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Faculty Support at RDP Library

Services and resources to support teaching and research at Red Deer Polytechnic.

About Permalinks

When adding links to Library resources into your Blackboard course, it is important to use the permalink. Permalinks are permanent links to Library resources. They may also be called persistent links or stable links.

Use permalinks to:

  • help save space on on Blackboard's servers
  • provide the Library with statistics on resource use
  • ensure the resource will open off-campus

For most e-resources, the URL from the web browser address bar is not a permanent link. Follow the instructions below to create permalinks from all of your favourite resources.

Permalinks for Off-Campus Access

To ensure that links to Library resources will work off-campus, use permalinks in your courses:

  • On-campus the resource will open directly.
  • Off-campus, you'll be prompted to log in with your RDP email address and password (you may also be asked to authenticate via MFA).

Include the following text in your courses:

If you're a Red Deer Polytechnic student, faculty, or staff, use your RDP email address and password to access Library e-resources off-campus. RDP uses Multifactor authentication (MFA); if prompted to authenticate via MFA, use your chosen method (app or fob). Learn More.

Link to Library Catalogue

Our new Library Catalogue, LibrarySearch, is here!

Permalinks created using the old Library Catalogue (OneSearch) will need to be updated to prevent any broken links to articles, ebooks, etc., in your courses. By June 30, 2025 all links to OneSearch will break. To update your permalinks, follow the steps below.

How to find a permalink in our new Library Catalogue (LibrarySearch)

Find your resource in our new Library Catalogue, LibrarySearch, then:

1. Click the Share button
2. Click the copy link button


 

How to identify a permalink from our old Library Catalogue (OneSearch)

To identify which permalinks are from OneSearch, check to see if it includes site=eds-live at the end of the URL. These permalinks will need to be updated to prevent any broken links to articles, ebooks, etc., in your courses. By June 30, 2025 all permalinks to OneSearch will break.
 

Example permalink from OneSearch:
https://rdpolytech.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=cmedm&AN=38977713&site=eds-live

 

How to update a permalink from our old Library Catalogue (OneSearch)

For books, DVDs, and other physical materials:

  • Find the title in LibrarySearch and copy the new permalink.

For articles and ebooks, either:

  • Find the item in LibrarySearch and copy the new permalink, or,
  • Find the the permalink directly from the database or ebook platform:

For articles:

  1. Click on your OneSearch permalink to open the item record
  2. Record the citation information
  3. Find the article in a database using our Find a Journal by Title tool
  4. Find the permalink in the database (How to Find Article Permalinks)

For ebooks: 

  1. Click on your OneSearch permalink to open the item record
  2. Look for the Online Access section in the record
  3. Click on the Red Deer Polytechnic Access link to open the ebook
  4. Find the permalink in the ebook platform (How to Find ebook Permalinks)

Example

Example of an original OneSearch permalink (which will stop working on June 30, 2025):
https://rdpolytech.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=bth&AN=174568492&site=eds-live


(what you will see if you click on a permalink to OneSearch; this link should be updated in your courses)

 

You will need to replace to this permalink...

OPTION 1
Find the item in LibrarySearch, and replace with the LibrarySearch permalink: 
https://rdpolytech.on.worldcat.org/oclc/10113372064


(what you will see when you click on a permalink to LibrarySearch; this link is up-to-date)

 

OPTION 2 (for articles and ebooks)
Since this is an article, find it in a Library Database (this article is found in several databases including Education Research Complete).

Replace with the database permalink:
https://research-ebsco-com.rdpolytech.idm.oclc.org/linkprocessor/plink?id=462f1bb4-85e0-3b88-b872-12e87a9874ca

Link to Articles

Permalinks for Articles

For most database articles, the URL from the web browser address bar is not a permanent link.
Use permalinks to add Library licensed articles to Blackboard; most publishers do not allow uploading PDFs into Blackboard.

View the item Details (click on article title from search results), then:

  1. Click the Share icon
  2. Click on Create link; the permalink will appear
  3. Click on Copy to clipboard

image of icons with arrow circled to indicate the Share option

image of Share screen showing steps to Create link and Copy to clipboard


Your URL should look similar to this (with no spaces or line breaks)
https://research.ebsco.com/linkprocessor/plink?id=1e578e3e-77e9-366a-a550-6c10e994f8b9

Link to ebooks

Permalinks for ebooks

For most ebooks, the URL from the web browser address bar is not a permanent link.
Use permalinks to add Library licensed ebooks to Blackboard; most publishers do not allow uploading PDFs into Blackboard.

View the ebook Details (click on article title from search results), then:

  1. Click the Share icon
  2. Click on Create link; the permalink will appear
  3. Click on Copy to clipboard


Your URL should look similar to this (with no spaces or line breaks)
https://research.ebsco.com/linkprocessor/plink?id=07d25e36-f949-3187-8dd2-207f6714fd87

Link to Streaming Videos

Permalinks for Streaming Videos

For most streaming videos, the URL from the web browser address bar is not a permanent link.
Use permalinks to link to streaming videos in Blackboard.

For some streaming videos, embed code is provided which can be used to integrate the video into Blackboard.

  • Artstor videos cannot be embedded, only linked
  • View video full record (click on video title from search results)
  • On the right-hand side of the video, look for the Copy box; click to copy video URL
  • To ensure the link will work off-campus, prepend it with the following URL:https://rdpolytech.idm.oclc.org/login?url=
  • Your URL should look similar to this (with no spaces or line breaks):
    https://rdpolytech.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://library.artstor.org/#/asset/27035065
  • Kanopy videos can be embedded and linked
  • Click on the Share link, located below the video
  • To link to the video:
  • To embed the video
    • Copy the Embed Code (no need to add a prepend)
    • In Blackboard, create an Item
    • Using the toolbar, switch to Source Code view  [show me]
    • Paste the copied embed code
    • Add context and citation information
    • View our printable instructions with screen captures 
    • View Embedding Films information from Kanopy
  • NFB videos can be embedded and linked
  • To link to the video:
  • To embed the video
    • Click on the Embed icon (</>) located below the video
    • Copy the Embed Code (no need to add a prepend)
    • In Blackboard, create an Item
    • Using the toolbar, switch to Source Code view  [show me]
    • Paste the copied embed code
    • Add context and citation information
    • View our printable instructions with screen captures
    • TIP! For additional instructor features such as playlist creation and film chaptering, activate an NFB Campus personal profile. For more information and the activation key, contact your Subject Librarian. 

Cite & Attribute e-Resources

Include a full citation for any e-resources included in your Blackboard course:

  • This ensures that if the link breaks, students will be able to look up the resource outside of Blackboard.
  • For information and examples, visit Citing & Attributing Works on the Copyright Guide.