Access to journal holdings expands

Academe, Sep/Oct 1999

ITS NAME MAY SOUND LIKE JUST another new Internet retailer, but JStor, short for "journal storage," is a nonprofit organization whose work is rooted in the dusty world of academic journal archives. Its database of keyword-searchable and Internetaccessible journal contents, soon to encompass 117 titles, is becoming a coveted resource among researchers on campuses nationwide.

Begun in 1994 with support from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, JStor's database of journal holdings stretches back well into the nineteenth century. By the end of 1999, the list of journals JStor expects to have online will include everything from recondite philosophy sources to ethnic studies quarterlies. To gain access to holdings, colleges and universities or other institutions, such as libraries, register with the organization. Then-using the JStor Web site, , and a designated password-researchers at that institution can access the JStor stacks.

Five hundred institutions had subscribed to JStor as of last July. JStor lists initial sign-up fees of between $10,000 and $45,000 and annual enrollment charges of between $2,000 and $5,000, depending on the size of an institution.