Subject gateways and portals

What is a subject gateway or portal?

Subject gateways or portals refine the work of subject directories by presenting subject specific information channels governed by strict quality criteria, usually compiled by human experts.

Resources included in gateways cover a wide spectrum, from electronic journals and books to academic and government reports, as well as referring users to relevant web sites.

Gateways are usually constructed at academic institutions, and follow the principle of open access.

The following are some examples:

http://www.eevl.ac.uk (engineering)
http://www.omni.ac.uk (medical)
http://www.scicentral.com/index.html (sciences)
http://www.nrf.ac.za/yenza/ (A South African subject gateway specific to humanities and social sciences)