Academia is bled and losing control of scholarship. It all began in 1995 with the online production of the weekly The Journal of Biological Chemistry . The urgency of information needs is driven by the nature of the profession. For example, getting medical or scientific research findings out to professionals is a more time-sensitive process than in disciplines such as sociology or political science. Delivering an online publication generates an array of new challenges.
Difficulties exist even in starting each journal.
HighWire gets the galley copies that the printer gets. The HighWire staff runs them through an intensive filtering process that generates SGML via a separate process for images. In addition, questions and issues arise regarding pricing, content, and distribution. Most users wants is an IP address-based system that recognizes his or her address or computer. This is complex when people visit their publications from different computers.