Policies Menu
Web Linking

Web Linking Policy: Linking To and From the Boreham Library Web Pages

Having access to UA Fort Smith computer systems and networks implies certain responsibilities. Appropriate use should always be legal, ethical, reflect academic honesty, reflect academic standards, and show restraint in the consumption of shared resources.

Users should demonstrate respect for intellectual property; ownership of data; system security mechanisms; and an individual's right to privacy and to freedom from intimidation, harassment, and unwarranted annoyance.
Appropriate use of computing and network resources includes instruction; independent study; authorized research; independent research; communications; and official work of the offices, units, recognized student and campus organizations, and agencies of the University.

Advance permission to link to www.uafortsmith.edu/library/ or libcat.uafortsmith.edu is not necessary, provided the conditions below are followed.
However, please be aware that these pages may change at any time without notice. Entities and individuals linking to these pages must continue to update links to these subpages.

  • Entities and individuals linking to these pages shall not capture www.uafortsmith.edu/library/ or libcat.uafortsmith.edu pages out of context, present these pages or their content as owned by another, charge a fee for access to these pages, or otherwise misrepresent UA Fort Smith content or misinform users about the origin or ownership of UA Fort Smith content.

  • Any link to these pages should be a complete link that passes the client browser to www.uafortsmith.edu or libcat.uafortsmith.edu unencumbered.

  • The Back button should return the visitor to its site if the visitor wishes to back out.

Selection of Web Sites to Be Linked by the Boreham Library

The links and pointers on this site and in the Boreham Library online catalog are selected by the faculty and staff of the University. Most have been chosen in response to research and classwork being conducted at the University.

Some of the criteria for selection of links are:

  • Authority: Who operates the site and what are their credentials?

  • Affiliation: Who provided the information? Is it possible to link to the homepage? Is the information biased by the provider affiliation?

  • Content: Is there content or is it an advertisement? Is the information objective? Is it helpful? Is it easy to follow or navigate?

  • Purpose: Is it a personal homepage, an advocacy site, a business/marketing site, a news site, or an informational site?

  • Audience: Who is this resource geared toward; teachers, students, etc? Is the information appropriate for its intended audience?

  • Currency: How old is the information? When was the page created or last updated? Will the page be maintained for sufficient time to justify creating a link?

  • Comparisons: How does the information compare to other electronic and print sources? Is it accurate and well written?

Each link should be to a site with content which is appropriate with respect to the UA Fort Smith mission and is:

  • Not a Commercial site which charges a fee for products or services online, excepting such sites with content that has been licensed for access by the University, or sites specifically intended for research which are of sufficient legitimate value to educators and students that inclusion is permitted after careful consideration

  • Not a site which puts unwanted or concealed software on the user's computer, or changes settings without clear and prior notification

  • Not a Site that exhibits hate, bias, discrimination, pornography; libelous or otherwise defamatory content, or any other content not compatible with University policy

  • Not a Site that encourages or aids academically unethical activity, such as the purchase of term papers, plagiarism, violation of intellectual property or copyright laws, etc.

The Boreham Library and UA Fort Smith reserve the right to deny or remove links if it determines that a web site contains misleading or unsubstantiated claims, conflicts with the University's mission, or does not meet one or more of the criteria set forth here.

Links will be reviewed regularly and, with the exception of sites being used specifically for instructional examples, may be removed for the following reasons:

  • The link no longer points to the original information or resource to which it was intended to point

  • The information pointed to by the link is inaccurate, misleading or otherwise violates the criteria and requirements set forth here

  • Access to the information has become difficult due to nonstandard formatting, lengthy download times, or intrusive advertising

  • The link is permanently unreachable or remains unavailable for a lengthy period

  • The external web site fails to comply with the written linking agreement

  • Customers of the externally linked site excessively burden the UA Fort Smith network.