Yes, a few scientists can get together and create a journal using open
source software.
What they might find a bit harder, say, is managing a portfolio of 1000+
journals. (The combined Blackwell-Wiley will have about 1250 journals). That
takes an investment that a handful of researchers in their spare time might
find a little daunting. At this level, you need a hosting platform, a
manuscript management platform, hoards of editors and translators, etc., and
the capital and management to support it all.
On 2/19/07 7:47 PM, "Heather Morrison" <heatherm_at_ELN.BC.CA> wrote:
> On 19-Feb-07, at 9:07 AM, Peter Banks wrote:
>
> Publishing, like
> all industries, requires a far more sophisticated infrastructure and
> a far
> greater global reach than ever before, which means an ever greater
> need for
> capital that only larger companies can provide.
>
> Au contraire - with modern computing technology, internet
> connectivity, and software - it is not at all difficult for an
> individual or small group of researchers to set up their own journal,
> with little, or even no, capital.
>
> Global reach is as simple as making one copy of your work open
> access. From there, anyone in the world with a computer and internet
> connection has access.
>
> Today's laptop is more than enough computing power to run a journal.
> The bandwidth requirements are a pittance compared to audio-visual
> applications, or watching YouTube.
>
> Free, open source software, such as Open Journal Systems is available
> [disclosure: I work for SFU Library, one of the partners in the PKP
> project which produces OJS]. The technically minded can look after
> their own technology and hosting; or, there are services available at
> very reasonable cost. SFU Library, for example, charges $750 Cdn per
> year for a single journal, or $600 Cd per journal per year for more
> than 10 journals.
>
> For more on this topic, please see my blogpost, Scholarly
> Publishing: High Quality at Low Cost:
> http://journal.lib.uoguelph.ca//index.php/perj
>
> NOT that open access requires any changes whatsoever to the
> publishing industry, of course. As Stevan constantly - and correctly
> - reminds us, researchers can publish in the journal of their choice,
> and provide all that is needed for open access by self-archiving.
>
> Heather Morrison, M.L.I.S.
> Project Coordinator, BC Electronic Library Network
> http://eln.bc.ca
> &
> Editor, Theory / Research
> Partnership: the Canadian Journal of Library and Information
> Practice and Research
> http://journal.lib.uoguelph.ca//index.php/perj
>
Peter Banks
Banks Publishing
Publications Consulting and Services
10332 Main Street #158
Fairfax, VA 22030
(703) 591-6544
CELL (703) 254-8862
FAX (703) 383-0765
pbanks_at_bankspub.com
www.bankspub.com
www.associationpublisher.com/blog/
Received on Tue Feb 20 2007 - 14:39:30 GMT