Researchgate: A Scholar's Companion

ResearchGate appeared 15 years ago and has since become a useful and essential scholar's companion. Researchers can retrieve relevant articles by author, identify those of interest, and follow their research in order to receive timely material. They can also find articles by topic, and in many cases, articles are available full-text. Additionally, ResearchGate has given scholars the exposure that they need for promotion and tenure. Unlike many library-based retrieval systems, ResearchGate is easy to use and is not protected by a firewall; any university affiliated scholar can develop a scholar profile. Unfortunately, some scholars are finding that it is easier and faster to publish their manuscripts on ResearchGate, and this could change the already volatile publishing industry in numerous ways. Librarians, students, and scholars need to be aware of ResearchGate and how it can impact the use of library-supplied databases.