NOTES FOR CONTRIBUTORS

Contributions of several types are welcomed.

Full-length articles (normally about 3,000 - 4,000 words) should make a contribution to published knowledge in the field in one or more of the following ways:

• by reporting original research;
• by describing significant developments or applications;
• by reviewing some aspect of computer applications generally, or in relation to one type of library or environment or region;
• by providing a "tutorial" introduction for students and others to some area of new relevance.

Such articles will be considered for publication only if they have not previously been published and are not likely to be published elsewhere in substantially the same form. Papers presented at conferences may be considered if they are unlikely to appear in conference proceedings which have a wide circulation.

Short communications (normally about 1,500-2,000 words) may consist of brief research reports, technical findings, notes on the progress of a project or a report of a conference.

News items may announce relevant conferences, meetings, products or services. The decision on insertion of these into an issue remains with the Editor.

Reviews of recently published books are included in each issue and are co-ordinated by the Reviews Editor.

The Managing Editor welcomes informal preliminary contact from authors about proposed contributions, but this is not essential. All contributions are acknowledged on receipt. Articles and short communications are subject to examination by referees and are discussed at Program's Editorial Board which meets four times per year. If a decision is made to publish, the author(s) may be asked to make amendments and then submit the final copy on paper and on disc. The disc should contain a word-processed file and an ASCII file. Figures, diagrams, screen-shots and other similar material should be supplied on separate numbered sheets and where possible in electronic format, suitable for final printed production in black and white. For technical advice on preferred file formats please contact the publications department at Aslib at the address below. The disc should be clearly labelled with the author(s) name(s), the title, and the names of the files containing the text and figures. The name and version of the word-processing software used to prepare the text should also be given. Page proofs are sent to authors for checking prior to printing. Ten copies of the complete issue of Program in which a full-length article or short communication is published are supplied to the main author, free of charge.

Contributions can either be e-mailed or submitted on paper. The language of the publication is English. Titles should be as information rich as possible. Full-length articles should be accompanied by an informative abstract (of between 100 and 200 words) which summarises the scope of the article and states the main conclusions or results. Articles are often improved if short sectional headings and sub-headings are inserted at suitable places in the text. These headings should be numbered, with decimal sub-division, but the numbering should be no more than three levels deep (e.g. 2.3.4). Page footnotes should be avoided. Where notes are essential, they should be grouped with any bibliographic references at the end of the contribution. Notes and references should be indicated in the text by superior numbers in one consecutive sequence. The name, job title, professional postal address and e-mail address of each author should be given at the end of each contribution.

Where appropriate, acknowledgement of help, advice or funding should be given at the end of an article. All authors will be asked to sign a copyright declaration form assigning copyright of the material to Aslib.

Sample reference

Article in a periodical

Article in an edited volume or set of conference proceedings

Complete monograph

Possible items for publication, together with other editorial correspondence, should be addressed to the Managing Editor:

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