Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
6.4.3
Backwards Compatibility
Paper was the medium of choice for publishing in the last several hundred years
because it is highly stable. It is unchanged in form since Gutenberg's first print-
ing press. Journals published in the 18th century are still readable today. Backwards
compatibility (the idea that when a new medium appears previous media can still
be read) was never an issue. Information technology, however, changes every five to
seven years. For example, material that was saved on 5
′
25
′′
diskettes is not readable
by a 2005 computer unless someone saved an old 5.25
′′
disk drive and the software to
read it (i.e., the diskette drivers). Material that was posted using versions 1 and 2 of
Microsoft Word is no longer readable on current machines. Material stored in older
formats will have to be converted or it will become inaccessible to new technology.
The challenge is determining who will be responsible for the conversion: the library
or the publisher? Although large commercial publishers could afford to fund such
conversions, they have no incentives unless back issues are still being ordered. Pro-
fessional societies (especially small ones) and entrepreneurial ventures most likely
would not have the resources to perform complex conversions. Similarly, while large
libraries are able to convert the material they hold for specific requests, small libraries
face financial difficulties. The net effect would be a loss of knowledge unless copies
were kept or could be obtained from the Library of Congress.
51
We found no studies that quantify the cost of conversions. We do know, however,
that backwards compatibility is not included in assessing the total cost of ownership
of e-journals.
6 . 5
R e v i e w e r s , G a t e k e e p e r s a n d O t h e r S t a k e h o l d e r s
Each type of e-journal affects stakeholders differently. Hybrid journals are likely to
cause the least impact while advanced electronicity e-journals are likely to cause the
most change. For example, for a hybrid journal the effect on article peer reviewing
52
is limited since these journals follow the same review process they used in the past.
Similarly, hybrid journals are less likely to affect the gate keeping system or the
Tenure and Promotion (T&P) process. Because hybrid e-journals publish in both p-
and e-versions, T&P committees treat articles in these journals as p-journals. The
following discussion concentrates on paper replacement and advanced electronicity
e-journals.
51
This applies to paper replacement e-journals. Often, advanced electronicity e-journals can not be repli-
cated in print.
52
Reviewing is sometimes referred to as refereeing.
