Thanks from me too to Stephen and Barbara.
Concerning informing the research community: A colleague and I had a
poster on this issue about 4 years ago at a scientific conference. The
feedback at the conference was very encouraging and interstingly enough
we still get emails now of people asking us about the developments. So I
think this is one way to continue.
Brigitte Stemmer
Stevan Harnad wrote:
>On Thu, 9 Oct 2003, Barbara Kirsop wrote:
>
>
>
>>they DID print the letter - today (Oct 9th)....
>>
>>
> http://www.guardian.co.uk/letters/story/0,3604,1058838,00.html
>
>Bravo Stephen Pinfield, and Barbara Kirsop, and Bravo Guardian!
>
>Now back to the hard work of informing and activating the research
>community.
>
>(Some of the other letters show signs of the familiar misunderstandings:
>mixing up open access with selective developing-world toll-subsidies
>-- welcome, but not at all the same thing as open-access; mixing up
>open access with university-restricted institution-wide toll-access;
>imagining that open-access journal-costs are to paid from the author's
>pocket! and so on. We still have our work cut out for us!)
>
>Stevan Harnad
>
>PS I am preparing an extensive critique and corrective concerning the
>original Guardian article. Posting shortly.
>
>---------------------------
>
>
>>Stevan Harnad wrote:
>>
>>
>>
>>>Dear Stephen [Pinfield],
>>>
>>>Your letter says exactly what needed to be said. It's a great pity the
>>>Guardian did not print it. But the press is extremely superficial and
>>>actually hasn't the faintest idea of what is afoot or at issue here: it
>>>only has an ear for sensation. But it is the research community, not the
>>>press or even the general public, that needs to be informed, and needs
>>>to come to understand this. With your permission I'd like to include
>>>your letter with a posting I am preparing concerning the Guardian article.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>>Date: Wed, 08 Oct 2003 14:04:51 +0100
>>>>From: Stephen Pinfield <Stephen.Pinfield_at_nottingham.ac.uk>
>>>>Subject: Re: Letter to the Guardian
>>>>
>>>>Letter to the Guardian.
>>>>Sent Monday 6th October at 4.56 pm.
>>>>Not printed.
>>>>
>>>>"Setting up new open-access journals is one way of trying to ensure that
>>>>scientific research is free to all (Scientists take on the publishers,
>>>>October 6). The problem is that new journals take at least five years
>>>>to establish themselves in their research community. Another way of
>>>>improving scientific communication is for authors to deposit their own
>>>>papers in open-access repositories run by their university or subject
>>>>community. Papers can be 'self archived' in this way at the same time
>>>>(or before) they are published in conventional journals. This can
>>>>happen now. Around the world many universities are currently setting
>>>>up such repositories. One such initiative, SHERPA, involving several
>>>>UK research-led universities is already underway (www.sherpa.ac.uk).
>>>>
>>>>Stephen Pinfield
>>>>Assistant Director of Information Services
>>>>University of Nottingham
>>>>Web http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/~uazsjp/
>>>>
>>>>
>
>
>
Received on Thu Oct 09 2003 - 14:37:43 BST