Scholarly Communication and institutional repositories Dr. Tom Graham University Librarian University of Newcastle upon Tyne 4 March 2003

Is there a scholarly communication crisis? There is a serials price problem for libraries There is a serials price problem for libraries There may less of a problem with communication between authors and readers There may less of a problem with communication between authors and readers –Informal networks –Initial dissemination –Formal refereed publication

Responses Co-operation Co-operation Competition Competition Responses to what?

Institutional repositories – where do they fit? Preservation of digital material Preservation of digital material Alternative to publishing Alternative to publishing Remedying the serials crisis Remedying the serials crisis Online courseware Online courseware Maximising the impact of research effort Maximising the impact of research effort (Harnad, 2003) Which?

What are the benefits/impacts? (1) Authors Authors –Wide dissemination –Increased citation – evidence –Possibility of easy searching, if OAI-compatible Institution Institution –Raise profile (possibly keep up with the Jones’s) –Manage intellectual assets (research output) –Might impact on periodical prices

What is involved? (1) Setting-up – E-prints software Setting-up – E-prints software Content management Content management –Document types –Formats –Preservation –Metadata creation

What is involved ? (2) Institutional support Institutional support –University research bodies Academic support Academic support –Benefits –IPR issues –Quality issues –Relation to mainstream publishing

Examples CDL, DSpace, Ohio Knowledge Bank CDL, DSpace, Ohio Knowledge Bank Utrecht Utrecht UK – SHERPA UK – SHERPA –Collaborative – 6 partners and ? associates –Investigate IPR, quality, technical and management issues

…and Scholarly Communication? Competition or co-operation? Competition or co-operation? “You cannot change a complex organism, you can only disturb it” (Robert Jarvis) “You cannot change a complex organism, you can only disturb it” (Robert Jarvis)