Is the Home Page Dead?
As traffic continues to come in through side doors, what is the function of the home page?
The Results Are In — A Survey of Book Purchasers
The results from a recent survey on book discovery and purchasing are now available. Print is declining, but still an essential component of the business.
PubMed and F1000 Research — Unclear Standards Applied Unevenly
F1000 Research has confusing review and publication practices, and doesn’t call itself a journal, yet is now going to be indexed by PubMed — further eroding the PubMed brand.
The $20 Tablet, and Four Interesting Questions for the Academic Market
A low-priced tablet computer from India might have the potential to change the game for many. Are we ready for a potential rapid and system-wide disruption?
The Slow But Steady March Toward Paid Content
The New York Times is now publishing short e-books, another step down the path to monetizing content directly instead of through the sale of advertising.
What’s In a (Journal) Name?
The name of a journal extends far beyond what it publishes. United brands (Nature, JAMA, Cell, Science, IEEE, PLoS) create powerful signals in the marketplace. They can also be overextended.
A Call for Participation — A Survey on Book Discovery
A call to participate in a survey on how books are discovered and ultimately purchased. The survey is being conducted in cooperation with O’Reilly Media.
Metrics and Meaning — Can We Find Relevance and Quality Without Measurements?
Putting metrics and altmetrics into perspective can help us separate secondary signals from primary signals, and may lead to a greater appreciation of alternatives to metrics, or alt2metrics.
Twilight of the Promotional E-book
As e-books have become mainstream, the art of using free e-books to drive print sales is coming to an end. But there are next steps for those who wish to think ahead.
Using the Scholarly Kitchen for Research
The Scholarly Kitchen can be a useful research tool for its contributors, as it enables the community to participate in certain kinds of questions. But group blogs don’t work for everyone.
Do Hamsters Pirate Books?
While the effect of piracy on some book sales is still debatable, college textbooks lose sales when online file-sharing becomes prevalent. A recent examination of the situation in a market outside the U.S. provides a laboratory example.
Are Scientists Themselves to Blame for Exaggerated Claims in Science Journalism?
A new study ties problems in abstracts to subsequent exaggerations in the media — but it’s not the big journals that are the major sources.
Short-form Publishing — A New Content Category, Courtesy of the Internet
The publication of short works opens up new opportunities for academic publishers that heretofore have had to choose between the forms of the article on one hand and the full-length book on the other.
How Did They Get My Email Address? The Accidental and Plentiful Supply of Academic and Scientific Contacts
The open nature of email addresses on journal sites may be feeding the email harvesting machine for academic emails. Worse, it may also be exposing these for potentially fraudulent activity.
Publicity at eLife — Are Media Embargoes Part of the Plan?
eLife is beginning to accept papers, but is it proper for them to promote papers they’ve accepted without having published the final versions? What will their approach be to media embargoes?