Email Eprint Request Button: Too good for OA's own good?

[Stevan Harnad]

Forwarding the interesting post below from Colin Smith, who is
wondering whether the semi-automatic "email eprint request" button
http://openaccess.eprints.org/index.php?/archives/274-guid.html might
tempt authors to deliberately make their deposits Closed Access
instead of Open Access so that can they get more detailed usage
metrics for their papers, for research assessment purposes!

The possibility was raised, when the button was first designed, that
authors could get addicted to the richer vanity metrics that Closed
Access plus the button provides. http://bit.ly/9ThxNu

But if you go to Colin's blog to see the responses from IR managers
that have since implemented the button, you will find that that is not
what tends to happen. Rather, authors tire of vanity metrics after a
while and instead prefer sparing themselves those extra keystrokes by
re-setting their papers as Open Access.

It might, though, be useful to implement a "button" for Open Access
papers too, allowing users to identify themselves and their interests
to the author, if they wish... -- SH


---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: C.J.Smith <c.j.smith at open.ac.uk>
Date: Wed, Feb 3, 2010 at 11:27 AM
Subject: Is the "request copy" button good for OA?
To: AMERICAN-SCIENTIST-OPEN-ACCESS-FORUM at listserver.sigmaxi.org


Members of this list may be interested in a blog post I’ve just
written on the “request copy” button used by some repositories
(including my own). I’d welcome your responses not only on this list,
but also as comments to the blog post itself.



http://www.open.ac.uk/blogs/ORO/?p=92





Colin Smith
Research Repository Manager
Open Research Online (ORO)
Open University Library
Walton Hall
Milton Keynes
MK7 6AA

Tel: +44(0)1908 332971

Email: c.j.smith at open.ac.uk
Web: http://oro.open.ac.uk
Blog: http://www.open.ac.uk/blogs/ORO
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/smithcolin



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