Established in 2011, BrowZine is an online journal browsing service that allows users to create a customized electronic journal library for themselves. Users can select from approximately 14,500 academic journals from various fields e.g., arts and humanities, history, law, mathematics, biomedical and health sciences, religion and more. BrowZine’s Library includes select Open Access journals, but libraries can include directly-subscribed serials by taking an institutional subscription. Currently it is subscribed by more than 500 libraries from 16 countries. Users can select only from Open Access journals and journals that their libraries subscribe to.
In BrowZine, a journal search can be done in multiple ways – subject, title, or ISSN. Subject browsing is possible from broad to narrow disciplines (eg – Biomedical & Health Sciences – Oncology). Once we select a discipline, the journals are displayed on a virtual bookshelf with further narrower subject areas (eg Breast Cancer, Cancer Biology and more). Once an individual journal is selected, the table of contents for the current issue of the journal is displayed. The user can then open PDFs for individual articles from that issue. Also, they can choose articles from back issues.
Along with simple browsing it also allows one to save articles offline and share articles through Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, or email. The articles can be exported to citation management softwares ( Zotero, Mendeley, EndNote etc). Similarly, users can create their own collection using My Bookshelf features of BrowZine. In My Bookshelf upto 64 journal titles can be added and for each added journal alert of new issue arrivals are sent to the user.
BrowZine offers technical support if required. It has answers to various general questions as well as questions on configuration and working of BrowZine. In addition it provides video tutorials, Information for publishers, webinars for training its user.
Click here to create your BrowZine library.
It would be great if our Medical Libraries explored this offering for their users too!
