How to activate the Primo Newspapers Search

Owned by Gabriel Gardner (Unlicensed)
May 29, 2020
2 min read

Background details

For details on what the Newspapers Search is and how it will appear to end users, see: https://knowledge.exlibrisgroup.com/Primo/Product_Documentation/Primo/New_Primo_User_Interface/011Frequently_Asked_Questions_for_Newspapers_Search 

Activation

If you want to activate the Primo Newspapers Search, you will need to do so in your campus Primo Back Office, this is not a Central Package feature.

For instruction on how to activate and configure the Newspapers Search, see: https://knowledge.exlibrisgroup.com/Primo/Product_Documentation/Primo/New_Primo_User_Interface/Configuring_the_Newspaper_Search_Interface

To enable Newspaper Search:

  1. Edit your institution with the Institution Wizard (Primo Home > Ongoing Configuration Wizards > Institution Wizard).

  2. Select the Newspapers Search check box.

  3. Save and deploy your changes.

  4. Edit your view with the Views Wizard (Primo Home > Ongoing Configuration Wizards > Views Wizard).

  5. On the Edit View Attributes page of the Views Wizard, select the Display link to Newspapers Search check box.

  6. On the Titles Configuration page of the Views Wizard, edit the Home Page > Main Menu tile to make sure that the Newspapers Search link is configured as follows:

    1. Code: newspapers_search, Label: leave blank, URL, leave blank, Link should open in: current window

  7. Save and deploy your changes.

Optional Configuration

One additional feature of the Newspapers Search is a ‘feature newspapers’ search. Instructions on how to set up and implement this option are on the Ex Libris Knowledge Center, see:
https://knowledge.exlibrisgroup.com/Primo/Product_Documentation/Primo/New_Primo_User_Interface/Configuring_the_Newspaper_Search_Interface#Configuring_Featured_Newspapers

The Featured Newspapers section will not display until you have configured the Featured Newspapers mapping table.

Lack of Advanced Search

As of June 2020, Newspapers Search has no advanced option, there is an Idea Exchange entry for development of an Advanced Newspapers Search, we encourage you to vote for it: https://ideas.exlibrisgroup.com/forums/308176-primo/suggestions/37855171-advanced-search-functionality-for-the-newspaper-se

Other Considerations

The Newspapers Search users a slightly different URL than normal Primo searches, <Primo base URL>/primo-explore/npsearch? as opposed to <Primo base URL>/primo-explore/search?.

This is important to note if you have any HTML <form>s on your non-primo library website that submit queries to Primo, such as your homepage or research guides. If you want to pass a query parameter to the newspapers search from a webform, make sure to pass it to the correct URL.

Central Discovery Index (CDI)

The Newspapers Search is useless unless the associated collections that it queries are activated in the Central Discovery Index.  In CDI some electronic collections are only accessible via the Primo Newspapers Search. These are designated as “Yes, Newspapers Search only” in the Alma CDI scheme.

CDI collections that you want discoverable via the Newspapers Search must be activated in Alma. To locate collections to activate, use the Advanced Search in Alma Community Zone with the queries:

  • Electronic Collection: CDI Newspapers, Equals, Yes

  • Electronic Collection: CDI Newspapers, Equals, Yes, Newspaper Search Only

For details on our consortial migration to CDI, see:
CDI Migrationarchived

For details on CDI in general, see the Ex Libris Knowledge Center:
Using the Central Discovery Index (CDI) in Alma