An open letter to JSTOR...
Dear JSTOR,
I know that we have a long, complicated history and that, for the most part, our relationship has been one-sided because you continue to give and give, even when I have offered you nothing in return. I apologize for that and accept my faults. I will even tell you that I'll try harder to contribute more. But, I still think we should discuss your insecurities.
I want you to understand and accept that I am not going to use your PDFs for any purposes other than simple, straightforward research. You don't need to bring it up every time we're together. I'm sure your fears are legitimate, if only because those that have come before me have taken advantage of you and you are desperate to avoid being exploited again. I know that you just want to be recognized and appreciated for all that you do. But you need to trust me the first time I tell you that I'm not like the others. I know that up until this point, I haven't necessarily given you a reason to trust me, but I also have not given you a reason to doubt me. It's not fair for you to ask me to make up for the transgressions of your other users or to try to preemptively avoid the kind of pain that you have heard about other journal storage systems suffering through. You won't even let me have full access to you if I haven't put on my edu address first! It's too much!
So, please, JSTOR, accept me for who I am - a dedicated and loyal partner. I will take care of you. Remember how supportive I was about you becoming friends with Google scholar? It's because I trust you with other users and only want you to be as happy as you can be! I'm just asking for the same in return. There is no other archive system like you in the world, JSTOR, and I feel blessed for every day that I get to spend with you, but this relationship can not move forward if every time I try to get close to you, you force me to agree to operate only on your terms and conditions. I want us to have a relationship that isn't centered around restrictions, but rather, a shared, desperate love for useless information.
With all that I am,
jenn
p.s. The Journal of Raman Spectroscopy wanted me to say Hello and tell you that he's totally over what happened between the two of you if you ever want to talk again...
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Dear JSTOR,
I know that we have a long, complicated history and that, for the most part, our relationship has been one-sided because you continue to give and give, even when I have offered you nothing in return. I apologize for that and accept my faults. I will even tell you that I'll try harder to contribute more. But, I still think we should discuss your insecurities.
I want you to understand and accept that I am not going to use your PDFs for any purposes other than simple, straightforward research. You don't need to bring it up every time we're together. I'm sure your fears are legitimate, if only because those that have come before me have taken advantage of you and you are desperate to avoid being exploited again. I know that you just want to be recognized and appreciated for all that you do. But you need to trust me the first time I tell you that I'm not like the others. I know that up until this point, I haven't necessarily given you a reason to trust me, but I also have not given you a reason to doubt me. It's not fair for you to ask me to make up for the transgressions of your other users or to try to preemptively avoid the kind of pain that you have heard about other journal storage systems suffering through. You won't even let me have full access to you if I haven't put on my edu address first! It's too much!
So, please, JSTOR, accept me for who I am - a dedicated and loyal partner. I will take care of you. Remember how supportive I was about you becoming friends with Google scholar? It's because I trust you with other users and only want you to be as happy as you can be! I'm just asking for the same in return. There is no other archive system like you in the world, JSTOR, and I feel blessed for every day that I get to spend with you, but this relationship can not move forward if every time I try to get close to you, you force me to agree to operate only on your terms and conditions. I want us to have a relationship that isn't centered around restrictions, but rather, a shared, desperate love for useless information.
With all that I am,
jenn
p.s. The Journal of Raman Spectroscopy wanted me to say Hello and tell you that he's totally over what happened between the two of you if you ever want to talk again...
Subscribe in a reader
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