Thursday, May 3. 2007
An Exchange Regarding Open Access Journals
This is a reply to an anonymized query:
(2) Nevertheless, it is a good idea to support and promote OA journals if one can.
(3) This particular journal will charge about $1000 to publish, which is within the current going rate for OA journal publication fees.
(4) It is specifically because of this publication charge that OA journals are still premature: Right now, most journals are not OA, and most of the potential institutional funds to pay for publication are currently tied up in paying for it via subscriptions.
(5) This means that for now OA publishing charges are over and above what is already being spent on subscriptions.
(6) $1000 per article is not much for some authors, but a lot for others.
(7) What all authors should be doing is self-archiving their articles, to make them OA.
(8) That will not only provide OA, but it will force subscription journals to cut costs and it may eventually force them to convert to OA publishing (at a much lower price).
(9) The existence of viable OA journals today, however, despite the extra costs (some) entail for authors, helps demonstrate that OA publishing is possible, and refutes the claim by some subscription journals that OA means the destruction of journals.
(10) This, in turn, helps encourage authors to self-archive, and encourages institutions and funders to mandate self-archiving, thereby accelerating the provision of OA (and the eventual transition to OA publishing).
So my advice would be this:
American Scientist Open Access Forum
Identity Deleted:"What do you know about this new journal? [Journal Name deleted](1) OA Journals are a good idea, though a bit premature right now, if the goal is OA: OA can be achieved right now through author self-archiving of articles published in conventional subscription-based journals.
Is it going to be less expensive than other open access journals with their rather hefty fees?"
(2) Nevertheless, it is a good idea to support and promote OA journals if one can.
(3) This particular journal will charge about $1000 to publish, which is within the current going rate for OA journal publication fees.
(4) It is specifically because of this publication charge that OA journals are still premature: Right now, most journals are not OA, and most of the potential institutional funds to pay for publication are currently tied up in paying for it via subscriptions.
(5) This means that for now OA publishing charges are over and above what is already being spent on subscriptions.
(6) $1000 per article is not much for some authors, but a lot for others.
(7) What all authors should be doing is self-archiving their articles, to make them OA.
(8) That will not only provide OA, but it will force subscription journals to cut costs and it may eventually force them to convert to OA publishing (at a much lower price).
(9) The existence of viable OA journals today, however, despite the extra costs (some) entail for authors, helps demonstrate that OA publishing is possible, and refutes the claim by some subscription journals that OA means the destruction of journals.(10) This, in turn, helps encourage authors to self-archive, and encourages institutions and funders to mandate self-archiving, thereby accelerating the provision of OA (and the eventual transition to OA publishing).
So my advice would be this:
(a) If you would otherwise have agreed to serve on the editorial board of a journal like this, then the fact that it is an OA journal should be another point in its favour.Stevan Harnad
(b) If you were submitting an article to a new journal like this, then the fact that it is an OA journal should be another point in its favour -- if you can afford the publishing charges.
(c) Self-archive all articles you publish in any case, and make sure your institution mandates self-archiving.
American Scientist Open Access Forum
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The American Scientist Open Access Forum has been chronicling and often directing the course of progress in providing Open Access to Universities' Peer-Reviewed Research Articles since its inception in the US in 1998 by the American Scientist, published by the Sigma Xi Society.
The American Scientist Open Access Forum has been chronicling and often directing the course of progress in providing Open Access to Universities' Peer-Reviewed Research Articles since its inception in the US in 1998 by the American Scientist, published by the Sigma Xi Society.
The Forum is largely for policy-makers at universities, research institutions and research funding agencies worldwide who are interested in institutional Open Acess Provision policy. (It is not a general discussion group for serials, pricing or publishing issues: it is specifically focussed on institutional Open Acess policy.)
You can sign on to the Forum here.
