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Challenges for Scientific Editors Challenges for Scientific Editors in the Electronic Erain the Electronic Era

Hooman Momen

Editor

Bulletin of the World Health Organization

October 2002

IntroductionIntroduction

Editors in developing countries need to be knowledgeable about :– Business management / administration – Printing and publishing – Graphic design and typography– Author and reader’s demands– Marketing and dissemination

Good editing skills

October 2002

Electronic ChallengeElectronic Challenge

Awareness of latest develop-ments in IT– Basic office tools– Web skills– Internet

technologies– Hardware etc.

More polyvalent than ever

October 2002

E-only JournalsE-only Journals

Low acceptance– Readers– Authors– Libraries

Print preferred for readingOpportunities– New generation– Specific disciplines/ situations

October 2002

Challenges - User behaviourChallenges - User behaviour

Understand needs and demands of authors and readers

Potential synergies– Increasing demand for open access

Potential conflicts– Authors want to publish more

• promotion / funding / tenure

– Readers want to read less• Information overload

October 2002

Reader’s demandsReader’s demands

Access– Cheap ( afford able)– Barrier free / fast

Relevant to needs and interestAbility to browse and searchQuality and authorityConvenience– need to be able to find what they want

October 2002

How to attract readersHow to attract readers

Seamless integration– Cross-linking references

Alerting readers– e-TOC

Visibility– Good metadata

Free full text– abstracts at least

October 2002

Author’s needsAuthor’s needs

Peer review– rigorous and transparent

Good editingRapid publication– efficient editorial office

Impact– Both indicators and readership

Archiving

October 2002

How to attract authorsHow to attract authors

On-line submission– elimination of paper copies

Fast review Open access Author friendly copyright– All use is fair use– Retain integrity/ avoid misappropriation

Advanced on-line publication

October 2002

Challenges - Editorial OfficeChallenges - Editorial Office

On-line submission– Manuscript tracking

systems

– Peer review

Electronic production– Which software

– Which format• PDF, HTML, XML ?

October 2002

Challenges - indicatorsChallenges - indicators

New indicators possible– Pages visited– Files downloaded– Least visited/downloaded articles

Usage measures quantityHow to measure value– Academic community– Policy makers– Public

October 2002

Challenges - MetadataChallenges - Metadata

Increasing importance– Determines the use of the information

Standardisation– Who will impose standards?– How will standards be imposed?– Will authors stick to the rules?– Who will be responsible for quality

control?

October 2002

Challenges - Web- siteChallenges - Web- site

Well-designed– Informative and

user-friendly

– Easy to find• Search engines• Portals

– Interactive

– Well linked• References• Other information

sources

October 2002

Web StatisticsWeb Statistics

Who is visiting?– Subscribers/members– Public

Where do they come from?–Which countries–Which sites

Which search engines do they use?Which search terms are they using?

October 2002

Challenges - AccessChallenges - Access

Open access– What readers and authors want

Many different models– Biomedcentral. com– SciELO– HINARI– Freemedicaljournals.com– etc.

October 2002

Challenges - Non-textChallenges - Non-text

Integration of text and non-text items– genome sequences, crystallographic

data, software tools, statistical data, etc. Peer review of non-text itemsIndicesDivergence between disciplines– each subject area will increasingly rely

on a broader variety of digitized data

October 2002

Challenges - LibrariesChallenges - Libraries

Consortia deals– High cost for single

e-subscriptions

Archiving– Which is the

definitive copy

– Who has responsibility

– Authors want renown / immortality

October 2002

The On-line VisionThe On-line Vision

Problems– Increasing

submissions– Higher prices– Falling subscriptions

Result– Less access due to

higher prices causing vicious circle

Solution– Unlimited space– lower costs– Free or low price

for user

Result– More material more

widely available

October 2002

Financial ChallengeFinancial Challenge

Cost of technology – Hardware/software

Continue financing same editorial costs

Savings from print are limitedOpen access Web-site can pose

threats to revenueUnstable software environment

October 2002

Financing OptionsFinancing Options

Open access charge– Replace page charges and reprints

Sponsorship / Funding– By government / research agency /

Institution / private sectorSale of add-ons and auxiliary servicesBe careful of barriers– Pay per view

October 2002

Challenges - EthicalChallenges - Ethical

– Increased possibilities for misconduct e.g. • Plagiarism

• Integrity of digital data

– Also provides new tools for detection of misbehaviour• PubMed see related

articles

• Specialized sites

October 2002

Future ChallengesFuture Challenges

Will the internet remain affordable?Will journals be deconstructed ?Will authors self-archive articles ?Will reviewers continue to referee

articles for free ?Will articles remain 2 dimensional ?– 3D, audio, video, databases

Will open access become standard ?

October 2002

Most Important ChallengesMost Important Challenges

Improve the editorial content of the Journal

Guarantee the quality, integrity and confidentiality of the review process

Improve the quality of the research in the field and not only of the manuscripts

October 2002

Keep up-to-date on developmentsKeep up-to-date on developments

Join discussion groups– WAME - L– EASE - L

Subscribe to professional journalsAttend workshops and seminarsParticipate int conferences– Such as this