Users request articles by tweeting an article's title, DOI or other linked information like a publisher's link,[5] their email address, and the hashtag "#ICanHazPDF". Someone who has access to the article might then email it to them. The user then deletes the original tweet.[6] Alternatively, users who do not wish to post their email address in the clear can use direct messaging to exchange contact information with a volunteer who has offered to share the article of interest.
Use and popularity
The practice amounts to copyright infringement in numerous countries,[6] and so is arguably part of the 'black open access' trend.[7] The majority of requests are for articles published in the last five years, and most users are from English-speaking countries.[1] Requests for biology papers are more common than papers in other fields, despite subscription prices for chemistry, physics, and astronomy being, on average, higher than for biology.[1] Possible reasons for people to use the hashtag include the reluctance of readers to pay for article access and the speed of the process compared to most university interlibrary loans.[1]
