Sustaining an Independent Online Journal

J. Allen, E. Drewski, S. Gupta, R. Molnar, and R. Rege

Faculty Advisor: Dr. Eli BlevisHuman Computer Interaction/Design

Indiana University School of Informatics

Design Philosophy Papers(DPP)

• Independent, peer-reviewed scholarly journal

• Publishes primarily online

• Relies on reader subscriptions

• Broad, interdisciplinary analysis of design

• Sustainable design

• http://www.desphilosophy.com/

Problem Space

• Expand constituencies

• Generate high quality content

• Increase financial viability

• Enhance user experience

PREDISPOSITIONS

The advancement of scholarly research depends on the free exchange of ideas.

Focus on sustainable design is a new

and compelling area of design.

A scholar desires to affect or contribute to his/her field through scholarly research.

The Internet provides a highly effective way to disseminate research. Google Scholar allows access to freely available research.

Online journals have a larger outreach potential than print-only journals.

Visitors are more likely to return to a thoughtfully devised and well-designed website.

Readers, subscribers and authors consider established journals more credible than their newly established counterparts.

The design of an online journal’s website affects the perceived credibility of a journal.

Subscription-based websites need to ensure the security of the reader.

All websites, especially academic sites, should strive to build accessible web content, readable by all users.

SECONDARY RESEARCH

Subscription prices for journals have increased significantly in the last twenty-five years.

Libraries can afford to subscribe to fewer journals.

Citations are higher for Open Access articles than for papers only available via subscription access.

The Open Access publishing movement is gaining momentum.

Governments have begun to actively legislate in support of Open Access.

Even large for-profit publishing houses have implemented aspects of Open Access publishing.

“Reputation is one of the primary contributors to perceived quality” (Moorthy)

Confusing website navigation features lead to user disorientation (Chen & Yen).

Successful websites employ interactivity as a strategy.

Good web design and accessible design are complimentary.

Website designers should concentrate on building sites that provide users with a personalized experience.

Websites should make it easy for users to acquire knowledge.

Good user experience correlates closely with repeat website visitors.

PRIMARY RESEARCH

Heuristic Evaluation

• Lack of clearly visible login section

• Absence of a common useful set of navigation links

• No Help/FAQ section

• Short of Accessibility standards

Findings

• Outdated content

• Excludes professional references for authors

• Lacks form validation

• Single-spaced text is difficult to read

Findings

Interview with Peter SuberRenown Open Access Movement Researcher

Interview Highlights

• CA model: death knell for independent journals

• Growing popularity of OA• Humanities : poorly funded• Institutional subsidy model• Immense pressure to fill subscriptions in

CA • Misconceptions of OA• Publishing fee for OA

INSIGHTS

The subscription model creates a barrier to the progress of academic research.

The open access model is advantageous and desirable to an author because it leads to more citations and therefore greater research impact.

The intellectual community benefits from a publishing model that allows for effective dissemination of research.

The DPP staff needs to take steps to increase the credibility of the DPP journal.

DPP positions itself well with regard to research in sustainable design, and the journal ought to use this niche to build a central part of their outreach plan. .

Electronic journals offer opportunities to contextualize knowledge, personalize reading experience, scaffold learning, build social relationships and communities. .

W3C standards-compliant web design aids in building accessible websites.

Building an accessible website leads to an increased pool of potential users.

On the web, having repeat website visitors ties closely to experience.

Multiple different web agents are able to view a standards-compliant website.

CONCEPTS

Initial Concepts

Final Concept

Hybrid Model

Website Wireframe

STRATEGIC PLANhttp://mypage.iu.edu/~rmolnar/INFO-561/INFO_I561_Strategic_Plan.xls

POSTER

Thank you!

Questions?

RESEARCH REFERENCES

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36. .

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