Comments on: Why I’m Evaluating ResearchGate

By: AC Sparavigna (@acarspar)

AC Sparavigna (@acarspar) — Mon, 06 May 2013 08:46:40 +0000

Researchgate solved quickly (6 may, 2013) the problem! Now all is OK!
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By: AC Sparavigna (@acarspar)

AC Sparavigna (@acarspar) — Sun, 05 May 2013 17:04:26 +0000

I consider an evaluation of Researchgate necessary.
After receiving several e-mails in a day, I decided yesterday (may 4, 2013) to remove myself from RESEARCHGATE. https://www.researchgate.net/ Today (may 5), I see that several of my papers, with author’s name A Sparavigna (affiliation Politecnico di Torino), coauthors Marazzato and Omini, have been automatically assigned to another researchgate user (Adele Sparavigna).
This means that I must enter Researchgate again and request all my papers!!!!
I suppose that this can happen to several other authors.

By: MikeS

MikeS — Wed, 01 May 2013 13:29:06 +0000

Frankly, I find ResearchGate to be hit and miss and very, VERY sloppy in how it reflects research output and impact. After a long time it still only lists about half my peer reviewed publications (missing out on many of my key publications). When it asks me to update my publication list I have to wade through an enormous number of stupid suggestions. Google Scholar almost never gets it wrong, and when it does get it wrong it is very easy to delete the incorrect papers. My feeling is that ResearchGate is trying to be some kind of Facebook for Science, but without the rigor that we need in Science. I am wary. I also worry about how it encourages someone to become a “follower”. for some time I thought I was being stalked, then I found out I was also ‘following’ all these other people that I had no intention of ‘following’. Pressing the wrong button might be a trap made easy. So be careful. If you want other people to know you are ‘following’ them, first ask yourself how they would interpret the message that they are being ‘followed’.

By: Erik

Erik — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 09:36:45 +0000

I just added researchgate.net to my blacklist. Most “innocent” researchers using researchgate create spam mail to their colleagues by the default settings of the researchgate proselytizing system.

By: Brian Kelly (UK Web Focus)

Brian Kelly (UK Web Focus) — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 17:16:34 +0000

Hmm, looking at my settings in more detail it seems invitations were sent on my behalf inviting co-authors to subscribe to ResearchGate.

By: Brian Kelly (UK Web Focus)

Brian Kelly (UK Web Focus) — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 17:01:43 +0000

Thanks for the comment. I've looked at my settings for ResearchGate. As described in the link you mentioned "You can turn off the option by unchecking 'settings'->'track invitations you sent'->'invite my co-authors to ResearchGate'". In my case, this was already unchecked. I wonder if they have changed the default setting, so that new users will find that messages are being sent to their co-authors? This type of behaviour (sending alerts to others, by default) seems to be the norm for increasing numbers of social services. Unfortunate, I would agree, but as long as this can be disabled, this is more of an educational issue.

By: Yen Zotto

Yen Zotto — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 16:46:21 +0000

Btw, here’s a pretty good detail account of how this works:
http://www.biostars.org/p/63561/

By: Yen Zotto

Yen Zotto — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 16:43:02 +0000

I have very, very strong resentments against ResearchGate.

Here again, actions speak louder than words (in the smallprint you mention), and RG are simply spammers of the worst kind.

For my part, I have never signed up to ResearchGate (never even started a signup procedure, to make this clear). But I keep receiving e-mails advertising RG’s services. These messages have forged “From:” addresses that seem to originate from colleagues I know. In reality the mails are sent by ResearchGate, and my colleagues are completely unaware of the sending.

I do not think it is a good idea to encourage such practice by using ResearchGate’s service.

By: Profiling Use of Third-Party Research Repository Services « UK Web Focus

Profiling Use of Third-Party Research Repository Services « UK Web Focus — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 10:37:19 +0000

[...] Why I’m Evaluating ResearchGate [...]

By: mrudolf

mrudolf — Wed, 06 Feb 2013 14:36:19 +0000

Reblogged this on Rudolf Mumenthaler's Homepage.