1. October 20021 Challenges for Scientific Editors in the Electronic Era Hooman Momen Editor Bulletin of the World Health Organization

2. October 2002 Introduction 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

3. October 2002 Electronic Challenge Awareness of latest develop- ments in IT – Basic office tools – Web skills – Internet technologies – Hardware etc. More polyvalent than ever

4. October 2002 E-only Journals Low acceptance –Readers –Authors –Libraries Print preferred for reading Opportunities – New generation – Specific disciplines/ situations

5. October 2002 Challenges - 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

6. October 2002 Reader’s demands Access –Cheap ( afford able) –Barrier free / fast Relevant to needs and interest Ability to browse and search Quality and authority Convenience –need to be able to find what they want

7. October 2002 How to attract readers Seamless integration –Cross-linking references Alerting readers –e-TOC Visibility –Good metadata Free full text –abstracts at least

8. October 2002 Author’s needs Peer review –rigorous and transparent Good editing Rapid publication – efficient editorial office Impact –Both indicators and readership Archiving

9. October 2002 How 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

10. October 2002 Challenges - Editorial Office On-line submission –Manuscript tracking systems –Peer review Electronic production – Which software – Which format PDF, HTML, XML ?

11. October 2002 Challenges - indicators New indicators possible – Pages visited – Files downloaded – Least visited/downloaded articles Usage measures quantity How to measure value – Academic community – Policy makers – Public

12. October 2002 Challenges - 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?

13. October 2002 Challenges - Web- site Challenges - Web- site Well-designed – Informative and user-friendly – Easy to find Search engines Portals – Interactive – Well linked References Other information sources

14. October 2002 Web 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?

15. October 2002 Challenges - Access Challenges - Access Open access – What readers and authors want Many different models –Biomedcentral. com –SciELO –HINARI –Freemedicaljournals.com –etc.

16. October 2002 Challenges - Non-text Integration of text and non-text items –genome sequences, crystallographic data, software tools, statistical data, etc. Peer review of non-text items Indices Divergence between disciplines – each subject area will increasingly rely on a broader variety of digitized data

17. October 2002 Challenges - Libraries Consortia deals –High cost for single e-subscriptions Archiving –Which is the definitive copy –Who has responsibility –Authors want renown / immortality

18. October 2002 The 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

19. October 2002 Financial Challenge Cost of technology –Hardware/software Continue financing same editorial costs Savings from print are limited Open access Web-site can pose threats to revenue Unstable software environment

20. October 2002 Financing Options Open access charge –Replace page charges and reprints Sponsorship / Funding – By government / research agency / Institution / private sector Sale of add-ons and auxiliary services Be careful of barriers –Pay per view

21. October 2002 Challenges - 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

22. October 2002 Future 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 ?

23. October 2002 Most 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

24. October 2002 Keep up-to-date on developments Join discussion groups – WAME - L – EASE - L Subscribe to professional journals Attend workshops and seminars Participate int conferences – Such as this