Without publication, science is dead.

—Gerard Piel

 

Table of Contents:

• Importance of Publishing
• Evolution of Online Publishing
• What is Publish Ahead of Print?
• What is DOI?
• Citing PAP Articles
• How is PAP Beneficial for Authors?
• How is PAP Beneficial for Publishers?
• In Conclusion

Importance of Publishing

Research holds great relevance across the globe. Every day new challenges evolve, leading to new research and developments. In order for the details of the inventions and discoveries to reach the mass audience, publishing the research is very important.

Apart from ensuring in-depth knowledge over a topic, scientific and historical research works also contribute to the world of knowledge, becoming the helping hands for future researchers, students, and industry experts as a guideline. Publishing these studies also helps budding researchers to understand the way of looking into research and to further upgrade their knowledge and approach.

Evolution of Online Publishing: It is important for an author or researcher to publish their new research documents as quickly as possible to make the information available to the fellow researchers and future authors. 

Earlier, the authors had to wait for a long time for their work to be published in a printed issue. A scholarly article can inspire other authors to make inroads into their area of research or help similar researchers in their work. Therefore, a delayed publication could severely affect the works of other researchers and authors.

However, with the widespread availability of the Internet, online publishing became possible, where authors can publish their articles and instantly make it available across the world. And that is when authors began Publishing Ahead of Print.

Also Read: The Role of Technology in Digital Publishing

What is Publish Ahead of Print?

The term Publish Ahead of Print, in short, PAP in publishing terminology, means that an article is being listed electronically before it is available in print. This facility allows the author’s research to be published online before it is published in the print edition of a journal.

 The final article, which is in the queue to be assigned to an upcoming issue, is hosted online before it is included in the print issue. 

PAP articles usually go through a formal peer-review process and are then accepted for publication. These articles go through the standard production processes of copy editing, typesetting, author proofing, and final revisions. 

These articles are called by various names: publish ahead of print, article in progress, article in press, online ahead of print, or online first, to name a few.

Once an article is ready for publication, they are often made available online with a crossref DOI before being formally published.

What is DOI?

DOI stands for “digital object identifier” and is a unique, persistent, and resolvable link to a research output. Each article accepted for publication in a journal is assigned with this unique identifier, which will be a permanent way to identify manuscripts published in the online environment. An Online First / PAP article is citable by journal title and DOI and information on “Advance online publication”. Information such as volume, issue, and page numbers are not allocated to Online First articles, as that information will be available only when the article is assigned to an issue.

An example of listing a PAP article is as follows:

Author, A. A., & Autor, B B. (year). Title of the article. Journal Name. Advance online publication. doi:10.1177.XXXX

These articles get counted in the calculation of Impact Factors, provided it is cited according to the above example. After the article is assigned to a specific issue, new citations should be made using volume and page number information, and also indicating the DOI. How is PAP beneficial for authors?”

• Faster publication of recent research developments
• Helps in reaching a broader research audience and scientists
• It helps important research to reach the scientists and the public faster
• If articles are published with a fast turnaround, these can drive media interest
• It is a stepping stone to online-only publication
• Latest referral guide and up-to-date information for student researchers
• Helps the author to initiate further improvements in the research study
• Provides greater exposure to an author’s research 
• Provides earlier citation opportunities by related work for the authors
• Readers benefit from faster publication as access to the latest research developments can potentially change the direction of other scientists’ research
• During emergency times, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, new ideas and information are published immediately, giving scope for remedial research

Any corrections to the information or data can be implemented immediately, followed by the updated versions in the print publication and will be reflected in the final electronic version of the issue.

How is PAP Beneficial for Publishers?

• Faster publication pleases authors who would recommend fellow researchers to publish with the publisher
• Improves impact factor of journals
• Publishing critical and need-of-the-hour topics faster will enhance publishers’ reputation and business, making them stand ahead 
• Kindles new ways of review and production processes to stay competitive in the industry
• Quicker and timely publications increase submissions from a wider author base across the globe

Also Read: Digital Prepress – Simplifying the Workflow for Publishers

In conclusion

Publish Ahead of Print (PAP) is a solid example of making information reach a wider audience with latest advancements in a short time. We at Hurix in association with our reputed publishers welcome implementing new technologies for the benefit of authors, research associations, and readers.

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