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“Our authors and readers have been asking for this for a long time,” said president and publisher Tom Doherty. “They’re a technically sophisticated bunch, and DRM is a constant annoyance to them. It prevents them from using legitimately-purchased e-books in perfectly legal ways, like moving them from one kind of e-reader to another.”

The screen captures are fascinating — watch below as an off-campus user searches the library home page for the correct place to do an author search in the library catalog

Be prepared; watching a series of videos of unassisted users can dismantle your or your web committee’s cherished notions about how users navigate your site.

Paid accounts also have access to real time analytics, so libraries would be able to get a montage of what’s happening in the lobby as it is happening. Imagine being able to walk out and announce a “pop-up library workshop” on using the library catalog effectively after seeing the twentieth person fumble through the OPAC.

The time in which the AAP can speak authoritatively for publishing is over. Formulating policy over intellectual property issues that heretofore was considered the domain of a few specific industry and interest groups is instead the domain of all internet users, including readers and authors, as well as a wide range of new publisher entrants.

I have proposed that the university library could function as a re-invented university press. However, this guide is intended, over the course of as many parts as I need to be able to write this in manageable chunks, to signpost a third way. This guide is for academics who want to establish their own journals that are:Peer reviewed, in a traditional pre-review modelOpen Access and free in monetary terms for authors and readersPreserved, safe and archived in the event of catastrophe or foldReputable: run by consensus of leaders in a field

The board is absolutely crucial. Academic journals work on a system of academic capital; you need respected individuals who are willing to sit on your board, even if they are only lending their name and you end up doing most of the legwork. It should only be a matter of time before academics realise that journal brand isn’t (or shouldn’t be) affiliated to publishers, but rather to the academics who choose to endow a journal with their support.

When the first articles start flooding in, you’ll need all the help you can get. These have to be people you can trust to understand the challenges you’re facing. They need to set the bar high for the first issue while also appreciating the difficulties of attracting the big names to start-up journals. Contact people early so that you’re ready to go.