Sunday, July 12, 2009

ACS chemistry journals...no longer in print


I am not so sure that this is a good idea.

"Chemistry Journals Go Digital-Only"

by

Josh Fischman

July 10th, 2009

The Chronicle of Higher Education

The American Chemical Society, which publishes several dozen academic journals, is moving to end print editions and produce journals only online. The move was noted by the journal Nature in late June after someone sent it a copy of a memo from a chemical-society official, but unfortunately you can’t read the complete report unless you pay a fee to subscribe or buy one-time access.

And that's precisely the issue—making money online, and losing it in print—that drove the chemistry society's decision, according to a recent story in Ars Technica.... The Web site notes that the journal publisher said, in the memo, that "printing and distribution costs now exceed revenues from print journals." Plus, scientists seem happier reading online, the society thinks. So this summer, all but three of its journals will become digital-only. No word on whether the society will pass on to subscribers the savings it realizes from buying less paper and fewer stamps. But don't hold your breath.

2 comments:

Timothy said...

it was bound to happen and many more will follow....will not be long when you will have no paper that is not digital

Mercury said...

I do know that one of the major libraries here is moving away from the 'physical' in house journal and moving towards digital.