Plan B for NIH Public Access Mandate: A Deposit Mandate

["Stevan Harnad" <amsciforum@gmail.com>]

On Thu, 18 Sep 2008, atanu garai wrote:

> It is indeed difficult to design and recommend systems that 
> depend on individual decisions (such as actions and reactions 
> by authors and users) such as this. This needs to be 
> corroborated by empirical studies that authors are willing and 
> give the users content as per their demand. As a matter of 
> general practice this should be avoided because this kind of 
> service provision can not be guaranteed by institutions 
> managing large scale content, authors and users. It appears 
> that the request button is designed to bypass the existing 
> copyright laws but it does not take into account service 
> delivery for the authors and users.

Dear Atanu,

You misunderstand the purpose(s) of the Button. There are only 
two:

(1) To provide Almost-OA to Closed Access deposits during any 
access embargo.

(2) To allow deposit to be mandated in a way that is immune to 
publisher lobbying of copyright worries.

That's all. If anyone can get a stronger mandate adopted, just as 
fast, go ahead! This is a default option, to tide over and hasten 
the transition to universal OA.

And if anyone has better ways to provide access to all articles, 
irrespective of embargoes, go ahead! Closed Access Deposit + the 
Button is a default option, to tide over and hasten the 
transition to universal OA.

> The legal aspect depends on how one interprets it. This can be 
> interpreted as a systematic attempt to disseminate content, 
> otherwise deemed untenable legally to a large number audience, 
> worldwide.

Putting an address or an email address in your published article 
can be interpreted as a systematic attempt to disseminate 
(reprint or eprint) content. The dissemination is not done by the 
Button but by the author, on an individual basis.

Stevan Harnad

> 2008/9/17 Stevan Harnad <amsciforum@gmail.com>
>
>  Don't worry! That rare, lucky author will manage (and with a
>> smile on his face)...
>>
>> And once Deposit Mandates are universal, this is the sort of
>> thing that will help ensure the natural transition to universal
>> OA.
>
> It is indeed difficult to design and recommend systems that
> depend on individual decisions (such as actions and reactions by
> authors and users) such as this. This needs to be corroborated by
> empirical studies that authors are willing and give the users
> content as per their demand. As a matter of general practice this
> should be avoided because this kind of service provision can not
> be guaranteed by institutions managing large scale content,
> authors and users. It appears that the request button is designed
> to bypass the existing copyright laws but it does not take into
> account service delivery for the authors and users.
>
> Atanu Garai