Persistent Links

Have you ever saved an article URL, only to have it not work a week later? Most URLs you see at the top of your web browser are not permanent links to the journal articles, book chapters, or images you are saving as you research for papers and projects in library databases. How do you find the permanent link that will always take you back the page you had found while researching? Use the tabs in this guide to learn how to access the permanent link (also called permalink, persistent link, stable URL, or DOI) in different library databases. 

Most often associated with journals, the "digital object identifier" or DOI works similarly to a permalink, but is an individualized number for a specific document. If a journal article you are using for research has a DOI, it will be listed at the top of the article along with the title, author, date, and other identifying information. 

1. Identify which parent platform/database you are currently using - see the "What Database am I Using?" tab

2. Search and select an article or desired source

3. Locate the persistent link - see pages on this guide for assistance

4. Copy and save the link for future use 

If you can't locate the permanent link, or if you want to link to the full database and not just one article, you can add the EZProxy prefix to a link. Off-campus access to library resources is made possible by our EZproxy server, which prompts you to login from off-campus. If you want to share a link with other people at St. Kate's, make sure the URL includes the EZproxy prefix:

https://pearl.stkate.edu/login?url=

For example, the URL for accessing JSTOR is:

https://pearl.stkate.edu/login?url=http://www.jstor...

To add the prefix, copy the link to the item you want from the database and paste it into this EZProxy box and click the Add Proxy button to retrieve the full URL:

For more help with EZProxy prefixes, contact our Systems & Online Services Librarian Christina Koss: cmkoss@stkate.edu | 651.690.6693