Strictly speaking, you're correct. However, the purpose of copyright law is to reward people who do creative work. That would be us. The journal's contribution is coordinating peer review, formatting the paper and, most importantly, disseminating the paper. For this, they get paid by subscribers and sometimes page charges. That seems more than fair -- really, the for-profit journals should be paying us, the way magazines pay writers. Allowing them to dictate what we can do with our work after publication seems rather excessive! As a practical matter, are there any cases of scientists being sued or prosecuted for posting their publications on their websites?
Anyone interested in these issues should read Lawrence Lessig and John Perry Barlow, particularly the latter's essay "The Economy of Ideas: Selling Wine Without Bottles on the Global Net". Jane Shevtsov On Mon, May 11, 2009 at 1:24 PM, Gavin Simpson <gavin.simp...@ucl.ac.uk> wrote: > On Sun, 2009-05-10 at 11:14 -0400, Alexey Voinov wrote: >> Instead of or in addition to boycotting and protesting, I think there is a >> much >> simpler and effective solution. Ask your kids. If they can share their music, >> why can't we share our papers? It's called peer-to-peer technology and >> requires >> just a little bit of good will from ourselves. All we need is to assemble our >> collections of pdf articles that I bet each and everyone of us has on our >> hard >> disks, and make them available for sharing. >> >> Students are already doing this. See this article: >> http://eaves.ca/2009/04/28/education-where-copyrighters-and-publishers-are-the-pirates/ >> >> Unfortunately these efforts seem to be sharing the fate of Napster, attacked >> by >> lawsuits. However this can and will still develop without any centralized >> services on a peer-to-peer basis as supported by bit-torrent and other >> software. >> >> So it's really up to us to make it happen. > > Only if you condone copyright theft. > > Invariably, journals do not grant you a non-exclusive right to do > anything with your own publications that you might have in PDF format. > Sometimes they allow you to post to a website your final version before > journal formatting. Sometimes a journal may allow you to do this only > after a certain period of time, or they may allow you to post their > version of the manuscript on your (or your institutes's) website after a > period of time (6-12months say). It all depends upon what rights you > signed away when you completed your copyright transfer form. > > Reproducing or distributing any publications that are not your own, that > are not covered by a licence that allows you to do this, provided to you > by the publisher of said content, would also constitute copyright theft. > > Circumventing these restrictions, could, in some countries, be > considered violation of copyright laws. Doing this with software in the > US for example cold make you fall foul of the DMCA: > http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DMCA > > Whilst I'm no fan of the current predominant publication model, nor many > of the associated citation indices, rampant disregard for copyright law > is *not* the way to solve these problems. > > You should exercise your right to do with your work (i.e. your final > draft, not a journal compilation/formatting of your work) as you see > fit, and publish it in journals that have more open policies regarding > works published by them. Or try to retain some of the rights you wish > for, for example by attaching a Creative Commons Scholars Copyright > Addendum to the publisher's copyright transfer forms, in an attempt to > negotiate retaining some rights: > > http://sciencecommons.org/projects/publishing/ > > >> So it's really up to us to make it happen. > > So, I agree with the sentiment, but not with the means by which you > suggest we go about it. > > G > >> >> >> -- >> Alexey Voinov >> _____________________________________________________________________ >> !!!**** please note new e-mail address: aavoi...@gmail.com ****!!! >> _____________________________________________________________________ >> Chesapeake Research Consortium Community Modeling Program & >> Johns Hopkins University Dept. of Geography and Environm. Engineering >> 645 Contees Wharf Road, P.O. Box 28, Edgewater, MD 21037 >> TEL: 410 798-1283; 703 880-1178 WWW: http://www.likbez.com/AV >> >> Fellow, Gund Institute for Ecological Economics,University of Vermont >> President,Int.Envir.Modeling. and Software Soc.,http://www.iemss.org/ >> New book: Systems Science and Modeling for Ecological Economics >> http://books.elsevier.com/companions/9780123725837 >> >> >> >> >> >> > ------------------------------ >> > >> > Date: Sat, 9 May 2009 16:56:12 -0700 >> > From: Wayne Tyson <landr...@cox.net> >> > Subject: Re: Open Access and Intellectual Imperialism Approval required >> > Re: [ECOLOG-L] Teaching Biostatistics !!! >> > >> > (Suggested replacement post) >> > >> > Ecolog: >> > >> > "In my university I do not have access to literature sources like = >> > Biological Abstracts for example to reach the authors and articles . . = >> > ." >> > >> > This is an excellent example, unfortunately, of how pricing = >> > intellectual resources out of range for "outsiders" is a moral = >> > indictment of much of academia. This man--or any man or woman or child = >> > (especially) should never have to hit a university firewall, be required = >> > to pay tens of dollars ($30, $40, and more) to download a pdf file, ad = >> > nauseam. Think of the burdensome expense and effort required on the part = >> > of so many even to gain the privilege of Internet access in the first = >> > place!=20 >> > >> > Those truly concerned about the future of the earth and its life, even = >> > civilization, should realize that the history of intellectual = >> > development is one of free exchange of ideas and information, not its = >> > conversion into profit centers. It is not the struggling who should pay = >> > the comfortable, it is the comfortable who benefit from free = >> > intellectual synergy that compounds like a breeder-reactor, who should = >> > pay forward and backwards to ensure rather than obstruct such exchange.=20 >> > >> > At long last, hath academia no sense of decency? Are there no = >> > institutions out there sufficiently well endowed and clearly = >> > beneficiaries of the wealth of intellectual struggle handed down from = >> > people like Dr. Voltolini throughout history (and still do--Copernicus, = >> > Darwin . . .) who will turn this embarrassing state of arrogant = >> > possessiveness around? >> > >> > Can you imagine having to make this kind of request at every stage of = >> > your own process of intellectual enquiry?=20 >> > >> > How is it possible that, this many years into one of the most = >> > transformational achievements of human society, that Dr. Voltolini = >> > should still be barred from journal access that costs zero to provide?=20 >> > >> > Why not, at the individual level, that academics simply boycott = >> > journals which charge for access and publish in open access journals? = >> > While these may not be perfect at the moment, might not such a = >> > second-stage transformation accelerate their development and foster = >> > rather than retard intellectual synergy?=20 >> > >> > WT >> > >> > PS: David has suggested that I explain "how journals (e.g. those of = >> > the Ecological Society) are supposed to pay to publish papers if nobody = >> > has to pay to read them." This email is intended to illuminate the = >> > problem and hear from others before deigning to suggest how all of the = >> > complexities of this issue should be resolved. The first step, of = >> > course, is in recognizing the problem or refuting the assertion that = >> > there is a problem. I do not pretend, in as brief an email as possible = >> > and still state my position unequivocally, to cover every aspect of the = >> > subject. I do, however, know of institutions that have cancelled journal = >> > subscriptions. I believe that very large institutions (e.g. the = >> > University of California Library may have negotiated price reductions = >> > from some journals; I am not up-to-date on this case, but the UC Library = >> > did raise the issue quite vigorously a few years ago.=20 >> > >> > I will offer the following observations, and invite correction if they = >> > are in error. I hope this helps=20 >> > >> > 1. The major "clay paper" journals are VERY profitable.=20 >> > >> > 2. Publishing in such journals is a political balancing act, not to = >> > mention that author charges are often involved. (I am not against = >> > reasonable author charges if they do not inhibit publication on the = >> > basis of merit and are collected on the basis of the ability to pay by, = >> > and the benefit to, sponsoring institutions.) >> > >> > 3. It is impossibly expensive for independent researchers or those = >> > whose affiliations do not subscribe to Internet journal service to scan = >> > great volumes of literature. Abstracts are wholly inadequate for = >> > literature "review." >> > >> > 4. I recognize that publication costs must be met, but = >> > scientific/scholarly/intellectual publications should be financed by the = >> > "nobility," not enrich them. Peer reviews should be the obligation of = >> > the reviewers to the discipline involved.=20 >> > >> > 5. I suggested a boycott, but only intend that measure for those = >> > entities looking at pdf downloads (for example) as ways to embellish = >> > their bottom-lines, particularly when they gouge for them (charge out of = >> > proportion to their actual marginal cost). Since intellectual articles = >> > are in relatively scant demand, they are not likely to be priced = >> > according to pricing theory anyway, so the benefiting institutions = >> > should pay the actual costs--plus a margin for a cushion-endowment = >> > perhaps.=20 >> > >> > 6. I do not think David or anyone else should have to be bothered with = >> > sending materials to requestors who are deprived of equal = >> > privileges/rights. While this is generous in the extreme, there is still = >> > a faint sniff of (unintended) patronizing in that, and the requestor = >> > must be driven to make the request in the first place. Most simply = >> > suffer in silence.=20 >> > >> > 7. My primary question to Ecolog remains "Is this intellectual = >> > imperialism or not?"=20 >> > >> > 8. One who is "in" simply cannot know what it is like to be "out."=20 >> > >> > ----- Original Message -----=20 >> > From: "VOLTOLINI" <jcvol...@uol.com.br> >> > To: <ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU> >> > Sent: Friday, May 08, 2009 2:17 PM >> > Subject: [ECOLOG-L] Teaching Biostatistics !!! >> > >> > >> > > Dear friends,=20 >> > >=20 >> > > I am teaching Ecology and Biostatistics and I am working on = >> > different ideas to teach data analyses for Biology students.=20 >> > >=20 >> > > Now, my students will measure several moluscan shells from polluted = >> > and not polluted marine sites (it is a simulation!) and if they read = >> > about the subject they will be more interested in the analysis! Do you = >> > have articles about the "effect of pollution on shell size" ?=20 >> > >=20 >> > > In my university I do not have access to literature sources like = >> > Biological Abstracts for example to reach the authors and articles and = >> > thats why I requesting some articles.=20 >> > >=20 >> > > Thanks for any help!!! >> > >=20 >> > > Voltolini >> > >=20 >> > >=20 >> > >=20 >> > > Prof. Dr. J. C. VOLTOLINI >> > > Grupo de Estudos em Ecologia de Mamiferos (ECOMAM)=20 >> > > UNITAU, Depto. Biologia, Taubate, SP. 12030-010.=20 >> > > Grupo de pesquisa ECOMAM: http://jcvoltol.sites.uol.com.br/=20 >> > > Fotos de projetos e cursos: http://jcvoltol.fotoblog.uol.com.br/=20 >> > > Exemplo de um curso de ecologia de campo: = >> > http://trabiju.blogspot.com/=20 >> > > Fotos artisticas: http://voltolini.fotos.net.br/texturas=20 >> > >> > >> > ---------------------------------------- > -- > %~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~% > Dr. Gavin Simpson [t] +44 (0)20 7679 0522 > ECRC, UCL Geography, [f] +44 (0)20 7679 0565 > Pearson Building, [e] gavin.simpsonATNOSPAMucl.ac.uk > Gower Street, London [w] http://www.ucl.ac.uk/~ucfagls/ > UK. WC1E 6BT. [w] http://www.freshwaters.org.uk > %~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~%~% > -- ------------- Jane Shevtsov Ecology Ph.D. candidate, University of Georgia co-founder, <www.worldbeyondborders.org> Check out my blog, <http://perceivingwholes.blogspot.com>Perceiving Wholes "Political power comes out of the look in people's eyes." --Kim Stanley Robinson, _Blue Mars_
