  The main contributors of scientific knowledge, researchers, generally aim to
disseminate their findings far and wide. And yet, publishing companies have
largely kept these findings behind a paywall. With digital publication
technology markedly reducing cost, this enduring wall seems disproportionate
and unjustified; moreover, it has sparked a topical exchange concerning how to
modernize academic publishing. This discussion, however, seems to focus on how
to compensate major publishers for providing open access through a "pay to
publish" model, in turn transferring financial burdens from libraries to
authors and their funders. Large publishing companies, including Elsevier,
Springer Nature, Wiley, PLoS, and Frontiers, continue to earn exorbitant
revenues each year, hundreds of millions of dollars of which now come from
processing charges for open-access articles. A less expensive and equally
accessible alternative exists: widespread self-archiving of peer-reviewed
articles. All we need is awareness of this alternative and the will to employ
it
