Journal versus publisher webpages
Submitted by drupaladmin on 4 June 2012.I find it a little challenging and often distasteful that the top hits for some ecological journals, including Oikos, are the publisher's page of it. Often, I want to get right to the journal, imagine that, and it is tough to navigate through the publisher standard page to get to it. I recently enjoyed a really exciting paper in Seed Science Research, so googled it, and got the publisher page. I wanted to post a comment on a paper I read there. After skimming the page, http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayJournal?jid=SSR, I found the 'SSR home' link on the left. Whew. I clicked it assuming I was going to get a nice home-spun page with the feel of the journal and instead I get the exact same page again. Now, let's try Oikos. I googled and it and got the following return, http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/(ISSN)1600-0706, that is after after the yogurt sponsored ad (we should pay to displace that really). Whilst this is an attractive url, I propose we get the Oikos/Nordic one higher up on the list. Or perhaps move the content there or ask for a clearer redirect? I skim now, find the 'journal home' on the left, click it, and viola... get the same page again. OK, maybe I am misunderstanding it. Where is the Oikos, Nordic Society homespun page? I can't see it. Backing out, I google Nordic Society, and whilst I am happy to see the Canadian one at the top, no Oikos again. The Nordic Soc of Irish Dancers is the most fun one though. As a final test of my secret hypothesis here that we are not managing our online presence as ecologist as best we could, I try the journal of ecology. First hit, gorgeous, www.journalofecology.org/. The url makes sense, photos pretty, nice screen, I can see it is the BES in the top right without it dominating the journal presence, and if I work at it, I can see at the very bottom that it is a Wiley publication. Better. If someone has time, check a few more journals for us but part of making ecology more funded, better perceived, and useful, has to include more effective online perception.
