 6243 for further assistance