Open Access
What are Open Access resources?
- Open Access refers to resources that are freely available for viewing and/or
use. Open Access is not the same as Public Domain, and most Open Access creators
do retain their copyrights.
- Open Access is part of a continuum ranging from completely closed, subscription
only access to completely open, no barrier publishing. Open Access is not
related to the quality of materials or the peer-review/non-peer-review status
of the publications.
- Open Access differs from Open Source in that the primary use of Open Access
materials will be viewing or reading, while Open Source materials are available
for modification of the underlying software. For instance, Linux
is an open source operating system, while the The
Turkish Online Journal of Distance Education is an open access journal.
Why should the Distance Learning, and the general Higher Education,
community care about Open Access materials?
- Open Access materials can be excellent resources to supplement online library
materials. Many scholarly and peer-review journals have opened their back
issues as open access, and others have converted partially or totally to open
access for all issues.
- Open Access materials can often be used when copyright restrictions might
prevent the use of "traditional" materials in an online setting.
While Open Access materials are, for the most part, still under copyright
by their creators, most academic and educational use is permitted without
permission. Even if copying is not permitted, open materials can usually be
linked from an online syllabus or reading list. Be sure to check the
copyright or permissions statement before use.
- By Educators, For Educators - Many of the Open Access materials highlighted
in these pages have been created specifically for educational use.
What sorts of materials are available?
Many sources have more than one type of document, just as a print journal may
also publish conference papers or technical papers. Be sure to check in other
categories, especially the General/Mixed Media category.
- General/mixed media repositories or guides
- audio/visual resources, megasites, and guides to further resources.
- Journals - either full open access or open
access to back issues.
- Books - while many of the open access texts
available on the Internet are also public domain, many authors and publishers
have released full or partial versions of current works. For some this is
an advertising scheme to create demand for print versions, while others are
more interested in presenting their content to the widest possible audience.
Links to collections of theses and dissertations are also included.
- Conference proceedings - proceedings
are awkward and expensive to publish, and generally there is only a small
audience. Internet publishing has allowed conference sponsors and authors
to present materials at a much lower cost and at the same time reach a wider
audience.
- Teaching materials - slides, tutorials,
graphics, textbooks, etc.
Further information on Open Access in general:
Rebecca Hedreen
Distance Education Librarian
©2004 Southern Connecticut State University
