Skip to Content.
Sympa Menu

ohp - [OA-monographs] (no subject)

ohp AT lists.ibiblio.org

Subject: Open access monographs

List archive

Chronological Thread  
  • From: "Istvan Rev" <Revist AT ceu.hu>
  • To: <ohp AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: [OA-monographs] (no subject)
  • Date: Tue, 01 Jul 2008 17:00:24 +0200

Dear All,
Prickly Paradigm Press, the reincarnation of Prickly Pear, publishes
pamphlets, something that is not far both as far as the number of pages and
the genre are concerned from what has been proposed as the niche for
OA-monographs. It is obvious that OA monographs would have a role only if
besides new principles and techniques of distribution and dissemination,
they would be able to offer unique content as well: works that others are not
willing to publish, despite the intellectual merit, the importance or the
probable impact of the work even in small academic circles.
I would like to call attention to two points in John Willinsky's excellent
summary of the state of the debate so far: "Subscription patronage" and
"Library partnerships" that could be merged. Academic libraries in the more
fortunate parts of the world have substantial funds for acquisition, parts of
which could be used for supporting the publishing of, advancing the costs or
purchasing OA monographs. Academic library consortia, including eIFL, (about
which Jean-Claude knows at least as much as I do) could play an active role
in the initiative, instead of approaching individual libraries. The
electronic copies would be available through the libraries that contributed
to the production costs of the monographs, but the libraries would be
entitled to lend the books to academic libraries in the poorest parts of the
world. In this way the contribution coming from the library (on the expense
of the acquisition budget but with the compensation of the savings on OA
monographs, which will be substantially cheaper than printed hard copies)
would be almost automatically perceived philanthropic academic support to
sister libraries in other parts of the world. I would emphasize the role of
libraries as opposed to the role of federal, state of private grant giving
agencies. The involvement of libraries in the process of the publication
would bring the library closer to the author and to the publisher; the
relationship would become more symmetrical, authors would not write for
granting agencies but for the community of the readers who would pay for the
publication. Libraries would be able to involve the patrons already at the
stage of making financial decisions in advance, the readers would have a
(sort of ) say in the decision of publishing a particular title, etc. The
arrangement might help libraries to find their new place in the changing
publishing-reading environment too. And Open Access monograph publishing
would not require additional resources - not even from the funding agencies -
just a slight redistribution of the existing library budgets.
istvan rev





Archive powered by MHonArc 2.6.24.

Top of Page