UMER - Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What is an eprint server?

An eprint server (also known as an eprint archive, eprint repository or preprint server/archive/repository), is a server used by authors to circulate their work. A preprint or eprint is a version of new work or work in a draft form. The servers can provide another medium for sharing new research material in addition to printed preprint and working paper series that have been traditionally used as a method of gaining peer review or feedback and for the circulation of new ideas.

Why should I include my work on the UMER?

There is no cost to you to have your work included on the University of Melbourne server. A paper on the server will receive a greater circulation than a paper based document that is mailed to a set mailing list. This will lead to an increased international exposure for research papers emanating from University of Melbourne. Use of the software will facilitate international exposure for these papers, through a search engine which enables cross institutional searching. (It is common for academic departments in many disciplines to maintain departmental servers of working and research papers. The drawback to departmental servers is the lack of ability to search across a range of institutions and departments.)

The increased exposure of your papers will improve the opportunity for the impact of your research in the international academic arena. Other features of UMER are the ability to see which are the most viewed papers and what sites are accessing the papers. This will give you, your department, and the University administration, data on the impact that University of Melbourne research has upon international colleagues. The software on which UMER runs enables online commentary by readers of the papers. The software also provides an alerting service for new eprints. The software allows cloning of an existing paper so that revised versions are less time consuming to load. The software provides the facility to track revisions or different versions of papers

Can I have a paper in UMER as well as on my own or my department's web site?

Your research papers may be housed in more than one location: they may be retained on departmental servers as well as on UMER.

How do UMER and a journal differ?

One of the main differences is that journals publish articles that have been through a peer review process and have been edited to ensure theycomply with journal and academic standards. Papers placed on UMER will not be refereed or edited by the UMER administration. UMER is just a place where articles can be stored to enable greater access to a broad readership. UMER's administrators will only ensure that no irrelevant or offensive material is placed on the server. Readers of papers on UMER have the opportunity to provide feedback to the author's of papers. In this way an informal peer review can take place.

Can I include a paper on UMER that has appeared somewhere else?

The UMER administrators do not expect that any papers on the repository have not appeared anywhere else. There are no restrictions imposed by UMER on where a piece of work has appeared before. However, it should be noted that if your paper has appeared elsewhere, you may have transferred the copyright of the work from yourself to the journal publisher. If this is the case, the publisher may not allow you to include your work on UMER. Additionally, some publishers will not publish material that has previously been included on an eprint repository such as UMER. You will need to check with the publishers to whom you have submitted papers before including them on UMER. A list of some publishers and their policies on this matter can be found at the following link http://www.lib.unimelb.edu.au/eprints/copyright.html .

Can I remove one of my papers from UMER if I need to?

Yes, it easy for papers to be removed. The current version of the software allows only the administrators to remove material on your behalf. To request the removal of a paper, follow the link to 'Deposit Papers' then to 'Review your documents in the archive'. UMER's administrators will remove the requested papers within one working day.

How long will it take for a paper to appear on UMER after I have submitted it?

All papers are submitted to a buffer which is checked each working day by the UMER administrators. Each day all suitable papers in the buffer are sent up to UMER and then become available immediately. Therefore you can expect papers to become available to readers one working day after you submit them to UMER.