This new website lets you upload documents and pdfs to your hearts content so you can publish all your articles yourself.
There is one in the eye for mean editors who refuse to publish your work!! But anyway, just to test out how it works, I have uploaded an article that is already published in elearning. It’s about Flickr. I wrote it, but is it against the rules for me to put this online? Does anyone know? Is it mine to put up? (I know I should know the answer to this question.)
Click here to read.
So anyway I like the idea of being able to make all my writing (including chapters etc) online. But I am unsure about coptright rules if the stuff is laready published.
(A dull answer) It depends on what contract you signed with the publisher. If you didn’t sign any contract handing over rights, then the copyright in the CONTENT is yours to do with as you think fit. However, if the publisher did the layout and design of the article, then they would have copyright in that manifestation of the article. So, withiout asking them, you could put up your own version of the text, but you ought to ask them if you are putting up the version they designed. If you did sign a contract passing on copyright to the publisher, then they have rights in accordance with that. The contracts still vary a lot, and some publishers will be OK if you add something extra or cross something on the contract, and some won’t. Usually you can find the standard contract on the publisher’s website.
That leaves aside the issue of whether the U of Sheffield could claim that “writing academic articles” was part of our job description, as legally, if that is the case, the copyright belongs to them (e.g. salaried journalists’ articles belong to the newspaper, freelance journalists own the copyright unless they sign it away). However even in these times Universities are not (mostly) trying to assert that they do have the rights, yet…..
Sheila
Comment by Sheila — March 21, 2007 @ 10:35 am
Ah thanks so much Sheila for explaining that is really kind of you and it is very clear now what I have to do …. I will have a look on the journal website!
Comment by DrJoolz — March 21, 2007 @ 10:47 pm
I can understand how that would be useful for you academics. Sorry I haven’t been around much lately. I have been around, just in body and not necessarily in spirit.
Comment by Chris — April 12, 2007 @ 9:32 am