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Aries Systems News and Press Releases – 2006

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EEMUG 2006 Recap

December 6, 2006, London, UK - The Third Annual European Editorial Manager User Group meeting took place December 1 at the Institute of Materials, Minerals, and Mining in London.

Presentations included an in-depth look at lesser-known EM features and Preprint Manager - Production Tracking, as well as a preview of Editorial Manager 6.0, currently in development. Industry expert Simon Inger spoke about The Future of Scholarly Publishing.

During the popular Features Workshop, EM users met in small groups to brainstorm changes and new features they'd like to see in the peer review system. Feedback from the Features Workshop is often incorporated into new EM releases – for example, Linked Submissions (in development) was suggested at the 2005 meeting.

For many attendees, the opportunity to network and meet fellow EM users is just as valuable as the seminar itself. As one attendee explained, “Because so many different customers take part, I can learn from their handling of EM.”


More than 50 visitors attended EEMUG 2006


Aries VP of Marketing and Sales, Richard Wynne, previews the next release of EM


The Features Workshop is one of several opportunities for EM users to share ideas with each other

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Top World Scientific Journals Go Live with Editorial Manager

December 1, 2006, North Andover, MA, USA - Today, five leading journals published by Singapore-based World Scientific launched Editorial Manager sites. Modern Physics Letters (A & B), International Journal of Modern Physics (A & B), and International Journal of Pattern Recognition and Artificial Intelligence are among the first World Scientific journals to use the online peer review system.

As a publisher of 128 scientific journals, and books by Nobel winners and other award-winning authors, World Scientific is the largest international scientific publisher in the Pacific Rim. Under a deal with Aries Systems, World Scientific plans to roll out Editorial Manager for additional journals in 2006 and 2007.

Rick Lee, IT Director at World Scientific, explains, “As a publisher with a wide range of publications, we needed a peer review system that could be easily customized for the specific needs of each journal. We selected Editorial Manager, in part, because we will have the power to configure and re-configure the system ourselves.” Currently, Editorial Manager is the only peer review system with hundreds of configuration options that publishers and journals can change without vendor assistance.

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Hogrefe & Huber to Use Editorial Manager for Online Peer Review

November 22, 2006, Langenfeld, Germany - Hogrefe & Huber Publishing Group, one of Europe’s leading independent health and social science publishers, has selected Editorial Manager for online manuscript submission and peer review.

Hogrefe will initially launch four journals including the German-language Diagnostica and Zeitschrift für Kinder- und Jugendpsychiatrie und Psychotherapie, to be followed gradually by the publisher’s remaining 40 journals.

The publisher chose Editorial Manager partly for its German-language interface as well as the flexibility and adaptability of the system. Hogrefe & Huber CEO, Dr. Jürgen Hogrefe, added, “With Editorial Manager, we will use a well-established and proven software that is a market leader. Moreover, we expect to have Aries as a reliable partner for many years.”

For more information about EM in German, please click here

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Aries Offers Online Seminars for Editorial Manager Users

November 9, 2006, North Andover, MA, USA - In light of the recent release of Editorial Manager v5.0, we will be conducting web-based seminars detailing many of the new features included in this upgrade. This “webinar” will explain the usage of these features in addition to demonstrating how they are configured in the Administrative section of your EM site:

  • Submission Step Limits
  • Short Title Submission Field
  • Suggest/Oppose Reviewers
  • Respond To Reviewers
  • Submission Item metadata Fields now Available on Submit Manuscript
  • Companion Files
  • Technical Check
  • Customizable Flags
  • User-defined fields for People and Submission records

These sessions will be conducted using a combination of a toll-free conference phone line in conjunction with the Live Meeting application, which allows you to view the desktop of the demonstration site in real-time. Each connection will incur a fee of $45.

There are currently open attendee slots for the following dates (note: these dates may fill up quickly, so it is best to reply soon):

Tuesday, November 14, 2006 at 2:00 PM
Wednesday, November 15, 2006 at 10:00 AM
Monday, November 20, 2006 at 2:00 PM
Tuesday, November 21, 2006 at 10:00 AM

Note: All times are Eastern Standard

If you would like to sign up for the EM 5.0 Features Webinar, please contact your Account Coordinator or Barry Kane at bkane@ariessys.com and we’ll be happy to register you.

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Aries Celebrates 20th Anniversary and 2,000th Live Editorial Manager Site
[pdf version]

October 23, 2006, North Andover, MA, USA - Aries Systems Corporation, the leading provider of scholarly publishing workflow solutions, today announced two major milestones – 20 years in its business of developing innovative publishing technology solutions, and 2,000 journals using its flagship Editorial Manager manuscript submission and peer review system.

Founded in 1986, Aries has combined a keen understanding of the technology application needs of scholarly publishers with the business resilience needed adapt to generations of technology change during its twenty years of operation. Lyndon Holmes, founder and CEO of Aries, commented, "During the past two decades, we’ve seen many famous names appear and disappear from the technology landscape. As an independent company that has accepted no venture backing, we’ve had to maintain fiscal responsibility, while growing the company on our earnings. Today, we have a solid revenue base that allows us to reinvest continuously in infrastructure and application technology for the benefit of our customers. Particularly in scholarly publishing, where many companies boast a legacy of decades or even centuries in business, our ability to run our business for the long-term resonates with publishers."

In 2000, Aries introduced Editorial Manager, the market-leading Web-based manuscript tracking and peer review system. Today, Editorial Manager is the most widely adopted online peer review solution worldwide, supported by staff in the U.S., U.K. and Europe.

Launched in October 2006, the 2,000th journal to go live with Editorial Manager is the Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (AAAI), the official publication of the American College of Allergy, Asthma, & Immunology. Richard Wynne, VP of Sales & Marketing for Aries, explained, "This launch is also particularly significant, as AAAI is the first journal to use the EM Data Bridge to transition from a competitive peer review system.” EM Data Bridge is a set of tools that facilitates a simple and low-risk transition to Editorial Manager from other online and desktop manuscript tracking systems.

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University of Chicago Press Selects Editorial Manager
[pdf version]

October 19, 2006, North Andover, MA, USA - The University of Chicago Press and Aries Systems Corporation are pleased to announce an agreement to deploy the Editorial Manager peer review system for all journals published by the University of Chicago Press.

In the fast-changing world of electronic publishing, university presses are ideally placed to nurture and serve scholarly authors by providing the best publishing services available. Selecting Editorial Manager for online peer review demonstrates the ongoing commitment by the University of Chicago Press to serve its community of authors, reviewers, and editors.

"We went through a detailed, thorough evaluation process, and selected Editorial Manager for its proven track record of reliability and regular software upgrades. Integrating EM with our editorial process will help our highly skilled staff concentrate on enriching content,” commented Nawin Gupta, Journals Division Manager at the University of Chicago Press.

Lyndon Holmes, President of Aries Systems Corporation, added, “We are honored to work with such a prestigious publisher as the University of Chicago Press. As an independent organization serving the publishing community, Aries is focused on serving customers with regular software enhancements and 99.99% system availability.”

About University of Chicago Press - Founded in 1891, the University of Chicago Press is the largest American university press. The Journals Division currently publishes forty-seven award-winning periodicals and serials in a wide range of disciplines, including several journals that were the first scholarly publications in their respective fields. Online since 1995, the Journals Division has also been a pioneer in electronic publishing, delivering original, peer-reviewed research from international scholars to a worldwide audience.

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Editorial Manager® Optimizes Peer Review Experience with Open Approach to Integrating Search Engines Such as Google™ Scholar, Ovid, Scopus™, PubMed®, HighWire™
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September 26, 2006, North Andover, MA, USA - Editorial Manager and Preprint Manager provide one-click integrated searches of more than a dozen free and subscription-based bibliographic databases, including Google™ Scholar, Ovid, PubMed®, and even more specialized services such as EMBL Nucleotide Sequence Database and the NASA Astrophysics Data System.

Available to authors, reviewers, and editors (as determined by journal preference), the links use metadata from the peer review system database, thereby creating “smart searches” for classifications, author names, keywords and article titles. With one click, a reviewer can pull up related articles from available databases. Similarly, editors can verify author credentials and identify new potential reviewers. During production, the searches provide important information for copyediting and reference checking.

The Editorial Manager system is not biased in favor of any specific bibliographic search engine. Links are configured according to journal preference and only the searches chosen by the journal appear in the workflow interface. Currently available searches were integrated at the request of Editorial Manager users, and Aries can add more databases with as little as 24 hours notice.

Richard Wynne, Aries’ VP of Marketing and Sales, said, "Aries maintains an open approach to the integration of bibliographic search engines. After all, it’s the journal that best knows the information needs of its authors, reviewers and editors, so they should be free to select any database."

Currently Integrated Search Engines:

  • ADS Search - The NASA Astrophysics Data System
  • CAB Direct (Author, Classifications)
  • EMBL Nucleotide Sequence Database (Keywords, Title)
  • Emerald Insight
  • GenBank® (Keywords, Title)
  • Google™ (Author, Title)
  • Google™ Scholar (Author, Title)
  • HighWire®
  • Inspec®
  • Medline® (Keywords, Author, Title)
  • Ovid (Keywords, Author, Title)
  • PubMed® (Keywords, Author, Title, Classifications, and more)
  • Scholar Universe (Keyword, Title, Author)
  • Scirus (Author, Title)
  • Scopus™ (Author, Title)
  • Springer Link

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Aries Systems Releases Preprint Manager Production Tracking and Announces Initial Customers
[pdf version]

July 26, 2006, North Andover, MA, USA - Driven by industry changes, society and commercial publishers are re-thinking how they manage the "supply chain" of manuscripts from author submission through final publication in electronic and print formats. Newly released Preprint Manager - Production Tracking from Aries Systems is a web-based tool that enables the coordination of the manuscript "supply chain" involving geographically disparate participants such as authors, editors and off-shore vendors.

The underlying characteristics of Preprint Manager are:

  • Web-configurable workflows, tasks, and user roles.
  • File management and control.
  • Schedule management based on individual manuscripts or by publication issue.
  • Web-based tools for controlling, managing and optimizing the supply chain.
  • Automated quality assurance tools, such as bibliography checking and formatting.
  • Regular releases providing updated functionality.
  • Hosting platform with very high (99.99%) availability track-record.
  • Integration with online peer review systems.

Traditional content management systems require journals to make massive up-front and recurring investments in software licensing, customization and hosting infrastructure. In contrast, Preprint Manager can be initially deployed for a few thousand dollars and utilization begins immediately without software development. Customization is implemented with the web-based administrator toolkit and regular software updates are provided free of charge. Publishers retain maximum operational flexibility and entirely avoid the high costs and risks common with content management systems.

Richard Wynne, Aries' VP of Sales and Marketing, said, "Preprint Manager supports existing manuscript preparation practices such as issue-based publishing, while also being an on-ramp for emerging publication models such as end-to-end article-based workflows. It’s hard to imagine publishing a successful journal during the next few years without adopting a tool like Preprint Manager."

Several leading publishers have already placed orders for Preprint Manager. The American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists will use Preprint Manager to manage post acceptance workflows for AAPS PharmSciTech and The AAPS Journal; Nature Publishing Group will be piloting the system for Nature and other journals.

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EM Data Bridge Provides a Cost Effective Route for Journals to Migrate to Editorial Manager Electronic Peer Review
[pdf version]

July 21, 2006, North Andover, MA, USA - As the market for online peer review systems has matured, journals have a growing appreciation of service and functionality levels required to effectively service authors, reviewers and editors. But lack of data portability has made it difficult to switch from poorly performing systems because editors fear losing access to historical data stored on their existing system.

The EM Data Bridge from Aries Systems – available in the newly released Editorial Manager® 5.0 – solves the problem by providing a convenient, seamless and cost-effective solution for importing historical manuscript and people data from legacy online or desktop manuscript tracking systems. This means that journals that are dissatisfied with their current peer review system vendor don’t have to worry about losing valuable historic data when migrating to Editorial Manager.

The EM Data Bridge is comprised of journal-customizable fields, import utilities, migration protocols and powerful search capabilities. Aries’ customer service department is responsible for deploying the new utility. Jennifer Fleet, Director of Customer Service, commented, “We have received data from several journals and have been impressed with the speed of import and the convenience of data search and access within Editorial Manager.”

Journals wishing to evaluate the EM Data Bridge and view their historical data on an Editorial Manager system should send sample data to Aries’ customer service department for loading and access in the Editorial Manager system.

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New Release of Editorial Manager® Version 5.0 Further Expands System Configurability, Enriches User Experience
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July 18, 2006, North Andover, MA, USA - Aries Systems Corporation today announced the release of Editorial Manager Version 5.0, the latest upgrade to the online manuscript submission and peer review system that is actively used by more than 1,850 scholarly and scientific publications.

Enhancements included in the new release are based on feedback from the Editorial Manager (EM) User Group and key customers, and focus on: improving the user interface; extending the inventory of Web-based configuration options; and facilitating interactive communications between journals, authors, and reviewers.

For example, journals can select from hundreds of configurable "flags" for display next to manuscript records, so editors can quickly "flag" manuscripts that have idiosyncratic characteristics. State-of-the-art interface options enable editors to compress and decompress displayed information so that they can more easily navigate long lists of manuscripts. Configurable manuscript fields and user registration questions permit flexible data storage, and capture of data from users. These and dozens of other exciting new capabilities are outlined in the Version 5.0 Release Notes which can be obtained by contacting Aries’ customer service department.

Commenting on the new release, Tony Alves, Product Manager, said, "As ever, we have been systematic and thorough in our design and development process. Extended workflow capabilities, such as the ability to require an explicit manuscript technical check, are optionally configured by journals. This means that journals can switch on new functionality at their own pace. Editorial Manager is simply miles ahead when it comes to self-paced deployment and configurability."

Aries has a 5-year track record of providing more than 15 successful and hassle-free upgrades of Editorial Manager. As with previous releases, Version 5.0 is being rolled-out to journals on a phased basis, and in a manner that does not require journal downtime or immediate staff retraining. Commenting on Aries’ software deployment expertise, Richard Wynne, Vice President of Sales and Marketing, said, "Thanks to our unique software architecture, we don’t need to switch all journals to a new release at the same instant. This low risk approach ensures an excellent customer service experience thereby helping journals build brand loyalty with all-important reviewers and authors."

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Brill Chooses Editorial Manager for Manuscript Submission Management
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July 14, 2006, North Andover, MA, USA - Aries Systems Corporation, the leading supplier of online web-based manuscript tracking solutions, has announced that Brill, a Dutch publishing house with a rich scholarly publishing tradition and headquarters in Leiden, Holland, will use Editorial Manager. Brill will use the system for management of journals within the humanities and the natural sciences. Initially, six journals including Early Science and Medicine, Journal of Early Modern History and Behaviour will be migrated to workflows configured in Editorial Manager. Additional journals will follow in future project phases.

Brill selected Editorial Manager due in part to the superior functional and technical attributes of the system, but also because of its considerable reputation in the industry. Dr. Arthur Koedam, Manager of Operations for Brill, said, “Editorial Manager is the industry standard, no doubt about it, so we can be sure to be in good hands.”

Editorial Manager will supersede Brill’s previous solution for online manuscript submission. The company’s objective in using Editorial Manager is to increase the speed and control of editorial workflow for each journal, explained Dr. Koedam.

Additionally, Brill plans to integrate Editorial Manager into their Content Management System (CMS). Using online manuscript management software is part of an overall strategy to support everyday publishing activities by means of state-of-the-art technology. “We have to flow with the times, and our motto at Brill is to employ proven electronic tools in a systematic and beneficial way,” explains Dr. Koedam.

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June 22, 2006 - First African Journal Signs with Editorial Manager

June 22, 2006, North Andover, MA, USA - The Cardiovascular Journal of South Africa has become the first journal in Africa to choose Editorial Manager for online manuscript submission and peer review.

The Cardiovascular Journal of South Africa, the peer-reviewed journal for the South African associates in clinical and laboratory circulatory disorders, plans to go live with Editorial Manager in 2006.

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Fourth Annual Editorial Manager User Group Recap

The Fourth Annual Editorial Manager User Group (EMUG) meeting took place on June 12-13, 2006 at the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Washington, DC. More than 100 people attended the two-day meeting, which featured breakout sessions, workshops, and a fantastic cocktail reception on the rooftop deck of the Old Ebbitt Grill.

The presentations and breakout sessions focused on a variety of topics. VP of Sales and Marketing Richard Wynne introduced new features in the forthcoming release of Editorial Manager 5.0, and the stand-alone production tracking system, Preprint Manager. In Getting the Most Out of EM, Product Manager Tony Alves shared lesser-known tips and tricks for using Editorial Manager. Guest presenters Marie Linvill of Scholar Universe and Bruce Rosenblum of Inera Inc. discussed how bibliographic databases and reference checking and linking (eXtyles) can enhance the editorial process. Intensive Reports Clinics helped new and experienced users understand how to get information they need with custom and canned reports.

The breakout sessions, led by Director of Customer Service Jennifer Fleet, focused on a number of general topics relevant to publishers and editorial staff, such as Security and digital Copyright and Permissions. In the popular Letters session, experienced EM users shared their advice on communicating with reviewers. Industry expert Simon Inger presented interesting ideas in his talk, The Future of Scholarly Publishing.

As always, the interactive Features Workshop was one of the most popular sessions. Users brainstorm product enhancements they’d like to see, and share their ideas with each other and Aries staff. This valuable feedback is frequently incorporated into future system upgrades. The final day concluded with another popular session—a preview of EM version 6.0, which is currently in development.

Aries also hosted a cocktail reception for EMUG attendees at the Old Ebbitt Grill. The rooftop reception was at dusk, so everyone was treated to a spectacular view of the Washington skyline during the day and at night. For many EM users, this opportunity to network with colleagues is just as valuable as the day sessions.

The Aries staff enjoyed meeting members of the EM user community, and listening to their ideas for new features. The diversity of topics at EMUG represents Aries’ commitment to enhancing the entire editorial process with Editorial Manager.


Richard Wynne, Aries' VP of Marketing and Sales, begins the conference by introducing new features in Editorial Manager 5.0


During the Features Workshop, EM users discuss the system in small groups, brainstorming enhancements they would like to see


Guest speaker Marie Linvill of Scholar Universe talks about how journals can find new reviewers


But EMUG is not all work. The rooftop reception at Old Ebbitt Grill begins before sunset ...


... and goes until dark, while attendees unwind and enjoy the Washington skyline.

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Scholar Universe™ Integration Will Help EM Users Find Reviewers

June 5, 2006, North Andover, MA - Does your journal need more reviewers? We may have the solution.

Aries Systems Corporation is pleased to announce a partnership with Scholar Universe™ that gives Editorial Manager users a competitive edge when searching for reviewers.

Featuring more than one million scholars spanning 200 academic disciplines, the Scholar Universe database (http://www.scholaruniverse.com) enables journals to identify, assess, and contact relevant faculty based on specified professional credentials. Aries Systems now provides seamless workflow integration between Editorial Manager and Scholar Universe platforms, thereby enhancing and speeding up the peer-review process. Journals can quickly identify qualified reviewers for a manuscript based on its topic keywords, as well as locate authors through direct, predefined links that are embedded within the Editorial Manager interface.

To learn more about obtaining a free evaluation of the Scholar Universe database in Editorial Manager, journals should contact their Aries account coordinator.

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Aries Unveils New Comprehensive Help System for Editorial Manager

March 29, 2006, North Andover, MA, USA - Today, Aries unveiled a new comprehensive help system for Editorial Manager. The detailed help screens answer how-to questions step-by-step, with screenshots that show users exactly what to do. The help screens cover simple issues, such as how to register for the first time, as well as how to use more advanced features such as Invited Papers, eXtyles, and uploading arXiv files.

The new help system includes Search and Index features that make it easy to find help topics, as well as a Troubleshooting section. EM Knowledge Base has several FAQ's that provide quick answers to common questions about interface design, EM tools, and role-specific questions (Authors, Editors, etc).

The updated help system is part of Aries' ongoing commitment to providing the best online peer review system in the world.

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Duke Mathematical Journal Begins Using Editorial Manager

January 19, 2006, North Andover, MA, USA - The Duke Mathematical Journal (DMJ), one of the world’s leading mathematical journals, began using Editorial Manager on January 19. DMJ requires manuscripts to be submitted in LaTeX2e, a popular format for mathematical papers. LaTeX2e is one of many submission file formats that has been supported by Editorial Manager for more than 4 years. Multiple files can also be uploaded in compressed ZIP format.

To visit the DMJ Editorial Manager site, please click here.

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About Aries:

Aries Systems transforms the way scholarly publishers bring high-value content to the world. The company’s innovative and forward-looking workflow solutions manage the complexities of modern print and electronic publishing – from submission, to editorial management and peer review, to production tracking and publishing channel distribution. As the publishing environment evolves, Aries Systems is committed to delivering solutions that help publishers and scholars enhance the discovery and dissemination of human knowledge. Publish faster, publish smarter, with Aries Systems.

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