From: Rick Anderson <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Fri, 26 Jun 2015 03:37:41 +0000

I definitely agree that preprints aren’t as good as the final
manuscript. But since the publisher has added value to the final
manuscript, it does seem reasonable to me that the publisher be able
to impose some kind of embargo on access to that version — especially
if the author is able to share the preprint (and therefore the content
of the research report) freely.

With that in mind, it still does look to me like the net effect of
Elsevier’s new sharing policy is greater openness and sharability. But
I guess to some degree that evaluation is going to be a subjective
matter.

---
Rick Anderson
Assoc. Dean for Scholarly Resources & Collections
Marriott Library, University of Utah
Desk: (801) 587-9989
Cell: (801) 721-1687
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From: David Prosser <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Thu, 25 Jun 2015 12:42:35 +0000

Rick

Yes, it does appear that authors can share their pre-prints widely
(with some caveats based on individual journals):

http://www.elsevier.com/about/company-information/policies/sharing

My personal view is that having access to preprints is better than
having access to nothing, but not as good as having access to the
final manuscript. For some readers I’m sure just having access to the
pre-print will be sufficient.  And we know that there is great
reluctance in some subject areas to sharing preprints - in those cases
Elsevier’s new policy will definitely reduce overall sharing.

David