FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions

Virtual libraries exist exclusively on the internet. Information and documents relevant to scientific subjects are as a rule, distributed throughout the world in libraries as well as on the internet. Virtual specialist libraries offer a standardised access for searching for this information, and making it available.

vifabio is a central search entry for biological literature and subject information in libraries and the internet, and is supervised, and continually expanded, by the University Library "Johann Christian Senckenberg", Frankfurt am Main (Germany).

vifabio offers a parallel search in various biologically relevant library catalogues, bibliographic databases, and the internet guide (a collection of selected, quality controlled internet sources). So, with vifabio, you find information from the internet, from the most relevant databases and from the most important German biology libraries. Depending on the source and location you obtain direct, free access to electronic documents or, with the co-operation of the document delivery service subito, the possibility of ordering the desired literature. The internet guide of vifabio offers help in the search for the appropriate net resource. Numerous other offers help with special wishes, for example a guide to online databases, or links to a biological events calendar.

The use of vifabio is basically free of charge. On the other hand, offers from other service providers that are integrated into vifabio, such as document delivery, interlibrary loan orders, and pay-per-use links to certain databases, are subject to charges. The charges are invoiced by the service provider, not vifabio.

vifabio is not a web search engine, instead a query in the search line on the homepage initiates a search in default catalogues and databases. The full texts of documents are not searched. In the results of a search literature citations ─ the bibliographic references to texts ─ are displayed and not the texts themselves. Links to, amongst others, subito make the accessing of full texts easier.

BioWebSearch - a search engine - is offered as part of vifabio. With this the full texts of the selected internet sources of vifabio are searched. BioWebSearch thus offers a tailored subject section of the internet, that is made accessible with an easy to use search line.

The target group includes: biology students, teachers, scientifically engaged biologists, scientists in associated subjects, private persons interested in natural history, as well as representatives of administration, politics, and the media.

vifabio’s content is biology as a basic science in a classical sense - demarcated like the special subject collection biology of the University Library, Frankfurt.

A variety of information about organisms is found here, e.g.: general biology, animal and plant anatomy, biogeography, biological environmental research, the biology of various habitats, cytology, evolution, genetics, histology, microbiology, morphology, nature protection, ecology, animal and plant physiology, systematic botany and systematic zoology. Literature concerning applied areas such as agriculture and forestry, biotechnology, medicine and veterinary medicine is not recorded in vifabio but in the virtual libraries of related subjects. You will find pointers to these under the navigation point "Subject Gateways" of the vascoda portal.

Books, online documents, scientific articles, journals, online journals, databases and selected internet sources, maps, CDs, microforms, sound and film documents, can be found through vifabio.

Access to E-journals requiring licensing, or to the articles in such journals, is generally established through the IP address of the computer. Therefore, if you work in the campus network of a German university, you can access such articles just as easily as you can from your local library. In the case of open access journals, you can access article full texts from anywhere.

You are welcome to link from your website to vifabio. You will find instructions for this under "Info, Link & Logo".

You may also incorporate the search line of vifabio into your website, or show links from the internet guide on a page in your own layout. You will find instructions for this also under "Info, Link & Logo".

Yes, with the Searchlink Generator, it is very simple to link from external web sites to a particular set of search results.

In the Searchlink Generator, you enter just the search terms and, after clicking on the “Generate search link” button, you will receive a permanent link that you can use. If necessary, special conditions (choosing particular target databases or fields) can be added with only a few mouse clicks.

You have the possibility of suggesting a website if you enter the URL and any other information under "Internet Sources - website suggestion". If you wish to provide a scientific document for the document server please send us an E-Mail.

We welcome collections of links for biological sub-sections, and scientists who would like to look after individual sub-sections of the Internet Guide. Please contact us by E-Mail or telephone.

Under "Contact" you can write a message directly.

You will find contact persons from the vifabio team under "About vifabio » Contact persons".

With technical problems you will get help here.

The programme of congresses, meetings, and job offers of VBIO (The Association for Biology, Bioscience, and Biomedicine) is given under the "Other"-Link.

Under "Other", information about studies and subject areas in biology is available in the VBIO programme.