Training & Frequently Asked Questions
about Cataloger's Desktop
Note:
For best results use the latest version
of either Internet Explorer or Netscape browsers. Although CDS has heard from several Cataloger's Desktop subscribers that the web product works well with the Firefox web browser, we are unable to provide technical support for using Desktop with Firefox.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Quick Tips are intended to provide basic coaching in specific, targetted functions and should generally take 2-3 minutes to complete.
Report technical problems by emailing CDS at desktop-info@loc.gov.
The following is a handout for a Cataloger's Desktop workshop that is intended to highlight differences
between the CD-ROM and Web versions for experienced Cataloger's Desktop users.
Q: My computer uses Microsoft's Vista operating system. Do you certify that Cataloger's
Desktop will work with Vista?
A: Cataloger's Desktop's is built on NXT, a software package from FAST Search and Transfer.
Our contractor has received the following feedback from FAST:
"NXT 4.4 Online Server is not and never will be certified to run on Vista. Vista is not a Server OS.
However, users running Vista and accessing an NXT site running on an appropriate system are supported
and works today."
This means that customers who are using computers with the Vista operating system and the current
versions of either Internet Explorer or Netscape Navigator should experience no difficulty accessing
and using Cataloger's Desktop.
Q: I have paid my Cataloger's Desktop bill but am still receiving renewal notices. Why am I
still receiving the renewal notices and what can I do to stop them?
A: CDS is very short staffed and is unable to process orders and renewals as quickly as anyone
would like. If you have sent in payment for a subscription renewal and would like to discontinue renewal
notices, go into your account (see the next FAQ for an explanation of how to do that) and select the
Hold Renewal Notices checkbox.
Q: I am the Account Administrator and am having trouble determining how to log in to administer the
account. How do I log into the Cataloger's Desktop Account Administration system?
A: Log into the web version of Cataloger's Desktop the normal way. Click the Preferences view tab.
On the following screen, click the Administer Account icon on the Preferences tool bar. You will be taken
to an account administrator login screen where you will provide your account username and administrative password.
(Note: The administrative password is the 8-digit numeric password the system assigned when your
subscription was activated; you can change this in the Account Administration system.) Once you have logged in,
you are taken to your administative account in the edit mode. From here you can
- Change your administrative password
- Add/change a read-only password
- Add/change primary contact/additional email addresses (currently max of 4)
- Add/change IP addresses or address ranges
Note: You can have no more than two passwords for your account; one with account administration
privileges; one without account administration privileges.
Note: If you are unsure what your IP address is and would like to set up your account for IP access,
go to http://w3.ella.net/whatismyip.asp
to determine your computer's IP address.
If you customize your account for IP access, you will be auto-logged in because of IP recognition.
However, you can always access your account to administer it because of the separately required
username/administrative password logon.
After you have made the needed changes to your account, click the Submit button at the bottom of the
screen to apply the changes.
Q: I'm trying to print from a Cataloger's Desktop resource but the illustrations
are not printing? How can I fix this.
A: In your Internet Explorer browser, select the Tool drop-down menu; then select
Internet Options ...; then select the Security tab. Now click the Trusted sites
icon and click the Sites ... button. Type http://desktop.loc.gov in the top box,
ensuring that the Require server verification (https:) for all sites in this zone is
unchecked. Now click the Add button and then click OK and then OK. The illustrations
will now print out correctly.
Q: I have a section of a resource displayed in the Document pane and would like to print
only a portion of that section. How do I do that?
A: Select (block) the section you want to print, then right mouse-click on this selection.
This will give you a context-sensitive menu. Select the Print option. In the resulting
Print dialog box check the Selection box under Page Range and then click the
Print button.
Q: If I close the web browser window without logging out of Cataloger's
Desktop, is the session immediately terminated and the access freed for another user?
A: Not immediately. The session is timed out after 60 minutes of inactivity. If you would
like to free up access immediately, you should log out of the session.
Q: Is it possible to view more than one resource within a single
Cataloger's Desktop session?
A: Yes. Open the first resource to the location you want to consult and then
click the "Open current document in new window" icon in the
upper left corner of the toolbar. This will open a new browser instance with your
selected resource. You can now return to the main Cataloger's Desktop session and
select a second resource that you can simultaneously consult with the previous resource.
Windows shortcut key commands (such as Alt-Tab) will help you navigate
from one resource to another.
Q: I would like to resize the Table of Contents (TOC) window but can't find
the re-sizing double arrow. Where is it?
A: Position your cursor over the right edge of the TOC vertical scroll-bar, click and hold the left mouse
button, and drag the scroll-bar to the left or right to resize it. Depending on your computer, you may have a
little more success positioning your cursor over the right edge of the vertical scroll-tab. No double-arrow
will appear, so it may take more than one try to successfully re-size the TOC pane.
Q: We can no longer find the Logout tab on the righthand end of Desktop's viewtabs.
Is the button somewhere else?
A: The Logout tab is not missing, but it may not be visible on your computer. It has to do with how
large your monitor is and what display resolution you are using. The lower the resolution (say anything
below 800 x 600 dpi), the less information is displayed on your monitor.
To confirm this, do the following steps:
- Exit Cataloger's Desktop and right mouse click in the middle of your computer's desktop (not on any of the icons on your computer)
- On the resulting context-sensitive menu select "Properties". This will take you to a Display Properties dialog box.
- Now click the "Settings" view tab (which on my computer is near the top and all the way on the right).
- Towards the bottom right is a box labeled "Screen Area" with a slider control that goes between "Less" and "More". Your slider may be set all the way to "Less." Try setting this control one notch higher and then click the "OK" button below it.
- Your computer will temporarily set the display to the next higher level of screen display resolution. Accept this setting if it is tolarable to you.
- Now try running Cataloger's Desktop. The "Logout" tab will no longer be missing.
A higher resolution may not be comfortable for all, but computer applications require that more and more
information be displayed simultaneously. You may want to consider asking your administration for a
larger monitor, which would allow for more information to be displayed without your needing to use a higher
resolution.
Q: With the new Cataloger's Desktop release, I have lost the toolbar (start over, etc.)
using Firefox. The toolbar does appear with IE. Is there some setting in Firefox that will make the toolbar
reappear?
A: I am using Firefox 1.5.0.1 and the toolbar does display. Are you using an earlier version of
Firefox? I also have desktop.loc.gov set up as an Allowed Site for popups (go to Tools, Options, Content,
Allowed Sites, type in the address, and click on Allow). [From Rebecca S. Williams, Automated Operations
Coordinator, LC History & Literature Cataloging Division; CDS does not provide technical support
for Cataloger's Desktop use on Firefox.]
Q: When I use the general search box, I get hits from Autocat, a University of Syracuse listserv.
When I try to open it, I'm asked for an email address and a password. Do we have acces to this?
A:This is searching the Autocat discussion list archives. If you are an Autocat subscriber you can
log into the Autocat archives and see messages that relate to your search. The Listserv server has a help
file that tells you what is involved in establishing a login into the archives. All Listserv-based discussion
lists archives in Cataloger's Desktop (e.g. Serialist, MARC, LCCN) handle this login the same way.
Q: How do I change my password?
A: The Account Administrator can change the Password the system supplies you with. The
Account Administrator also can create a read-only password for users. Once the account is created, the user login name
cannot be changed.
Q: How do I print the weekly subject lists? When I try to print, I get an error message that says
"Access denied." I can print directly from the LC Web site, but if the item is offered within Cataloger's Desktop,
it would be nice to use it fully from there.
A: When you have the weekly list displayed in the document pane, right mouse click on the right pane and
select "Print" from the context-sensitive menu.
Q: How can I create an icon for the web version of Cataloger's Desktop on my computer's desktop?
A: Do the following to create a program item for Cataloger's Desktop:
- Right mouse click on this link and Save target as... to a place on your computer that you will remember;
- Click on this link to open your web browser to Cataloger's Desktop;
- In your browser's Address window, click and hold down the left mouse button on top of the icon to the left of http://desktop.loc.gov;
- Drag this icon to your computer's desktop and release the left mouse button; this will create a program item that says Cataloger's Desktop;
- Right mouse click on the Cataloger's Desktop program item you've just created on your computer's desktop; select Properties from the context sensitive menu that pops up;
- Ensuring that you are looking at the Web Document view tab, click the Change Icon button;
- Select cdesktop.ico from the folder where you stored it;
once you've selected this file, click the OK button at the bottom of this dialog box; this will return you to the Web Document view;
- Click OK to close the Properties dialog
- Congratulations! You now have a program item ("icon") for Cataloger's Desktop on your computer's desktop
Desktop Discussion List (Listserv)
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