In addition to the purpose and vision of academic journals, it is necessary to consider the type of journals.
Scientific journals may be electronic-, print-, or electronic-print-based publications. However, some scientific organizations do not consider the electronic-only form valid. Nonetheless, the majority of universities and research societies recognize the validity of online science journals. In fact, the majority of international indexing databases have changed their policies in recent years and are in favor of electronic journal indexing.
The articles and other contents determine the type of journal. In the printed version of the journal, the table of contents is usually found on a page before the start of papers. The editorial board of some journals may decide to include the summary of the manuscripts on the first pages of each issue or categorize them on the table of contents based on the topic.
Regarding the electronic version, the type of the scientific journal may be more complex and the article’s main data can be cited in the Appendix section in addition to other tables and charts that are not mentioned in the paper. It is also possible to include ethical consideration, questionnaires, images of laboratory kits, tissues, or laboratory mice in the electronic version of Journals.
There is a difference between print and online publishing. For example, all images and figures are in black and white in the printed version, whereas the colored images are included in electronic publications. However, the majority of scientific journals now have separate ISSNs for their electronic and printed publications with some differences in contents. In addition, scientific journals have Printed-ISSN and Electronic-ISSN which use them for online and printed publishing, respectively.
The opportunities for creativity and innovation on the web include:
- Uploading the in press articles on the journal’s website (articles accepted for publication).
- Publishing online issues as soon as the articles in a journal issue have been accepted for publication.
- Collecting and publishing articles in a specialized field.
- Uploading the unwritten contents such as videos, audio files, and interviews with scholars and scientists.
- Encouraging effective forum dialogue between readers using specific forums (Forum 9 on the journal web site)
- Uploading the continuous exchange of medical papers to help readers assess their knowledge in a particular field.