In 10th Year, Online Journals Stay on Technology's Edge

In 2009, as the RSNA journals celebrate their 10th anniversary of online publication, the journals offer extensive access to timely and relevant information—in ways the editors envisioned and in others they may never have imagined.

William W. Olmsted, M.D. RadioGraphics Editor

Herbert Y. Kressel, M.D. Radiology Editor

"The online journals now have many new advantages that go beyond the electronic capabilities of even just a few years ago," said RadioGraphics Editor William W. Olmsted, M.D. "Online readers can explore the links and find exciting interactive features that cannot be duplicated in print."

Online versions of RadioGraphics and Radiology have evolved dramatically over the years and recent additions—including sophisticated search features, ahead-of-print availability and interactive components—make them more comprehensive than ever, said Dr. Olmsted and Radiology Editor Herbert Y. Kressel, M.D.

RSNA EJ Focused on Education

RSNA's online journal endeavors first went public in 1996 with RSNA EJ, the "electronic-only journal," which mainly focused on education. RSNA EJ was edited by Laurens V. Ackerman, M.D., an associate editor of RadioGraphics. By the time RSNA EJ's 3-year pilot was complete, RadioGraphics and Radiology had made their online appearance and the RSNA Board of Directors decided to merge EJ's educational content into RadioGraphics and expand the online versions of both journals.

In 1999, online access to the full-text versions of RadioGraphics and Radiology became an exclusive member benefit. "The online versions are beautifully designed and published, and they offer our overseas members and subscribers more timely access to new issues," said Dr. Olmsted in a 1999 editorial, recognizing then the potentially huge impact online availability would have on international readers.

Also in that editorial, Dr. Olmsted projected that eventually each online issue would be available for viewing soon after the distribution of its printed counterpart. That was an underestimate, Dr. Olmsted said, because now members can see online articles well in advance of the print versions, as well as articles published exclusively for the Web. "These articles feature lots of images and movies running on advanced software, with convenient links to corresponding figures and downloadable teaching slides," he said. Members can even view future tables of contents for a preview of articles to come.

Searchability, CME are Major Online Benefits

In addition to accessibility, the online journals offer distinct advantages in supplementary images, external links and—most popular—the ability to search for specific information. "Many readers refer to the online content to answer specific questions, rather than just browse a particular issue of the print journal," said Dr. Kressel. Members can search full Radiology content as far back as 1980 (Radiology abstracts are available from 1975 to 1979 and tables of contents from 1965 to 1974). Full RadioGraphics content is available as far back as 1981, the year of the journal's inception.

Over the years, the journals' search features have been continually refined, and overhauls in the past year in particular have made the search process much more sophisticated. Additional tools have been introduced with the advent of myRSNA^®, the personalized RSNA member homepage. New features make personalization even more precise, with the ability to bookmark and tag articles in myRSNA and the availability of automatic article recommendations based on a member's subspecialty, interests and article viewing history.

Another tremendous benefit is interactive online continuing medical education (CME) modules in RadioGraphics, said Dr. Olmsted. CME offerings have steadily increased, he said, and members can now earn up to 13 credits per issue. "Not only can members get their credits instantly online, but they can also see extended discussion on the answers to the test questions, which greatly enhances learning," he said.

In a 2000 editorial in Radiology, then-editor Anthony V. Proto, M.D., both foresaw the online version's potential for additional content and acknowledged its potential for divergence from the print version. "The electronic medium will offer the opportunity for authors to provide supplemental material that will enhance their articles found in the printed version of the journal," Dr. Proto wrote. "These supplements will contain materials that are important, rather than just 'overflow' items. The material, however, will not be essential to the understanding of the printed article, so as not to deprive our readers who use only the printed version of any such essential information."

"Online Only" Not Imminent

With the online revolution in full swing, more and more readers are accepting the inevitability of exploring possible online-only publication. However, as reflected in the 2007 RadioGraphics readership survey (see RSNA News, March 2008), many readers still enjoy receiving and browsing their printed journals, and some say they don't like reading on a computer screen. "I'd expected by this time we would be closer to online-only publication," said Dr. Olmsted, "but the scholarly publication industry in general doesn't appear to be rushing to do that. Most major journals still have a pretty healthy print component.

"Dr. Kressel and I, and Dr. Proto and I in the past, have gone around to our members and asked, and most of them have said that if they only had an hour to read the journal, they'd look at it online," Dr. Olmsted continued. "But there's still a fair amount of hesitation about eliminating the print journal, and my concern about going online-only is for the members who still enjoy reading it in print." While at this time neither of the journals has specific plans to go online-only, Dr. Olmsted raises the possibility in an editorial in the January-February 2009 issue of RadioGraphics, noting that the option is probably still several years in the future. What may come sooner, writes Dr. Olmsted, is a hybridization, with a print issue that includes expanded abstracts of online-only articles that include images, teaching points and references to additional content that can be found online.

The added benefits of online features can't be denied even by those with a fondness for print, said the editors. "While most readers still prefer reading the journal in print, currently more than 50 percent of journal usage is online," said Dr. Kressel. "It is readily accessible from many locations and it is searchable." Another key advantage is the opportunity for interaction and discussion. Dr. Kressel urged readers to familiarize themselves with online offerings including RSS feeds, online collections and Radiology Forums. "The Forums give readers the opportunity to weigh in on controversial topics in the field," he said.

RadioGraphics and Radiology online will continue to explore new ways to get the most useful information to readers in the most practical ways, the editors said. "Better tools to navigate journal content, more interactive features, more use of multimedia, more opportunity for readers to customize the journal content they receive and more ability to structure the content display to suit the readers' needs are on the horizon for the online journals," said Dr. Kressel.