Currently browsing category

Topic 5 2015, Page 3

Open Access: No Such Thing as a Free Lunch.

Open access is a complex issue which has numerous challenges for all those involved (Curry, 2012). This post will look at the advantages and disadvantages of open access in relation to academic journals. For an introduction to open access have a look at this great slideshare. UAEM EU Conference from Right to Research Providing open access to academic journals allows for innovation and growth in research, because research only works when we interchange ideas (Finch, 2012). Continue reading →

Topic 5: The Swings and Roundabouts of Open Access

This topic aims to look into ‘Open Access’, the advantages and disadvantages of being able to access various materials online freely. I have been very adventurous this week and created a Prezi Presentation (click on the image below) highlighting the effects of ‘Open Access: Academic Journals’ and a PowToon describing open access in regards to Spotify and the music industry. Continue reading →

Topic 5: The Advantages and Disadvantages of Open Access

One of the most frustrating things when it comes to essays, as a student, is when you cannot gain full access to a journal article. Recently, I attempted an inter-library loan, waiting over a month to discover that my request had been cancelled – other libraries were unable to share the article due to copyright. My deadline by this time had passed, so I could neither read nor cite this academic’s work. Continue reading →

Should online content be free or should we pay a fee?

What excites me about the web, and I’m sure many others is its openness and ease of access. Something that I’ve mentioned a number of times in my posts, is how the internet is an instrument for freedom of expression and overcome the hindrance of time and space. But what happens when this ‘free’ and ‘open’ side of the Internet isn’t so free and open? As a student, I think that free online content stipulates many advantages. Continue reading →

Who’s The Dinosaur In The Room?

This week I’m using PowToon and ScoopIt to present my thoughts, backed up with some old-fashioned text. http://www.scoop.it/t/open-access-and-new-business-models The Open Access ethos equates to making material publicly available, so that it can be freely read and used. As highlighted last semester by Lucy Hewson, in the case of academic papers this enables academia and industry to use and build on such publications. Continue reading →

Topic 5 = Open Access (OA)

Imagine you have done a ground-breaking research from your years of hard work, which was funded by a government or university. On one hand you want to share with people who are interested but the distribution expenses is a barrier for you. On the other hand readers can’t access this content whereas the very money funded for the research was from their own pocket i.e. in terms of tax or tuition fees. https://code.google. Continue reading →

Topic 5- Open Access: Pros and Cons

What exactly is “open access”? The video below will explain this all in a nutshell. As mentioned in the video above, open access has aims to allow anyone access to the information they need whether or not they are associated with a university/college. The breaking of these barriers are efficient in encouraging innovation and helps immensely with education. I, being a university student for instance can benefit from the free expense of open access materials. Continue reading →

Topic 5: SUMMARY – Access Denied – The Advantages and Disadvantages of Open Access

One of the key points I have learned from this topic is the structure that governs the production and distribution of academic journal articles. Thanks to Bartosz’s diagram (as shown below), I finally realised how the structure loosely resembles the music industry’s methods of distributing music. Whilst journal companies take the largest cut, the author takes a small fee at the expense of having his/her article reviewed and placed within a reputable journal firm. Continue reading →