# Good old days?

## TL;DR

The paper discusses the rise of open access in scholarly publishing and its potential impact on biomedical digital libraries.

## Contribution

The paper explores new models of subsidizing scholarly publishing through open access in the context of biomedical digital libraries.

## Key findings

- Open Access is gaining momentum as an alternative to traditional scholarly publishing models.
- Biomedical digital library researchers may need to adapt to a new era of Open Access to ensure self-sufficiency.
- There is a growing recognition of the necessity of open access peer-reviewed literature.

## Abstract

Alternative models of subsidizing scholarly publishing and dissemination have germinated and gathered momentum in the fertile soil of dissatisfaction. Like the stubborn spring dandelion that needs but a small crack in the sidewalk to flower boldly, the first flowers of Open Access in library literature, including Biomedical Digital Libraries, have sensed their opportunity to change the existing paradigm of giving away our scholarship and intellectual property, only to buy it back for the privilege of knowing it can be read. Will biomedical digital library and informatics researchers understand their role in a new era of Open Access simply by desiring an immediate uninhibited global audience and recognizing the necessity of open access peer-reviewed literature to become self-sufficient?