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General => The Common Room => Topic started by: arthurk on Monday 05 April 21 11:33 BST (UK)
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During the pandemic my local library (Cheshire East) has been allowing members to access the library version of Ancestry from home. However, when I went to use it yesterday I found the following:
Unfortunately, due to a change in supplier, at home access to Ancestry will not be available after April.
However, you will be able to use it again at your library when we re-open.
You might like to check your own library's site to see if the same will happen there. I'm not sure what is meant by 'supplier', though I see that the link provided by Cheshire East initially goes to a page at ancestrylibrary.proquest.com before redirecting to one at ancestrylibraryedition.co.uk
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Already happened here, library addition of Ancestry is not available since 2017 claiming "Against the backdrop of ever tighter budgets"
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Surrey has not had full access during lockdown, just this
Whilst full access to Ancestry is only available in libraries for contractual reasons, you can access records held by the Surrey History Centre from home for free.
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You might like to check your own library's site to see if the same will happen there.
I had a similar thing with my local library - they continued to say that home access would end on 31 March, long after ProQuest had announced an extension to 30 June 2021. I had to send them a link to ProQuest's support page before they would believe me. ;)
https://support.proquest.com/articledetail?id=kA13r0000003VNdCAM
I think it safe to assume that 30 June 2021 will be the final end-date though. The home access has been a very generous provision and I cannot see it being extended once a kind of normality has returned.
I'm not sure what is meant by 'supplier', though I see that the link provided by Cheshire East initially goes to a page at ancestrylibrary.proquest.com before redirecting to one at ancestrylibraryedition.co.uk
ProQuest are a supplier of access to datasets for libraries and researchers - the library service will have a contract with ProQuest for certain services (e.g. Ancestry) and in turn ProQuest contract with the data owners to provide that service.
As per the link, ProQuest and Ancestry have extended home access to 30th June - so if Cheshire East say their 'supplier' is ending the service before then they are either confused, or talking about a different supplier.
ProQuest's offer is limited to current library card holders, and they do require an access control system to be used to make sure the resource is only used by library members. Some libraries (like mine) require you to log on to the library site and then use a special link which logs you on to the ProQuest site. But I believe other libraries use third-party software to authenticate users.
Perhaps Cheshire East are in the latter category and their 'supplier' of a third-party authentication system is what won't work after the end of April?
That said, I just checked the Cheshire East website (not a member and not logged on) and clicked on the Ancestry link and was redirected to an "Ancestryinstitution" site. So an alternative answer might be that Cheshire East are stopping their contract with ProQuest and going direct to Ancestry instead?
I'd ask them - just in case there has been some kind of mix up.
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The "Ancestryinstitution" page looks a bit like what the staff use to log in when you're in the library, but for home access you have to log in to your account, and then the link is on the landing page - the same as you do.
As I said, that link appears to go to/via ProQuest, but since Cheshire East is talking about a "change" of supplier, it may be that ProQuest's extension isn't really relevant. In the end I expect it all comes down to the council's spending priorities.
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Our local library is still providing home access to Ancestry (Library) and I don't think any change has been mentioned.
It is a good idea for lockdown. It would be nice to see the scope extended a little to include free access to a historical newspaper site.
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Bumping - in case anyone didn't know that free access to Ancestry Library was still available.
In my area we have been told it will run through to the end of June (as per the ProQuest update).
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I`ve just checked my library account and my books have been renewed by them until 1/06/2021 !! I guess the local library is not opening any time soon.
Access to AncestryLibrary edition is still available with them. I discovered that you can log into your library account then into Ancestry, and continue to use Ancestry even if you accidentally log out of your library account, which I did one day when I had a lot of tabs open!!
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I`ve just checked my library account and my books have been renewed by them until 1/06/2021 !! I guess the local library is not opening any time soon.
Same here, my local library is a community-run one and it appears the council aren't willing/able to make the investment in Covid measures and training and instead will just wait until it is safe to reopen without.
As an aside, I'm working at a polling station for the upcoming local elections and there is a considerable amount of work and expense going in to making them safe(r) for workers and the public. Extending book renewal dates by a long time makes perfect sense when you see what is involved in the alternative.
Access to AncestryLibrary edition is still available with them. I discovered that you can log into your library account then into Ancestry, and continue to use Ancestry even if you accidentally log out of your library account, which I did one day when I had a lot of tabs open!!
Yes, Ancestry/ProQuest only require that someone is confirmed to be a genuine library user in order to log onto their system. The library logon does that verification, but you don't need to stay logged in to the library account to continue the Ancestry session - which is good thing in my area's case as their library account platform automatically logs you off after a short period of no activity. In my experience the Ancestry session does expire after a much longer length of no activity though.
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Sadly, mine has finished.
I have emailed the library to express my disappointment. I can't see me getting to the library any time soon.
Sections of the library are used by the university students, but there seems to be a group of local young people using the computers in the library just for games etc. I am afraid it annoys me intensely to see that.
FS
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Ancestry is still available at home through library Membership in Buckinghamshire, and most of the community run libraries opened again as soon as the rules allowed ... ( I'm on the committee of ours)
No doubt it will end soon though - but it isn't something the local library has any say in.
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I`ve been/am very grateful for it !
It`s availability in diferrent areas is probably the same as recycling, varying all over the UK.
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I read recently on the Ancestry Library Edition page that access will be available for home users up to June.
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Might go on longer? :-\
News on ancestry library edition from ProQuest
Remote access will be available until 30 September 2021
https://support.proquest.com/articledetail?id=kA13r0000003VNdCAM
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Surrey has not had full access during lockdown, just this
Whilst full access to Ancestry is only available in libraries for contractual reasons, you can access records held by the Surrey History Centre from home for free.
The free Surrey records link they give has been a bit of an on/off thing. Currently working again!
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Whatever the reason behind it, Cheshire East now offer home access to FindMyPast only (from the landing page once you've logged in), and there's no mention of Ancestry. Elsewhere on the site they still say it's available in libraries, but I haven't been there to check.
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Sadly, mine has finished.
I have emailed the library to express my disappointment. I can't see me getting to the library any time soon.
Sections of the library are used by the university students, but there seems to be a group of local young people using the computers in the library just for games etc. I am afraid it annoys me intensely to see that.
FS
Do you not book a session in your library? I don’t use ours but the site states that computers can be booked. We get books, magazines and papers online at home through the library but I don’t think we ever got computer access.
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I still have access to the Library edition. I`m wondering if I always did !!
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I still have access to the Library edition. I`m wondering if I always did !!
It is still available until 31/12/2021 - Ancestry/ProQuest have announced that as the final end date for home access. (or perhaps until the next pandemic :-\ )
Hence I'm busy, head down researching at home while I still can. Must dash. ;)
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Same here !!
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What a surprise !!
i logged into my library account to check when my books are due to be returned and Ancestry Library edition is still working !!!!
It says quite clearly that the access was closing on 31st Dec !!!
Obviously I`m going to make the most of it !!
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Mines still working too, although I suspect if I ever need to re-login it'll drop it :(
Oh well, managed to make decent use of it over the last couple of years :)
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Mine has now disappeared, but as you say, I`ve been grateful to have the use of it remotely !!
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I absolutely hammered it for 8 hours yesterday, and today it's gone.
Zaph
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Goodness ! a day`s hard labour !!
I`m just thankful that we were able to have it as long as we did! I will probably start using the library again as my local one doesn`t get too busy.