[OPE-L:7447] [OPE-L:980] Re: online journal

Gerald Levy (glevy@pratt.edu)
Wed, 12 May 1999 15:21:23 -0400 (EDT)

Re Paul C's [OPE-L:977]:

> Here are a couple of physics online journals.
> http://www.eagle.co.uk/ppj/home.html
> http://www.worldscientific.com/journals/ijmpa/ijmpa.html
> Here are some psychology ones
> http://www.ejhs.org/
> http://www.uiowa.edu/~grpproc/crisp/crisp.html

OK, now I get it. I checked-out the above as well as the reference that
Michael P gave.

If we go ahead with this, I think:

a) there should be no advertising;

b) there should be no solicitation for money;

(both a + b are are contra the practice of some of the journals above)

c) there should be some type of statement about *what* this journal would
publish papers on (particularly if submissions from non-listmembers are
considered) and *who* is eligible to submit papers for consideration (to
take an extreme example, we should not consider publishing articles
authored by neo-fascists and/or pro-management snitches).

d) given the time of year -- when many schools' semesters are about to end
-- I think that the earliest that we could put out a first issue (allowing
for some organizing in September) would be October-November.

e) We need, as Ajit put it, a "critical mass" of volunteers for this to
work. While most listmembers have some experience organizing publications
and/or conferences, there is no doubt that this would represent extra work
on our parts and should not, as Duncan noted, be a commitment that is
taken lightly or rushed into. What I'm saying, basically, is it all
depends on whether we can get enough volunteers to make the journal work
(and, note well, that if we go with the majority view about having a peer
review journal, then this will require a very considerable investment of
time on the part of many listmembers).

f) We would need someone (or a small group) who would take primary
responsibility for handling the logistical questions and ensuring that
each issue was published on time and in a professional way.

> It occurs to me that OPE could stand for Online Political Economy

Yeah, that might work for the name of the journal.

The name of the list, though, should stay the same.

In solidarity, Jerry