Course Reserves Services

 Faculty:

 Book Reserve
 Electronic Reserve
 Electronic Documents
 Links to ANGEL
 Faculty Tools
 Policies
 Copyright
 News

 Students:

 Reserves in the Cat
 Reserves in ANGEL
 Reserve Books
 Electronic Reserves

 Other Services:

 Group Study
 Laptops
 Scanners
 ITS Computer Lab

 Contact Us

 Penn State Home

 Libraries Home

 ANGEL

Viewing Electronic Reserves

Printing Electronic Reserves

1. To select your item from a list, click on the blue Detail button to the left of the title (if your instructor has only one title on reserve, you will be taken directly to the detail display)



2. Click on the electronic access link
   You will need an internet browser and Adobe Acrobat Reader to view electronic reserves

Recommended Software

Internet Explorer 5.5 or later
download at http://www.microsoft.com/windows/downloads/ie/getitnow.mspx

Adobe Acrobat Reader 5.0 or later
download at http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html

Generally, .pdf documents will load in your browser window after clicking the link.

The Adobe Acrobat Reader toolbar will appear below the browser address field.

Use the Reader toolbar to adjust page magnification.
Use the right scrollbar or the arrow buttons at the bottom of the browser window to page through the document

Use the Print button on the Adobe Reader toolbar. Do not go to File, Print from the browser

In the Print dialogue window, check Print as Image, and Expand small pages to paper size

In Adobe Reader 6.0 and 7.0: Click on the printer icon in the Reader toolbar. Click on Advanced in the lower left corner of the Print window. Then, check the box next to Print as image in the Advanced Print Setup window and click OK.

Access/Download Problems | Printing Problems

• I can't log-in to the Cat
• Nothing happens when I click on the link
• My reserves are taking forever to download
• My reserve document seems to be downloading, but all I see is a blank screen
• When I try to download my reserves, I get an Invalid IP Address error message
• I can't access reserves with AOL
• When I click on a link to ProQuest, I'm asked to log-in
• I'm still having problems

Note: The Cat is generally unavailable from 2:15 AM - 3:30 AM EST Monday-Friday for scheduled maintenance.
Electronic Reserves are also not available during these times.

"I can't log-in to the Cat"

If you can't log in to the Cat using your Penn State Access Account user ID and password, you may need to register with the libraries. Registered students at any campus location may register at their local Penn State library. World Campus or Distance Education students may go to Become a Library Patron to register online.

If you're registered for classes and with the library, but still can't access the Cat, you may be experiencing a problem with your access account or password. Sometimes, but not always, students are able to access library resources after changing their password. If you're able to access your Penn State email or portal account, but not the Cat (and if changing your password doesn't help), contact us at ereserves@psulias.psu.edu.

"Nothing happens when I click on the link"

When you click on a reserve link, the file opens in another browser window. If you already have two or more windows open, the document may load in a browser window in the background. Check your toolbar at the bottom of the screen to see how many browser windows are open, and if there are more than one, click on one of the others. You can also try minimizing the first window to see if another window appears.

"My reserves are taking forever to download"

Many reserve documents are now processed in Adobe .pdf format. If accessing over a phone line, these documents may take five minutes, ten minutes, or even longer to download due to the large file size. Download times are also longer during periods of high internet traffic. Try downloading during off-peak times such as early morning or later at night.

Tip - Instead of opening the file in your browser, try right-clicking on the link and selecting Save Target As (in Internet Explorer) or Save Link As (in Netscape), and downloading the file directly to your hard drive (just pick a file, or save it directly to your desktop). While it's downloading, you can continue to use your browser, and after it's downloaded you can just double-click on the file to open it in Acrobat. Generally, printing from the downloaded file is also easier.

"My reserve document seems to be downloading, but all I see is a blank screen"

Occasionally, with some versions of Netscape and Internet Explorer, the browser will display a DONE message but the screen will be blank.

First, try moving your cursor to the top of the browser window, near the toolbar. If the cursor turns into an hourglass, the document is still loading, even though the browser displays DONE.

Second, try loading Acrobat Reader from your Start Menu list of programs (click START, PROGRAMS, ACROBAT READER, or ADOBE, ACROBAT READER) before you click on the link. Acrobat Reader will open with a blank screen. Then return to your browser and click on the link again.

Third, try configuring Acrobat Reader as a helper application instead of a plugin, that is, so that the .pdf file will open in Acrobat Reader instead of in Internet Explorer. Close IE and open Acrobat Reader. Go to Edit, Preferences, General, Options, Web Browser Options and UNCHECK Display PDF in Browser. The next time you click on a file, Acrobat Reader should open outside of IE and load the file.

Tip - Instead of opening the file in your browser, try right-clicking on the link and selecting Save Target As (in Internet Explorer) or Save Link As (in Netscape), and downloading the file directly to your hard drive (just pick a file, or save it directly to your desktop). While it's downloading, you can continue to use your browser, and after it's downloaded you can just double-click on the file to open it in Acrobat. Generally, printing from the downloaded file is also easier.

If none of these suggestions help, you may need to try a different browser, or different version of your current browser.

We recommend:

Internet Explorer 5.5 or later - download at http://www.microsoft.com/windows/downloads/ie/getitnow.mspx
Go to Microsoft Knowledge Base for additional information about this issue from Microsoft.

You may also need to upgrade your version of Adobe Acrobat Reader. The recommended versions for use with reserves are Acrobat Reader 5 or later. Download Acrobat Reader 5 or later at http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html.

"When I try to download my reserves, I get an Invalid IP Address error message"

When accessing from off-campus, the system will recognize that you're not at a Penn State computer (with a Penn State IP address) and should prompt you for your Penn State Access Account and password. Occasionally, this process fails and an "Invalid IP Address" error message is generated.

First, check your browser and Acrobat Reader versions to see if they match the versions listed above. If your browser or version of Acrobat Reader is different, try downloading one of the recommended versions.

Second, check to see if your browser is configured to use a proxy server (note: this is especially common with cable modem or DSL connections). In Internet Explorer, go to Tools, Internet Options, Connections, LAN Settings, Proxy Server. If Use A Proxy Server is checked, uncheck it and remove any information from the Address field. Don't forget to write this information down! Click on Apply and try to access again.

Third, check to see if your browser is configured to accept cookies. In Internet Explorer, go to Tools, Internet Options, Security. If the security level is set to High, move the bar down to Medium. In Netscape, go to Edit, Preferences, double-click on Advanced and select Cookies. Make sure that Enable All Cookies is selected.

"I can't access reserves with AOL"

If you use Acrobat Reader version 4.0 or earlier, you may have problems accessing through America Online. Upgrade to Acrobat Reader 5.0 or later at the url listed above.

"When I click on a link to ProQuest, I'm asked to log-in"

We're occasionally seeing a problem with users being prompted for a ProQuest (not your Penn State access ID/password) login. This seems to involve cookies on your local workstation, but there is a fix:

First, close the ProQuest login window, and return to the Cat

Second, click on the blue Libraries/LIAS Home button to return to the Libraries' homepage

Third, click on the link to the E-Resource List (A-Z), and select ProQuest Direct from the scroll-down menu (resources are listed in alphabetical order)

The article you were trying to access from Course Reserves should appear within a few moments - now return to Course Reserves in the Cat for your other readings. All ProQuest links should now display.

"I'm still having problems"

If you're still unable to access your reserve files, contact us by phone at (814) 863-0324, or email at ereserves@psulias.psu.edu. If emailing, please include the following information:

• Location (on or off-campus - if on campus, please provide building name)?
• Accessing through Penn State or an Internet Service Provider (if ISP, please provide name)?
• Browser name and version?
• Acrobat Reader version?
• Name of course, instructor and title of material?
• Precise description of problem or error message?

Printing Problems | Access/Download Problems

• My reserve printed-out backwards (Mirror-Image)
• My computer shuts down or freezes up when I try to print a reserve file
• Some pages don't print correctly, or at all

"My reserve printed-out backwards (Mirror-Image)"

We've occasionally seen a reserve file print-out backwards or in mirror-image. Try using the print button on your Acrobat Reader toolbar (rather than going to File, Print) and selecting the Print As Image option (usually on the right) in the Print window.

In Adobe Reader 6.0 and 7.0: Click on the printer icon in the Reader toolbar. Click on Advanced in the lower left corner of the Print window. Then, check the box next to Print as image in the Advanced Print Setup window and click OK.

"My computer shuts down or freezes up when I try to print a reserve file"

Adobe .pdf files can take a substantial amount of system memory to print.

First, if you're running any other applications (email, Word, ), try closing them before you print.

If that doesn't work, your machine may simply not have enough memory. Print from another location such as a campus computer lab, and consider adding more memory to your machine.

Tip - Instead of opening the file in your browser, try right-clicking on the link and selecting Save Target As (in Internet Explorer) or Save Link As (in Netscape), and downloading the file directly to your hard drive (just pick a file, or save it directly to your desktop). While it's downloading, you can continue to use your browser, and after it's downloaded you can just double-click on the file to open it in Acrobat. Generally, printing from the downloaded file is also easier.

"Some pages don't print correctly, or at all"

First, try using the print button on your browser or Acrobat Reader toolbar (rather than going to File, Print) and selecting the Print As Image option (usually on the right) in the Print window.

In Adobe Reader 6.0 and 7.0: Click on the printer icon in the Reader toolbar. Click on Advanced in the lower left corner of the Print window. Then, check the box next to Print as image in the Advanced Print Setup window and click OK.

Second, make sure that no other applications are running while you're trying to print (Note: you may need to restart Windows before it reflects freed system resources!), and make sure that the file has downloaded completely (if the IE or Netscape icon in the upper right corner is still spinning, the file is still downloading - even if you see the first page and the line below reads "1 of X").

Third, try turning off your printer for at least 15 minutes to clear the printer memory.

Fourth, try downloading the file directly to your hard drive before printing (see Tip above).

Fifth, you may need to upgrade your printer memory or drivers. Try printing from another location such as a campus computer lab, and consider adding more memory to your machine. Printer drivers for your particular model are generally available for download from your manufacturer's website.

Visit Adobe's Troubleshooting Printing Problems with Acrobat Products for more information.

top