Comments on: Blog Discussion Post #4 - Open Access

By: Phil

Phil — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 16:55:43 +0000

To me, open access looks like it will only help the process of research. The coming together of all scholary sources provides anyone researching anything the opportunity to log in and find as many as possible. In today’s research world, it is difficult sometimes to decipher between a scholarly source or one that isn’t scholary. It is also difficult to find scholary sources because you have to sift through all the illegitimate ones to find just one legit source. This site would not only help the process of finding a scholary source, but make it easy. In the future Open Access will make things easier and quicker.

By: Billy Conway

Billy Conway — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 16:50:02 +0000

I think open access is definitely the way information dispersal will head in the coming years. In my opinion, there is no reason that academic information should be available on a limited basis for the sole purpose of publishers’ profit. It has been shown that OA databases can be economically viable and in certain instances even profitable, so funding shouldn’t be viewed as a significant obstacle. Those who propose that a publisher is necessary to act as a ‘gatekeeper’ of the information to catalog, organize and maintain a certain level of academic integrity might be right to an extent. Perhaps, there could be OA in conjunction with pay sites, with some file overlap, where researchers could go to the pay site as a guarantee of academic credibility, while still providing access to the general user free. Regardless OA needs to work in with the peer reviewing system. I am a supporter of OA as I believe academic information that can foster learning should be available to anyone with the desire to access it.

By: Teddy Aronson

Teddy Aronson — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 16:28:38 +0000

Open Access may just be a precursor to the future of interpersonal information exchange. The internet, as we all know, has the ability to connect billions of people through simple electronic interaction. Open Access, therefore, utilizes this feature to spread scholarly research and information, to everyone and anyone who would like to find such. This will help with the progression of research in a multitude of fields. There is potential for some opposition, though. As the article reclaims, “commercial journal publishers” base their operation on extracting money from those willing to pay for such information. Also, the authors of these published articles on Open Access may want to be “adequately compensated for their work,” an vague issue when dealing with a completely free database. While it may be a great step forward in the development of information interaction, there are certain obstacles Open Access will have to overcome in order to thrive.

By: Rachael Preston

Rachael Preston — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 15:16:10 +0000

I think that Open Access is a valuable way of distributing information for several reasons. First of all, the more readily available scholarly information is, the younger children can start learning to work with it and getting comfortable/adept at it. Second of all, I appreciate the way Open Access is applicable to so many different levels of research. It also supports the basic idea that all people should have access to information in order to enrich their minds. Whether it comes into effect through a third-grader doing their first real research project, or someone writing a thesis, the vast and varied information on the web is only further complimented by OA.

By: M. Bingham

M. Bingham — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 15:08:20 +0000

I feel that Open Access is the future of scholarly research. It lowers the cost for the researchers, libraries, and consumers. The traditional way is more costly. Researchers don’t have to pay big corporations to edit and print copies of their work. Libraries also can make this information accessible to the public for virtually free and the readers, who pay for these works through tax dollars, may easily access the information. The only loser in this are the big book companies who make their profit off of these costs. I think there can be a compromise, though.

By: Linleigh Hawk

Linleigh Hawk — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 14:37:56 +0000

Open Access is a great way to provide scholarly research on the internet. When researching a topic, it is quite common to question the validity of what you’re looking at, but with open access you never have to doubt whether the a source is legitimate or not. Another plus to open access is that everyone has access to these sources from any location; people can “link, read, download, store, print-off, use, and data-mine the digital content of that article”–pretty much do anything. Every member of society, individuals as well as groups of people and various institutions, would benefit from Open Access. People would be better educated and the quality of work would greatly increase. Also, it is always such a hassle when you are researching and come across important information but cannot access it because you are not a librarian/teacher/etc. However, with open access everyone has access to everything which is only fair and makes life much easier.

By: Beth

Beth — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 14:00:26 +0000

Open Access seems like a great way to make research a more egalitarian pursuit, since even college alumni have difficulty accessing information that they need after graduation. I personally know a Wake alumni who is required to do research for his job in public health, yet does not have access to the journals and other publications that would assist him in finding information. Many high schools with inadequate library facilities could greatly benefit from Open Access to published material. Even individuals in pursuit of knowledge for personal gain would be interested in making this information widely available. The popularity of Wikipedia should prove that everyday people are interested in gathering information on a wide variety of topics. Finally, as the article discussed, Open Access could enhance the quality of education in poor or developing countries.

By: Cortney S. Fallen

Cortney S. Fallen — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 13:58:11 +0000

Open access seems like a great way to obtain information. The information it provides is both scholarly and free, what’s not to like? The only problem that could arise would be loss of money for those who charge for a subscription, but because this information is published with the permission of the author, there would be no copyright issues. Open access is also a positive advancement because it provides recent information. Viewers dont have to wait a certain amount of time to recieve scholarly journal information because Open Access has the lastest articles.

By: Jess Furlong

Jess Furlong — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 13:44:44 +0000

Open Access seems like the way to go. Since the world is starting to do things more “green” this would fit right in. It’s also easier for researchers to be able to see these articles without having to search through different issues of a journal and even better for those who don’t have subscriptions to these journals. I understand that publishers are going to have a problem with this because they are losing a large amount of money their clients decide to do everything electronically. OA is a great thing and hopefully all journals will take advantage of it.

By: Becca Red

Becca Red — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 12:36:44 +0000

I think that Open Access is very important to the advancement of further research in that it allows anyone to access the latest acquired information on a particular topic. It is absolutely necessary to examine others’ research in order to gain further insight into current projects. This access allows the researcher to gain knowledge as to what is already known about a particular topic as well as where further research is needed. Open Access is also particularly important to the amateur researcher, such as a university student, required to present on a particular topic of study. Access to the latest peer-reviewed journals and their articles allows the student to gain the most exposure to their topic. There is nothing more frustrating than finding a relevant article to a research topic and not being granted access to learn from this piece due to subscription requirements. Also, I thought the discussion of taxpayers holding much of the responsibility to research funding to be particularly interesting. If taxes account for much of the necessary funding, then it seems only fair to allow Open Access to those individuals.