I would argue that the practice of making papers available at conferences varies a great deal, actually. Some conferences that I attend (ICA; AEJMC) have a room set aside as a "paper distribution center" and people are expected to deposit multiple copies of their paper there, which are then actually sold (50 cents each) to interested others. Of course, these organizations also require full paper submissions for review. Other conferences/organizations (SCS; Console-ing Passions) do not provide any expectations of paper distribution, and (perhaps coincidentally) do not expect full paper submissions- instead abstracts are required. I would challenge the idea that paper authors are merely "sitting" on their research--they have probably sent the paper out for peer-review somewhere, and hope desperately to get it published to share with the scholarly community. Finally, not to sound harsh myself, but statements like "it's not that hard to..." in relation to asking for things for free could also be joined with an offer to volunteer and help in the creation of such materials. AoIR is a non-profit organization, and I believe the unpaid executive board works very hard as it is-- Mia -- Mia Consalvo, Ph.D. 213 RTVC School of Telecommunications 9 South College Street Ohio University Athens, OH 45701 (740) 597-1521 consalvo@ohio.edu