To provide an insider's review of the journal management and publishing software, Open Journal Systems (OJS), from the Public Knowledge Project, which the author directs at the…
Abstract
Purpose
To provide an insider's review of the journal management and publishing software, Open Journal Systems (OJS), from the Public Knowledge Project, which the author directs at the University of British Columbia.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper outlines the history, development, and features of OJS, including some of the experimental aspects, as well as early research results and work underway, on which it is based.
Findings
OJS (http://pkp.sfu.ca/ojs) is an open source solution to managing and publishing scholarly journals online, which can reduce publishing costs compared to print and other traditional publishing processes. It is a highly flexible editor‐operated journal management and publishing system that can be downloaded for free and installed on a local web server.
Originality/value
OJS has been designed to reduce the time and energy devoted to the clerical and managerial tasks associated with editing a journal, while improving the record keeping and efficiency of editorial processes. It seeks to improve the scholarly and public quality of journal publishing through a number of innovations, from making journal policies more transparent to improving indexing.
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Rick Kopak and Chia‐Ning Chiang
The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of a set of reader‐oriented tools developed as part of an open source journal production and access system.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of a set of reader‐oriented tools developed as part of an open source journal production and access system.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper outlines key elements of the reading tools component of Open Journal Systems (OJS). A design rationale is provided, and related to the key elements of the system. The philosophy behind the development of the reading tools is described, and relevant published research in support of the design is presented.
Findings
OJS (http://pkp.sfu.ca/ojs) is a web‐based, open source editing, management, and production application designed for publication of scholarly journals online. The reading tools developed for OJS are a useful addition to the feature set of OJS, providing journal readers with a richer reading environment, promote active reading, and increase the level of critical engagement with journal article content.
Practical implications
Readers may find that the tools described, as well as the larger system of which they are a part, could be usefully adopted in their own institutional context.
Originality/value
This paper provides an introduction to the design philosophy behind a reader‐oriented set of tools that will be of interest to those engaged in online reading research, and information interaction design. It will also be of value to those interested in open access, as well as those interested in open source software development.
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Taylor Price and Antony Puddephatt
Open access publishing is an increasingly popular trend in the dissemination of academic work, allowing journals to print articles electronically and without the burden of…
Abstract
Open access publishing is an increasingly popular trend in the dissemination of academic work, allowing journals to print articles electronically and without the burden of subscription paywalls, enabling much wider access for audiences. Yet subscription-based journals remain the most dominant in the social sciences and humanities, and it is often a struggle for newer open access publications to compete, in terms of economic, cultural, and symbolic capital (Bourdieu, 2004). Our study explores the meanings of resistance held by the editors of open access journals in the social sciences and humanities in Canada, as well as the views of university librarians. To make sense of these meanings, we draw on Lonnie Athens’ (2015) radical interactionist account of power, and expand on this by incorporating George Herbert Mead’s (1932, 1938) theory of emergence, arguing that open access is characteristic of an “extended rationality” (Chang, 2004) for those involved. Drawing on our open-ended interview data, we find that open access is experienced as a form of resistance in at least four ways. These include resistance to (1) profit motives in academic publishing; (2) access barriers for audiences; (3) access barriers for contributors; and (4) traditional publishing conventions.
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Bronwen Sprout and Mark Jordan
This paper aims to discuss the public knowledge project (PKP) preservation network (PN), which provides free preservation services for eligible journals by collecting article…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to discuss the public knowledge project (PKP) preservation network (PN), which provides free preservation services for eligible journals by collecting article content and preserving it in a network of (at the time of writing) eight “preservation nodes” using the LOCKSS system. The PKP PN was launched in June 2016.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper addresses the development and implementation of a free, distributed digital PN for open journal systems (OJS) content. It discusses challenges in developing the network, in particular relating to preserving content from a set of partners who have no formal business relationship with PKP. The paper examines data regarding journals that have opted in to the network to date and considers interface usability and other barriers facing those that have not joined.
Findings
Within 18 months of launch, more than 600 journals had opted to be preserved in the PKP PN. Many more journals are eligible to join the network; the paper explores potential strategies to increase participation and identifies and proposes methods to overcome technical and communication barriers.
Originality/value
This paper describes a highly collaborative, open-source preservation initiative which forms a unique part of the e-journal preservation landscape and preserves a particularly vulnerable portion of the scholarly record.
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Ritu Nagpal and N. Radhakrishnan
The environments of the library under open access (OA) are distinctively found as less expensive which ultimately reciprocates better services and technological support for the…
Abstract
Purpose
The environments of the library under open access (OA) are distinctively found as less expensive which ultimately reciprocates better services and technological support for the users as well. Focussing on the Librarians’ perspective, the purpose of the study is to highlight and establish a balance between the vision of OA initiatives and the support of Librarians in India. The principal and philosophy of the study are based upon the exploration of open source initiatives and their significance among the Library & Information Science community.
Design/methodology/approach
The study reflects the historical perspective of OA in India and around the world. The study further focusses on how the OA movement has taken a leap in adaptability by the librarians on the basis of acceptance model given. Considering the reviews of the librarians, the study reflects the librarians support OA initiatives in India. OA is a “provocation to thought”, it is a “social contract”.
Findings
Exploring beyond the researchers have come across that OA is a belief where knowledge evolves best when shared. Based on the acceptance the study given significant. It describes the librarian’s attitude while embracing the OA model with an increased acceptance towards OA, which supports in building Institutional Repositories and broadening the research horizons based on budgetary implications. The librarians and libraries adopt and work to build up a resilient model for OA to bring out awareness among the users.
Research limitations/implications
The scope of the study is limited to Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana. The focus of the study is purposely laid down on the three given states of India keeping in mind Delhi being a capital city of India, Uttar Pradesh being the largest state of India (area wise) and Haryana state, which opened up multiple educational opportunities for the students and researchers Rajiv Gandhi Educational city plans to host many educational institutions including medical and engineering institutions.
Practical implications
The study describes the librarian’s attitude while embracing the OA model with an increased acceptance towards the OA, which supports in building Institutional Repositories and broadening the research horizons based on budgetary implications. The librarians and libraries adopt and work to build up a resilient model for OA to bring out awareness among the users.
Social implications
The present study brings out the need of different policies and mandates by Government of India for OA along with University Grants Commission, National Knowledge Commission and Research Organisation to promote the culture of OA. The study further recommends that LIS communities come together and build the learning culture to promote limitless sharing of information and knowledge for scholarly society.
Originality/value
This research work aims to make a difference in highlighting the librarians’ support on OA initiatives in India due to the role of librarians on transitional point. Dissemination and management of information using digital technology during pandemic have had a significant impact on divided environment. With this paradigm shift, the world struggles with the pandemic. The librarians try to keep themselves in pace by embracing the technology and LIS professionals do adopt the radical reventure the info technology.
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The astonishing thing about Wikipedia is that despite the way it is produced, the product is as good as it is and not far worse. But this is no reason for complacency. As others…
Abstract
Purpose
The astonishing thing about Wikipedia is that despite the way it is produced, the product is as good as it is and not far worse. But this is no reason for complacency. As others have documented, Wikipedia has representational blind spots, produced by the nature of its editorial community and their discursive conventions. This article wishes to look at the potential effect of sources on certain of these blind spots.
Design/methodology/approach
The author used an extended example, the Wikipedia article on the Philippine–American War, to illustrate the unfortunate effects that accompany a lack of attention to the kind of sources used to produce narratives for the online encyclopaedia. The Philippine–American War article was chosen because of its importance to American history. The war brought to the fore a debate over the future of the USA and the legitimacy of a republic acquiring overseas colonies. It remains controversial today, making it essential that its representation on Wikipedia is soundly constructed.
Findings
Inattention to sources (a lack of bibliographical imagination) produces representational anomalies. Certain sources are privileged when they should not be and others are ignored or considered as sub-standard. Overall, the epistemological boundaries of the article in terms of what the editorial community considers reliable and what the community of scholars producing knowledge about the war think as reliable do not overlap to the extent that they should. The resulting narrative is therefore less rich than it otherwise could be.
Originality/value
While there exists a growing literature on the representational blind spots of Wikipedia (gender, class, geographical region and so on), the focus has been on the composition of the demographics of the editorial community. But equally important to the problem of representation are the sources used by that community. Much literature has been written that seeks to portray the social world of the marginalized, but it is not used on Wikipedia, despite it easily meeting the criteria for reliability set by the Wikipedia community. This is a tragic oversight that makes Wikipedia's aim to be a repository for the knowledge of the world, a laudable goal to strive for, even if in reality unobtainable, even harder to achieve than ever.
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Aleksandra Pavlovic and Stela Filipi Matutinovic
The purpose of this paper is to describe the developing constraints on the use of commercial electronically published material and in contrast the development of the open access…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to describe the developing constraints on the use of commercial electronically published material and in contrast the development of the open access movement. This and the situation for interlending and document supply are seen through the perspective of Serbia.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper takes a historical and descriptive approach.
Findings
Open Access is increasing in value for researchers, especially those for whom budgets are very tight. Document supply is becoming more constrained by the electronic and technical advances that have been made by publishers.
Originality/value
This is the first article in English to describe the global situation on these matters from a Serbian perspective. It also offers insights into the situation in Serbian libraries today.