Document Supply

The Document Supply Service enables you to obtain items that we do not have in our own stock of books, periodicals and electronic resources; most requests are made through the British Library.

The service is available to all members of the Library and there is a charge for each request, based on national tariffs. In many cases the cost will be covered by your academic department, in which case you will need to obtain departmental authorisation. Otherwise you will need to meet the cost yourself.

Charges are:
SED documents          £6.00
Photocopies               £8.00
Colour photocopies  £16.00
Loans                         £9.00

All loans are issued for 5 weeks. It is possible to renew them for a further period of 6 weeks at a cost of £4.00. 

Application forms are available in hard copy form from both campus libraries, or can be downloaded here. Please indicate on the form if you require a colour photocopy rather than the standard black and white. 

Completed application forms may be posted in the wooden box opposite the Library Help Desk in the Brynmor Jones Library, handed to library staff or sent by internal/external post to Document Supply at your campus library. Please note we cannot accept email application forms.

The speed of service depends to a large extent on the type of material requested, and may vary considerably. In a small number of cases it is not possible to obtain requested material. You can check the progress of your requests or make a general enquiry by emailing the Document Supply Service at the Brynmor Jones Library at d.supply@hull.ac.uk
and at the Keith Donaldson Library at d.supply-scar@hull.ac.uk

Requesting a Secure Electronic Delivery (SED)

Documents that are requested through Secure Electronic Delivery (SED) will no longer be delivered via Adobe Digital Editions but rather through FileOpen. If you are requesting a document delivered in this way you will need to install a plugin on your computer.

Instructions on how to install the plugin and open a test document. 

For further information ,see:
http://www.bl.uk/reshelp/atyourdesk/docsupply/help/receiving/deliveryoptions/electronic/fileopen/.

If you are unable to open the test document please contact the Service Desk on x2010 or at help@hull.ac.uk.  Articles can still be requested as photocopies where SED is not possible.

Requesting a PhD Thesis

If you require a PhD or other doctoral thesis from another UK Higher Education Institution please visit the website ethos.bl.uk.

What is EThOS?
EThOS is the new Electronic Theses Online System from the British Library which allows individuals to discover, access and archive e-theses that are produced in UK Higher Education Institutions.  The database of theses is constantly growing but please note that not all HEIs are currently signed up to EThOS.  There is a list of participating institutions on the website.

What is an e-thesis?
An e-thesis is a digital version of the print thesis submitted for the award of the PhD.  A digital version, which is exactly the same, allows for easier and quicker supply of a thesis compared with the previous microfilm copy.

Registration
You can search for a thesis without having to register but if you wish to download an e-thesis or request that a listed print thesis be digitised you will need to register and login.  This is important as you, the reader, have to accept the terms and conditions of supply to help prevent plagiarism.

How to obtain an e-thesis?
If the thesis you wish to view is already digitised you will be able to download the digital version immediately.  You will need Adobe Acrobat software to open the pdf file and you may also need some unzipping software such as Winzip.  Users of Internet Explorer 6 should note that they may have problems opening the pdf but the EThOS website suggests a solution in the FAQs. In some cases, you may find an additional link to the e-thesis via an institution's own Institutional Repository from which you can download the thesis without going via EThOS.  EThOS aims to provide access the e-theses via all available routes.

Can I store or print the e-thesis?
There is no limit on how long you may store the e-thesis.  You may print the e-thesis but please read the terms and conditions of supply to understand how you may use the e-thesis.

What if the thesis is not available digitally?
If the thesis is not available digitally you can order the print thesis to be digitised, normally at no cost to yourself (thought note a small number of institutions will require you to pay).  There will be a delay as the print thesis is digitised but you will be alerted when it is ready for download.

Charges for copies in alternative formats
You can order a copy of the thesis on CD/DVD or a bound paper copy via the EThOS website.  The British Library charges for such alternative formats and you will be expected to bear that cost.

What if the thesis I want is not available from EThOS?
If the thesis you require is not available from EThOS because the home University is not a member of EThOS (see list of participating institutions on the EThOS website), then please request the thesis using the University of Hull document supply request form.  We will contact the University library concerned and endeavour to borrow the required thesis.  Any charges incurred will be paid from the appropriate departmental document supply fund if the request has departmental authorisation or passed on to the individual placing the request.

Further Information
There is a great deal further information on the EThOS website at ethos.bl.uk.