Editorial

Old habits are hard to change

Sami Borg May 2002

When presenting the Archive and its functions, I find myself convincing people. It seems that although FSD's basic services are cost-free, and in that sense there are no proper vendors and buyers involved, we still need to "sell" FSD to both the depositors and the secondary users.

I believe that the selling is best realised by pointing out the indisputable advantages which result from data archiving. For instance, FSD sees to data usability, an aspect which researchers themselves often neglect as new projects press on. Archiving also supports openness in science, and enhances international comparative research. It ensures that the Finnish research works are accessible not only to Finns, but also to the international scientific community.

Old habits are hard to change, and this seems to apply to adapting new modes of operation within the scientific world. Although dramatic changes can hardly be expected to happen in a year or two, FSD has made a promising start. The ever expanding data holdings promise good for the future. We have also been pleased to notice that the number of foreign access applications is steadily increasing.

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