“You know you have access and you have access now. However, the discovery process for open access articles isn’t necessarily the same as subscription searching. Especially if you do not have access to specific subscription databases.
This guide is meant to help individuals, of any background, search more easily for open access articles….”
Abstract: This study reviews content from five different library and information science journals: Behavioral & Social Sciences Librarian, Collection Management, College & Undergraduate Libraries, Journal of Electronic Resources Librarianship and Journal of Library Administration over a five-year period from 2012–2016 to investigate the green deposit rate. Starting in 2011, Taylor & Francis, the publisher of these journals, waived the green deposit embargo for library and information science, heritage and archival content, which allows for immediate deposit of articles in these fields. The review looks at research articles and standing columns over the five years from these five journals to see if any articles were retrieved using the OA Button or through institutional repositories. Results indicate that less than a quarter of writers have chosen to make a green deposit of their articles in local or subject repositories. The discussion outlines some best practices to be undertaken by librarians, editors and Taylor & Francis to make this program more successful.
“There seems to be something in the water. Out of the blue, interest in helping users find free/open access articles seems to have blossomed since earlier this year when Unpaywall was unveiled….”
“With all the intense interest Unpaywall is getting (See coverage in academic sites like Nature, Science, Chronicle of Higher education, as well as more mainstream tech sites like Techcruch, Gimzo), you might be surprised to know that Unpaywall isn’t in fact the first tool that promises to help users unlock paywalls by finding free versions.
Predecessors like Open Access button (3K users), Lazy Scholar button (7k Users), Google Scholar button (1.2 million users) all existed before Unpaywall(70k users) and are arguably every bit as capable as Unpaywall and yet remained a niche service for years.”
“We can request this research through the Open Access Button. Teresa and I both requested 20 each. We’d love for you to help us request the rest. It’s easy and you can help make more research accessible to all whether you have time to make 1 or 50 requests!
1: Create an Open Access Button account. All that is needed is your email (to notify you when the request is fulfilled), but you can also provide your name, position, and/or affiliation (authors are more likely to help actual people).
2. Search Grab the DOI or title from this spreadsheet and paste it into the search box on the Open Access Button site.
3. Share a story and submit Tell the Button how getting access to the research will help you?—?this will be shared with the author and can be critical in convincing them to archive their research. You can either use the story below that Teresa and I have used, or create your own.
I’m really excited about your research related to Open Access. Unfortunately, it is not accessible to all. Librarians, open access advocates, and researchers could benefit from your article if you make it openly available. Please archive it, so we can all learn from your research!
4. Update the spreadsheet After you submit your request, copy the url and paste it in the “OAB Request Link” field on the spreadsheet.
That’s it! You’re a star!
The Open Access Button’s request system will email the author and request they archive the article to make it accessible to everyone. Thanks for helping make more research open!”