Wikipedia talk:The Wikipedia Library

Cairn.info

Resolved

Hi. For a few months already, whenever I try to access Cairn.info via The Wikipedia Library, I get stuck on the verification page, saying "Verifying the device – The requested content will be available after verification", whilst continuously displaying a checkmark and a loading pattern in a loop, with the page never loading. I've tried to access it via TWL on different devices and networks, but the problem still persists. Task T429124 on Phabricator regarding this problem appears to have been closed on account of the issue having been solved, but it still does not work on my end. Is there a way to fix this? Thanks. Aviationwikiflight (talk) 21:54, 12 July 2026 (UTC)

I get asked to "slide right to secure your access" time and time again. DuncanHill (talk) 22:00, 12 July 2026 (UTC)

I've re-opened it on phabricator, and linked back to this thread. @Aviationwikiflight: Suggest you add your experiences to the phabricator thread. DuncanHill (talk) 22:03, 12 July 2026 (UTC)

Reported as resolved on Phabricator. I just tried it and got in with no problems. DuncanHill (talk) 21:49, 5 August 2026 (UTC)

Yep, can also confirm. Thank you to everybody involved here. Aviationwikiflight (talk) 22:19, 5 August 2026 (UTC)

Page design

Pinging some users who have been active here recently - @Framawiki, Johnjbarton, Superb Owl, FaviFake, Ocaasi, and OzzyMuffin238:

Hi all - we've just redesigned the project's meta page (meta:The Wikipedia Library) with a new layout and content. We think it does a much better job than the old page at providing an overview of what TWL is, how to get involved, and includes an FAQ. We'd love to similarly update this page too, but wanted to involve folks who had been editing it recently before making any changes. We could copy over any content from the Meta page that seems relevant here, and I'm curious if you think this page should be scoped differently for English Wikipedia vs a general audience on Meta. I believe this page ranks highly on Google when searching for information about the program, so we would also like to ensure the page has some publisher-facing information. Anyway, let me know what you think! Samwalton9 (WMF) (talk) 12:07, 3 August 2026 (UTC)

Other than adamantly wanting an interior picture of a library *kept* (I particularly like the image of the Victorian State Library in current usage) I'm not against an update. Regards, Goldsztajn (talk) 13:22, 3 August 2026 (UTC)

I very much like the removal of an interior picture of a library and the rest of the changes as well. FaviFake (talk) 16:48, 3 August 2026 (UTC)

The primary reason I edited the current TWL page is the opaque and confusing user interface on the "login or portal" page, https://wikipedialibrary.wmflabs.org/users/my_library/. The new meta page does a much better job of explaining the Library concept and it includes a paragraph about the UI, which is a positive step (I don't count an hour long video). But it does not address the key problems with the Library UI.

• The search results are terrible; including the search bar leads users astray
• The Learn More link does not provide more information about the UI, it gives info only valuable to editor who cannot yet access the "login or portal" page.
• The Discuss link leads a page with the same title as this one in a different place but much of the discussion appears to occur on Talk:The Wikipedia Library?
• The puzzling text en.wiki leads to Wikipedia:The_Wikipedia_Library, huh?
• A secondary bar across the top of the inner page has Favorites (18), My Collections(83), Available Collections(39). The 83>39 bit is confusing: I have more collections than are available? Over time I worked out that "Favorites" means "Starred", and "My" means "All authorized" and "Available" means "By Application". I think this aspect of the UI would be much clearer with just two choices "Starred" and "All", with the ordinary collections being distinguished from those requiring application by "Apply" vs "Access".

If the "login or portal" page UI were improved, then the UI content on the new meta page would adequate. Johnjbarton (talk) 17:34, 3 August 2026 (UTC)

@Johnjbarton Thanks for taking the time to write this feedback!

• Search results: Could you elaborate on the 'terrible' search results? What kinds of issues have you experienced?
• Learn more link (/about): Good point - this is somewhat duplicative of the Meta page now, too, I think. Do you think this Learn More/About page should focus on guidance for using the tool itself?
• Discuss/en.wiki links: We have both a Meta Wiki discussion page, and local discussion pages on English, French, German, and other Wikipedias. We wanted to provide links to both so that users could find spaces to have discussions like this one, but didn't want to assume that everyone would want to go to Meta. We provide a local wiki link (e.g. enwiki) based on your interface language. Do you think there's a way to have both these links, but make it clearer what they are for?
• My vs Available collections: I totally agree with this confusion, and the solution you propose is one we've discussed too. I don't think I ever captured this in a Phabricator ticket, so I've just done so: T434767. Samwalton9 (WMF) (talk) 10:26, 13 August 2026 (UTC)

• Search results. Ok I take it back. I've not used it in a couple of years. I tried it today and got great results on my first try. Worth trying more.
• Learn more. I suggest:
  • A title for the page with the Access chips. Eg. "My library" or "Wikipedia Library Portal" or "Your Library" or "Collections" or "Your Collections". Some way of identifying this particular page.
  • A "Help" link or "Help for Collections" which briefly outlines the features of the page.
  • Merge the page "https://wikipedialibrary.wmflabs.org/about/" into Wikipedia:The_Wikipedia_Library, they are too similar.
  • Change "Learn more" to "About the Library" so the resulting page would be less surprising.
• Discuss/en.wiki is too obscure/ambiguous. Oh now I see that en.wiki points to [Wikipedia:The_Wikipedia_Library]] which overlaps "Learn more". I think users who get to the Collections page already have learned more. Replace "Discuss" with title "Wikimedia Library Talk". Remove the en.wiki option.
• Try to refocus the Wikipedia_talk:The_Wikipedia_Library on the content of Wikipedia:The_Wikipedia_Library rather than operations of the library. That may be too difficult at this point.

HTH Johnjbarton (talk) 17:26, 13 August 2026 (UTC)

Hi all - if it sounds OK to you we'll go ahead and update this page with mostly the same content as can be found at meta:The Wikipedia Library, with the addition of a link to Help:Find sources and WP:RX. Let me know if you have any concerns with that. Samwalton9 (WMF) (talk) 12:34, 17 August 2026 (UTC)

Amazing, thanks a lot! FaviFake (talk) 12:37, 17 August 2026 (UTC)

Since my comments are really about the UI for the Collections, I support your proposed update. Johnjbarton (talk) 15:56, 17 August 2026 (UTC)

I think Johnjbarton provides some good feedback above. I like the rewritten page and find it more informative than previous iterations (though the current version updated by Johnjbarton is an improvement over the previous iteration!), so I support the update.

I think the /about link is helpful to keep on the TWL portal, in case a new user gets linked there directly from, say, the Teahouse, instead of being directed to WP:TWL. However, the /about page currently says " You have an account that is a minimum of 6 months old", which contradicts the main TWL portal's statement of " 6+ months editing" (emphasis added). I have no idea which is correct, but those statements should be aligned. If the latter is true, I think a phrasing of "6+ months since first edit" is clearer, but that's just me. NovaHyperion^{talk/contribs} 15:59, 17 August 2026 (UTC)

ProQuest

Hello. Could someone tell me how to access to ProQuest again through the Wikipedia Library? Previously, I used to enter through the search engine in the "My Library" tab of the Wikipedia library, and from there it would redirect me to the ProQuest site. Now I see this, I don't understand. Or how can I enter the official ProQuest site as a Wikipedia user? Thank you. Regards, MadonnaFan (talk) 03:51, 4 August 2026 (UTC)

@MadonnaFan, you can get to ProQuest directly by going to

• https://wikipedialibrary.idm.oclc.org/login?auth=production&url=https://www.proquest.com/ip

I hope that helps. Cheers, SunloungerFrog (talk) 04:10, 4 August 2026 (UTC)

@MadonnaFan EBSCO Discovery Service (the search software) recently got a UI update, so that ProQuest link is no longer present. You can open the library and scroll down in the 'Available Collections' tab to the entry for ProQuest and select "Access collection" to get there. Alternatively, bookmarking SunloungerFrog's URL will work! Samwalton9 (WMF) (talk) 14:13, 4 August 2026 (UTC)

@SunloungerFrog: and @Samwalton9 (WMF):, thank you so much to you! I have managed to access ProQuest both ways. Thanks again! Cheers, MadonnaFan (talk) 14:21, 4 August 2026 (UTC)

British Newspaper Archive

Resolved

There appears to be a technical issue with the British Newspaper Archive's subdomain with The Wikipedia Library. When I attempt to sign in or even create an account once I get to the subdomain, there is an error with the CAPTCHA:

"ERROR for site owner: Invalid domain for site key"

This makes it impossible to utilise the service. CROIX^talk 20:57, 4 August 2026 (UTC)

Yeah, I have been having issues too. I was able to utilize it on a search-only basis, meaning I could find an article, read it, and try to link to it, but after that, well, it was difficult to use. My first thought was it had something to do with my browser security and credentials. Viriditas (talk) 21:00, 4 August 2026 (UTC)

@CROIX: and @Viriditas: see T433605 DuncanHill (talk) 21:02, 4 August 2026 (UTC)

@CROIX: and @Viriditas: this has been closed on Phabricator as resolved. Appears to me to be functioning correctly. DuncanHill (talk) 12:52, 7 August 2026 (UTC)

Re: Access issues for Ancestry

This has been ongoing since 2023, which is fine. But has anyone figured out how to successfully link to ancestry documents in reference? It never works for me. Viriditas (talk) 23:53, 12 August 2026 (UTC)

Ok, I just tested every iteration I can think of it. I can't successfully link to a persistent record as a reference citation either logged into the proxy or outside of it. Here's the test link I used. That's a link to a baptism record for a bio figure. Viriditas (talk) 00:07, 13 August 2026 (UTC)

I was finally able to get this to work if you are already logged in. But that would mean adding a proxy citation adjacent to the source in the citation which only logged-in users can see. Viriditas (talk) 00:10, 13 August 2026 (UTC)

This seems to work but is not orthodox: "Phillip Elliot Slater". Christ Church Baptisms. Historical Society of Pennsylvania. July 24, 1927.Full access available to users of The Wikipedia Library. Viriditas (talk) 00:24, 13 August 2026 (UTC)

Gale expired?

Tracked in Phabricator
Task T436083

Gale OneFile is totally inaccessible as of today. Using the normal link throws an error stating "The account wikipedia is invalid or has expired." Trying to access Gale through the Wikipedia Library gives leads to a cryptic page where I have to look up and enter in a "Location ID" corresponding to an institution in order to access Power Search. "Wikipedia" is not an institution it recognizes unfortunately, so I'm stuck for the moment. DigitalIceAge (talk) 06:15, 26 August 2026 (UTC)

Can confirm, going via the Wikipedia Library takes me to https://galepages-com.wikipedialibrary.idm.oclc.org/studio/ which has the "LocationID" request. It doesn't recognise Wikimedia ot WMF either. DuncanHill (talk) 10:55, 26 August 2026 (UTC)

Tracking at T436083. Samwalton9 (WMF) (talk) 11:40, 26 August 2026 (UTC)

WP:JCW update - Open access

Main page: WT:JCW § WP:JCW update - Open access

BTW just a heads up, the WP:JCW compilation now reports whether or not publications and publishers are open access ones. It's not perfect, sometimes there are classes like (delayed open access being the category given to the article, but the infobox just says open-access = yes, so the bot picks one which might not be accurate. Most publishers should be unflagged because the publisher a mix of open and closed access journals, while most publications should probably be flagged as hybrid open access, since most will support a pay-to-make-it-free option.

Things should get considerably more accurate after the next dump, but if you have feedback, please let me know at WT:JCW#WP:JCW update - Open access! Headbomb {t · c · p · b} 13:22, 4 September 2026 (UTC)

troubles loading with safari

Hi,

I have a non-localized issue loading library sites using Safari. Happened on my desktop 2019 iMac using Ventura and my 2017 MacBook Air using Monterey. This is what it looks like:

Safari Can't Open the Page
Safari can't open the page "https://wikipedialibrary.idm.oclc.org/login? auth=production&url=https://www.cambridge.org/core" because Safari can't establish a
secure connection to the server "wikipedialibrary.idm.oclc.org". Guylaen (talk) 17:36, 20 September 2026 (UTC)

Also tried using Firefox for Newspaper Archives and articles load blank. Guylaen (talk) 17:36, 20 September 2026 (UTC)

That message, btw, isn't just for Cambridge. It's for all library items. Guylaen (talk) 17:37, 20 September 2026 (UTC)

@Guylaen Have you tried clearing cookies for oclc.org? Samwalton9 (WMF) (talk) 13:32, 21 September 2026 (UTC)

Clearing the cache was the first thing I did. Whenever I click on Newspaper Archives articles now, they just load blank. Guylaen (talk) 20:30, 24 September 2026 (UTC)

Also, the first thing it says now for every single library website now is that "This connection is not private." Guylaen (talk) 20:31, 24 September 2026 (UTC)

@Guylaen You noted clearing cache, did you also clear cookies? Just want to make sure you did both. What version of Safari are you using? You can find out by clicking Safari > About Safari. Samwalton9 (WMF) (talk) 07:57, 25 September 2026 (UTC)