Vision Statement
To be the go-to practical companion for every Open Journal Systems user worldwide — a living, community-shaped resource that bridges the gap between official documentation and day-to-day practice, in every language and at every level of expertise.
Open Journal Systems already democratises scholarly publishing by giving any institution the tools to run a peer-reviewed journal at no cost. Our vision is to democratise the knowledge needed to use those tools well — making expertise freely available to the new journal editor in Nairobi, the librarian in Jakarta, and the postdoc in Buenos Aires just as much as to the seasoned administrator at a major research university.
Six Pillars of Our Vision
The Definitive Practical Reference
A single resource that every OJS user—anywhere in the world—can open and immediately act on, from their first installation to their thousandth submission.
Globally Inclusive
Available in multiple languages and written with diverse institutional contexts in mind — from well-funded university presses to single-editor community journals in the Global South.
Always Current
Continuously updated alongside OJS releases so that no user is left navigating outdated instructions. A guide that grows with the platform.
Community-Owned
A guide that the OJS community genuinely shapes — through pull requests, issue reports, and direct contributions — not just a document maintained by a single organisation.
Training-Ready
Content structured so that librarians, trainers, and academic support staff can adapt it directly for workshops, onboarding guides, and institutional training programmes.
Ecosystem Connected
Deeply linked to the broader PKP ecosystem — official docs, the PKP Community Forum, plugin registry, and release notes — so users always know where to go next.
The Gap We Are Closing
OJS documentation has historically existed in two places: the PKP Documentation Hub (comprehensive but sometimes hard to navigate), and the PKP Community Forum (rich but fragmented). There has been no single, role-organised, practical guide that a new journal manager or author can open and follow immediately.
Our vision is to fill that space with a resource that is:
- Role-first — not a feature tour, but a task guide scoped to what you actually need to do in your role.
- Plain-language — written for practitioners, not developers. Jargon is explained, not assumed.
- Actionable — every page ends with something you can do, not just something you know.
- Linked — every relevant page points to official PKP docs, so you always have a path to deeper reference.
Where We Are Going
Short term: Complete role-based coverage for all 12 OJS roles, with step-by-step instructions for every major task and a comprehensive FAQ section.
Medium term: Video walkthroughs, printable checklists for common workflows, and a curated plugin/theme directory with real-world compatibility notes.
Long term: Translations into major languages spoken by the OJS community, a community contribution programme, and integration with PKP's own documentation ecosystem.