Open Access Helper

There are over 50 million Open Access versions of scientific articles that are otherwise behind paywalls.

Open Access Helper makes it easy to access these documents, and it also helps you conveniently access your library’s extensive resources.

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The Problem to be solved

When searching for scientific literature, you often encounter paywalls, even though the document might be available for free as Open Access or through your institutional subscription. Open Access Helper is designed to assist you in both scenarios:

  • Open Access Availability: When the extension detects a DOI, it checks the APIs of unpaywall.org and core.ac.uk to see if an Open Access copy is available, clearly indicating this for easy and quick access.

  • Institutional Access: If no Open Access copy is found and you have enabled your institution, Open Access Helper can guide you to access the document through your institutional subscription at EBSCOhost, your Link Resolver, or EZProxy login.

Institutional Settings

To make the most of your institution’s subscription, you typically need to start at the library website, but not every search begins there.

With Open Access Helper, you can start your search anywhere. The extension helps you find the right access point for an article through your institution’s link resolver. If available, it can also assist you in accessing sites via EZProxy, a popular remote access solution.

Services Used

unpaywall.org

The team behind unpaywall.org started the Open Access browser extension revolution. Learn more at unpaywall.org

core.ac.uk

More Open Access, the search behind the main app & source of Recommendation data! Learn more at core.ac.uk

OpenCitations.net

How often was an article cited? This can help provide additional context. Learn more at opencitations.net

Free & Open

While the app is distributed through the App Store, the code is available at GitHub, so you can review it. Check it out at GitHub.

Download Today

This app is free and will stay so. Download it for iOS, iPadOS and macOS! 

Got questions? info@oahelper.org

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