Abstract
The Journal of Histochemistry and Cytochemistry is now available on the Internet at http://www.jhc.org. The articles that appear in the online journal are identical to those in the printed copy, which will continue to be published. The complete volume for 1997 (45) is online. In addition, tables of contents for all issues back to 1965, and abstracts back to 1975, are also included. Future issues will be added to the web site at the date of publication. The online Journal of Histochemistry and Cytochemistry offers many advantages to readers. Before reviewing them, however, a few comments are needed about the decision to publish an online Journal of Histochemistry and Cytochemistry.
Although there was initially some argument (compounded by the fear of the unknown) about the benefits (and wisdom) of Internet publication of journals, the time for debating the pros and cons is over. As our readers are aware, most biomedical journals have either succumbed to online publication over the Internet or are in the process of doing so. Actually, Internet publication is a very exciting development that holds promise for eventually revolutionizing the way that we communicate new scientific information. Recognizing that Internet publication is here to stay, the Histochemical Society investigated various online publishers of scientific journals and selected HighWire Press of the Stanford University Library to publish the Journal of Histochemistry and Cytochemistry online. The decision to select HighWire Press was based on a report by an ad hoc Electronic Publications Committee of the Histochemical Society, headed by the Histochemical Society Secretary, Dick Burry. HighWire Press (http://highwire.stanford.edu), under the leadership of Mike Keller and John Sack, specializes in Internet publication of high-profile biomedical journals published by scientific societies. HighWire Press currently publishes 28 online journals (with 18 more in development), including many of the most widely read, high-impact biomedical titles.
Members of the Histochemical Society receive a free online subscription as a benefit of membership. Subscriptions for institutions include both the print copy and the online journal for a single subscription price. Individual subscriptions to both the print copy and the online journal are also available for a single subscription price. Online visitors to the journal will have free access until at least April of 1998, when access control will begin. Histochemical Society members initially will be given passwords which can be changed at any time. Institutions and members will receive instructions by mail. The first issue of the year will be available free to all viewers during the year as a demonstration.
The online Journal of Histochemistry and Cytochemistry has a number of features that offer readers exceptional convenience and efficiency. These are summarized as follows.
Online Access
The online issue will be available the same day that the print copy is mailed.
Online issues can be viewed from an Internet browser, such as Netscape or Microsoft Explorer. These views of the journal are controlled by the browser and are not displayed in the journal format. This is an advantage because it lets the browser adjust the text to fit into a single column on the reader's monitor.
Figures can be viewed at three increasing levels of resolution, which can be changed by clicking on the image. The first view is a “thumbnail.” The second is about the size of the figure in the printed copy of the journal. The third image is larger and may fill the screen. The expanding levels of resolution for images are extremely useful for viewing all of the high-detail images in the Journal of Histochemistry and Cytochemistry.
An exact copy of the print article can be viewed and printed as a PDF file. The Acrobat Reader software program (can be loaded online) will allow the reader to both view and print an exact copy of the journal page, including type fonts, headers, and footers.
Individual members of the Histochemical Society can view the online journal from any computer connected to the Internet at work, at home, or while traveling.
Institutional subscribers will be able to view the online journal from any library-connected terminal at the institution.
Searchability
Searches based on single key words or groups of words defined by the reader can be made of the entire text of a Journal of Histochemistry and Cytochemistry online article.
The full text searches can also be extended to the other journals published online by HighWire Press.
Reference Links
Clicking on a reference in an article transfers the reader to the citation listed in the reference list.
Each citation in the list is linked to the abstract of the article at the National Library of Medicine (on the PubMed site). If the article is published in a HighWire Press online journal, the full text of the article can be viewed. The HighWire Press online journals have agreed to allow free inter-journal access so that readers can view the full text of a cited article even if it is in a password-protected journal.
A link to other articles by the author will facilitate finding related articles.
Personalized Services
Members of the Histochemical Society can receive a free subscription to a service called Content Awareness. This service sends an e-mail message that shows the Table of Contents for the new issue when it is published.
The bibliographic data for any article in the online journal can be downloaded into a reference software database.
Support Services
We believe that readers of the Journal of Histochemistry and Cytochemistry will appreciate the convenience of having online access to the Journal the day that each issue is published. Some readers may experience difficulties, however, in view of the wide variety of computers and software used worldwide to access, view, and print information obtained over the Internet. To assist online readers, HighWire Press supplies a high level of technical support. If you experience problems with the online journal, click on Feedback and leave a message describing the problem. A response will always be returned by e-mail within 24 hours, often in a few hours if the sender is in the United States.
The online Journal of Histochemistry and Cytochemistry offers a great convenience for readers whose institution does not carry a subscription to the Journal. For the price of membership in the Histochemical Society (currently $30 per year), you can receive the Journal online. It's a good deal. If you have not yet visited the online Journal of Histochemistry and Cytochemistry, do so now. It's free.
For information about joining the Histochemical Society and receiving the online Journal of Histochemistry and Cytochemistry, visit either the Histochemical Society at http://www.hcs.microscopy.com/ or the Journal of Histochemistry and Cytochemistry at http://www.jhc.org. Please feel free to contact us with your comments and suggestions.
For those who shove their journals into a briefcase for reading on the bus, or who prefer the peacefully pleasurable pastime of perusing palpable printed pages, the Journal of Histochemistry and Cytochemistry will continue to be published in hard copy.