1. Publishing Papers© Dr. Ayman Abdel-Hamid, CS5014, Fall 2006 1 CS5014 Research Methods in CS Dr. Ayman Abdel-Hamid Computer Science Department Virginia Tech Publishing Papers

2. © Dr. Ayman Abdel-Hamid, CS5014, Fall 2006 2 Outline Publishing Papers When to publish? Where to publish? Mechanics Resubmission Mechanics for Paper Handling Some of the material is based on Dr. Cliff Shaffer’s Notes for CS5014. Department of Computer Science, Virginia Tech

3. Publishing Papers© Dr. Ayman Abdel-Hamid, CS5014, Fall 2006 3 When to Publish? Tradeoffs  More papers is better (least publishable unit)  More content per paper is better  A paper can only be so long  A paper has to be “ready" and “enough" Paper lifecycle  Possible interim (internal) reports, meetings minutes, emails  Technical report  Conference paper (possibly more than one)  Journal paper

4. Publishing Papers© Dr. Ayman Abdel-Hamid, CS5014, Fall 2006 4 Where to Publish? Some Order  Journals have a quality hierarchy  Conferences have a quality hierarchy  Generally, journals outrank conferences  Other considerations: Books (and book chapters), invited papers Citation rates is one measure of quality Generally, it only “counts" if it is refereed What affects probability of success?  Appropriateness for the audience  Acceptance rate (10-50% typically)  See http://www.cs.ucsb.edu/~almeroth/conf/stats/

5. Publishing Papers© Dr. Ayman Abdel-Hamid, CS5014, Fall 2006 5 Mechanics 1/2 Some venues take longer than others  Conferences have submission date (special issues?)  Journals  outrageous amount of time to review and publish Each venue normally has specs to meet  Where is it sent?  number of copies; paper vs. electronic submission  Layout? These specs might be vague, or highly constrained Cover letter: what venue, who is point of contact, potential changes of address, relationship to prior publication

6. Publishing Papers© Dr. Ayman Abdel-Hamid, CS5014, Fall 2006 6 Mechanics 2/2 Getting reviews, revising, negotiate with editor Copy editing  Set to house style  Style edit (magazines vs. journals) Proofs  they always contain errors  carefully revise

7. Publishing Papers© Dr. Ayman Abdel-Hamid, CS5014, Fall 2006 7 Resubmission When resubmitting a paper for re-review,  include a letter  list in detail each of the points raised by the editor and reviewers  Hopefully the points are “addressed" in the rewrite. On occasion, the author might instead justify why the change should not/was not made Clarify what parts of the paper have been changed, and how? Be sure to make clear on the revised copy that it is the revised version. Depending on the situation, the editor might or might not have the revised paper re-reviewed.

8. Publishing Papers© Dr. Ayman Abdel-Hamid, CS5014, Fall 2006 8 Mechanics of Paper Handling 1/2 Manuscript sent by author to journal editor Number assigned to manuscript by publication staff Manuscript sent to editor-in-chief Manuscript assigned/sent to member of editorial board (editor). Sometimes this person is an area editor Editor sends paper to 2-4 reviewers, along with a proposed deadline and reviewing guidelines/forms Editor reminds reviewers that reviews are past due!

9. Publishing Papers© Dr. Ayman Abdel-Hamid, CS5014, Fall 2006 9 Mechanics of Paper Handling 2/2 Editor receives reviews from reviewers Editor makes decision (or sends to editor-in-chief for decision)  Accept  Accept with minor revision  Require rewrite with re-review  Reject Six months is typical for this process (one iteration)