Help Center > Repository > New Features

eScholarship Repository New Features

On November 1, 2013, eScholarship launched a completely re-designed set of tools for authors and administrators to deposit and manage their Open Access repository publications. (Note: The submission management system for eScholarship Journals was not affected by this release.) These new tools incorporate a broad range of enhancements based on feedback from UC faculty and students as well as several rounds of formal user testing conducted by CDL's usability group.

Our primary aims with this release are to:

• Support faculty participation in the UC Open Access Policy
• Dramatically simplify the submission process
• Create clearer pathways to submission
• Provide a robust set of tools for administrators to manage content
• Enhance the visual design of the submission management system

Below is an overview of some of the changes in this release:

Login Page

The first change you're likely to notice is our redesigned login page.

1. Simplified login process: We've removed the "What do you want to do?" options from the login screen. Users will now be automatically directed to the appropriate destination within the submission management system based on the Submit or Administrator Login button they follow from the eScholarship site. In cases where users haven't made such a selection, they will still be able to easily navigate to their destination from our new My Account page (details below).
2. Helpful orienting information in the sidebar: Users who arrive at the login page will now have a better understanding of what eScholarship is, the benefits of making their scholarship open access, and how to get help when they need it.
3. Sign-in with your existing campus credentials (Coming this Winter): Soon University of California users won't need a separate login and password for eScholarship. This winter we will roll out pilot support for Shibboleth single sign on for 3 UC campuses (UCI, UCLA & UCSF) with system-wide support coming later in 2014.

My Account Page

The My Account page has been dramatically improved to make deposit pathways clear and to provide ready access to help and resources.

1. Simplified deposit destination: Users now choose the destination for their content by first locating the appropriate department, unit or series on the eScholarship public-facing site.
2. Clear options for Open Access Policy participation: Users will know exactly where to deposit their content and how to find help and resources, if they need them.
3. Rationalized content types: Authors will have a more intuitive way to indicate whether they want to deposit previously published scholarly materials, brand new publications, or manuscripts for consideration in an eScholarship journal.
4. Access to existing deposits: Authors and administrators can now browse their existing deposits without having to look-up an item by its ARK or URL.
5. In-line Support: Users have direct access to support materials and contact information.

Deposit Form

The deposit form has been completely re-designed to make the deposit process as simple as possible:

1. A single, simple form: We've condensed the deposit form from a 3-page process to a more efficient 1-page form.
2. Enhanced support for auto-fill: Have a DOI or PubMed ID? Simply add it to the form and the rest of the fields will be completed automatically!
3. Helpful guidance along the way: The blue sidebar offers helpful guidance for each field, and provides additional, optional fields to increase the discoverability of eScholarship publications.
4. No need to enter your own name: We automatically add your name to the deposit form, and we make it easy to remove it, in case you're depositing on behalf of someone else. Need to re-arrange the author list? Just drag and drop!
5. Drag-and-drop file upload, with version guidance: Now you can drag your files directly from your desktop and they'll be instantly uploaded. For UC Open Access Policy deposits, we also offer guidance on which version of the manuscript to upload.
6. More control over your publications: Users can now delay public access to (embargo) their deposits. We've also made the process for selecting a Creative Commons license much less complex.

Manage Existing Items

Administrators and authors alike benefit from an enhanced view of existing and pending items:

1. Find what you're looking for, fast: New options allow you to widen or narrow your view of existing publications; you can even search for the specific item you're looking for.
2. More information at a glance: The improved layout of the pending items table provides more useful information, and allows users to take action on an item (e.g. revising or approving an item) just by clicking on the title and selecting an action.
3. More powerful features coming soon: In subsequent releases, administrators will be able to manage co-administrators, view activity and download reports, and even make changes to the look and feel of their public-facing eScholarship site.

Let us know what you think!

The points above outline just some of the new eScholarship enhancements, but there's much more to explore! Be sure to check the Help Center for more detailed documentation about new features and functionality.

Every change we have made for this release has been carefully designed to address the feature requests submitted by our users, and we have conducted extensive usability testing with UC faculty, librarians and eScholarship administrators to ensure that the new submission management platform provides the tools you need to effectively manage your publications.

We hope you'll continue to send us your feedback, suggestions and requests so that we can continue to improve your eScholarship experience. Always feel free to reach out to us via our Contact Us page.