About Books at JSTOR

• What is Books at JSTOR?

  Books at JSTOR is a program that offers ebooks from leading scholarly publishers for sale to institutions. As a nonprofit with a mission to serve the academic community, JSTOR worked closely with partner publishers, libraries, and scholars to develop this offering.

  We focus on delivering great content and experiences to researchers. Books are integrated with the millions of journal articles and primary sources on JSTOR’s platform, providing an online research experience that is easy and effective. 

• Which publishers are participating?

  Our partners include top academic publishers from around the world. Click here for an up-to-date list of our publisher partners. 

   

Purchasing models

• Are the ebooks offered in a perpetual access model or as a subscription?

  All of our ebooks are offered in a perpetual access model; once you buy an ebook, your library's patrons may access it on JSTOR in perpetuity.

  We do not offer a subscription model at this time.

• Can titles be ordered individually?

  Yes, you can purchase access to any of the ebooks through title-by-title selection. We also offer subject collections, approval plans, and Demand-Driven Acquisition.

• What is the Demand-Driven Acquisition (DDA) model?

  In the DDA model, acquisitions are determined by patron usage. You can make a large corpus of ebooks available for use at your institution; this can be all Books at JSTOR titles, or a profile created with parameters such as publisher, discipline, publication year, or maximum price.  Titles in your DDA profile will appear to your users the same way as if they had already been paid for; they'll appear in search results on JSTOR, and we will provide free MARC records from OCLC for all titles in your profile.  The library only pays for a title if usage reaches a certain threshold; any usage below that level is free.  

  Contact participation@jstor.org for more information on setting up a DDA account.

• Can I order through YBP?

  Yes, all the ebooks are available through GOBI.  More information is available here.

Accessing and using ebooks

• How does JSTOR's unlimited-user access work?

  JSTOR's unlimited-user access for ebooks works just like the journals on JSTOR, ensuring an easy, familiar experience for faculty and students who already use the platform for scholarly research.  The ebooks include:

  • Simultaneous online access for an unlimited number of users
  • Unlimited DRM-free chapter downloads that never expire
  • Unlimited printing and copy/paste
  • No requirement for the user to log in or use special software
  • Interlibrary loan for ebook chapters

    

• How can users access the books?

  The ebooks can be accessed from your institution or remotely 24/7. Users are authenticated to access ebooks the same way they are for journals. The most common method is through your institution’s IP address. Users can access licensed content remotely through a proxy server, EZProxy, Athens, Shibboleth, or shared activation links. Click here for more information.

  
   
  Books at JSTOR supports OpenURL to ensure users can find content available to them through their institutions.

• What is the file format of the books?

  Book chapters can be viewed online or downloaded as PDF files. The downloads are standard, DRM-free PDFs with no limits on printing. 

• Can users search books and journals simultaneously?

  Yes, users can cross-search the full text of books, journals, and primary sources.  This provides a rich research experience for faculty and students.

• Will books show up in search results if my library hasn't purchased them?

  By default, when an authenticated user performs a search on JSTOR, only licensed content is returned. Users have the ability to change this setting to search all available content.

  Browsing (via the Browse by Publisher and Browse by Title links) will display all content, licensed and unlicensed.

   

• How much of a book is viewable if it hasn't been purchased?

   

  The Table of Contents, which includes 100-word extracts of each chapter, will be viewable even if the ebook has not been purchased.

• Are stable URLs available for books and chapters?

   

  Yes, there are stable URLs at the book and chapter level. You will see the stable URL listed on the website for each title and chapter. This is a URL that will never change, so it is the one to use when bookmarking the page or adding it to a syllabus or course website. 

• Is Books at JSTOR compatible with citation management tools?

   

  Yes. Citations may be emailed, exported, or copied from the item view page. JSTOR provides pre-formatted citations in MLA, APA, and Chicago styles for quick copying and pasting. Export options include direct export to RefWorks, RIS format, and text format.

• Does JSTOR provide MARC records?

  Yes, Books at JSTOR offers free, high-quality MARC records from OCLC. The MARC records are available to all participating institutions, regardless of whether they are OCLC affiliates. 

  You can download sample MARC records here (in .mrc format).  A detailed guide to setting up OCLC WorldShare Collection Manager to receive MARC records for Books at JSTOR titles is available here.

• Is Interlibrary Loan allowed?

   

  Yes, our Terms & Conditions include a provision for ILL of book chapters.

• How can I track Books at JSTOR usage in my library?

   

  The usage reports available are:

  COUNTER BR2 – Number of Successful Book Section Requests by Month and Title

  COUNTER BR3 - Access Denied to Book Content Items by Month, Title, and Category

  The COUNTER reports are available through www.jstor.org/analytics.  If you need assistance getting access to these reports, please contact JSTOR Support for assistance. 

  Custom Report for DDA Accounts: For institutions with Books at JSTOR DDA (Demand-Driven Acquisition), we offer a custom usage report to reflect acquisitions, chapter views, and chapter downloads. Please submit this form to request delivery of this custom report for your institution.

Ordering

• How can I order ebooks from Books at JSTOR?

   

  Please contact us at participation@jstor.org. We can work with you to run holdings comparisons, recommend collections, provide information on the savings available, and process your order.

  You can also order through YBP Library Services.  More information is available here.

• Can I preview the platform?

  Yes. The University of Minnesota Press has generously made several of their backlist titles freely available for a limited time in order for librarians to evaluate the Books at JSTOR user experience. The sample titles are available on the Books at JSTOR Platform Features page.

  A more extensive platform preview is also available; please contact participation@jstor.org for more information.

• Are savings available?

   

  Yes. Savings are based on your institution’s size and participation in archive journal collections. Please contact participation@jstor.org to learn more about the savings available to your institution.

• Is there an annual access fee?

  There is an annual fee, but it is waived for institutions that participate in any JSTOR archive journal collection or in the current journals program. Please contact participation@jstor.org for more information.

• Does Books at JSTOR work with consortia?

  Yes, we do. Please contact participation@jstor.org to learn more.

• Does Books at JSTOR sell ebooks to individuals?

  No. At this time, JSTOR does not sell ebooks to individuals.

• How can libraries avoid duplicate purchases of existing print and electronic books?

  We can work with you to run holdings comparisons. Please contact participation@jstor.org to learn more.

• What promotional material is available after I purchase access to ebooks on JSTOR?

  Please visit this page to learn more about the promotional resources available.

• How can Books at JSTOR participants access a full list of their institution’s ebook holdings?

  Please visit http://about.jstor.org/holdings to download a KBART-compliant holdings file.

• Whom should I contact with other questions?

  If you have technical questions, please contact support@jstor.org. If you have questions about the platform, ordering, or anything else, please contact participation@jstor.org. We’d love to hear from you!