Tradition and Protean Nature--Journals and Scholarly Communication: A Review Essay

Abstract

Since the advent of scholarly publishing many years ago scholars have relied upon the existence of rationalized venues for their scien tific research and scholarship. Indeed, professional life, if not exist ence, may well depend upon a foundation free of destructive intru sion or philistine interests. As libraries have attempted to cope with rising costs of serials and library service, journals have seen massive increases in costs along a long spectrum of economic measurement. Stresses and concerted attempts at keeping the economic whirlwinds from blowing away the temple of knowledge have left many librar ies holding their own, only to wonder within the inner sanctum what remains to be seen. Not long ago a masterful and deeply committed attempt to meet at least some of academe's needs led to a rebirth, in nearly Alexandrine terms, of scholarship, at least as it manifested itself in journal form. Many journals have inhabited the shelving ranges of many libraries only to be lost, in a purely illusory sense. Dusty and lost to memory, titles such as Mind and the American His torical Review were relegated to a shadow life on shelves and in li brary facilities not often visited. Today such is no longer the case?and for very excellent reasons. If the above scenario is a little overdrawn, it remains closer to the truth than not. As JSTOR has grown in use and more titles have been added at specific intervals, the richly layered database