We use this from Bowker:
 
http://images.bowker.com/cgi-bin/ulr_cover.pl?issn=03468755
 
it will return transparent one pixel image (as amazon does) when no picture is found.
Not a clean API and not a lot of coverage
 
Peter
 
Drs. P.J.C. van Boheemen
Hoofd Applicatieontwikkeling en beheer - Bibliotheek Wageningen UR
Head of Application Development and Management - Wageningen University and Research Library
tel. +31 317 48 25 17                                                                                    http://library.wur.nl <http://library.wur.nl/> 
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________________________________

Van: Code for Libraries namens Bob Duncan
Verzonden: di 18-3-2008 22:17
Aan: [log in to unmask]
Onderwerp: Re: [CODE4LIB] Journal cover source?



At 04:27 PM 03/18/2008, Jonathan wrote:
>This is something some of us have been wanting for a while too. I don't
>know of any API source (I wonder if Bowker's soon-to-be Books In Print
>API, which I've been told has cover images, will have that? I'm still
>trying to figure out, in communication with Bowker, what their cost
>model is going to be for this service).
>
>Ulrich's Periodicals Directory does have many journal cover images, but
>doesn't have any API to access them....


Ulrich's does use a predictable URL as the value of the img src
attribute;  it returns a cover image when one is available and
nothing when one is not:

<img alt=""
src="http://ulrichsweb2.serialssolutions.com/cgi-bin/url_cover.pl?issn=#@ISSN#"
/>

Example:

<img alt=""
src="http://ulrichsweb2.serialssolutions.com/cgi-bin/url_cover.pl?issn=01612492"
/>

I'm not sure if the links work sans an Ulrich's/SS subscription, nor
what the ethics are of using something like this (subscription or not), but....


Bob Duncan


~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~
Robert E. Duncan
Systems Librarian
Editor of IT Communications
Lafayette College
Easton, PA  18042
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http://www.library.lafayette.edu/