There are different types of options for open access publishing. These include, for example:
Gold OA and Diamond OA journalsIn gold OA the publishers make the paper or article immediately and freely available from the point of publication, and usually apply an article processing charge. The APC can be costly. There are also gold OA journals that don't charge APC's. These journals are often referred to as diamond OA.
Hybrid OA journalsHybrid OA refers to subscription journals that charge an extra fee to make a specific article open access while the remainder of the journal remains behind a paywall.
Green OA (parallel publishing/self-archiving)Green OA involves making a copy of a paper or article, usually the final draft, openly available in an institutional repository, for example LUTPub. Publishers stipulate which version of the paper or article can be deposited and specify an embargo period following publication before the paper can be made open access. You can check your publisher's open access policies and summaries of self-archiving permissions from SHERPA/RoMeo.
It is worth noticing that while social networking services such as ResearchGate and Academia.edu make it easy to share your publications, they are not considered official repositories and therefore don't qualify as green OA.
Image: Suvi Pousi (CC BY 4.0)
There are different versions of the manuscripts during the publishing process of a scientific article. Only certain versions are allowed to be shared, parallel published or self-archived, so knowing the names for different versions is important. The names may vary among publishers.
![diagram moving through the stages of a research publication. author versions: submitted manuscript (pre-print); [peer review and revisions]; accepted manuscript (post-print) - deposit this for possible Green OA. publisher's versions, after copyediting, typesetting, formatting: in-press version (some journals only); published version (publisher's PDF) - deposit this for possible Gold OA in DRO.](https://libapps-au.s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/accounts/105087/images/author-vs-publisher-versions.png)
Image source: Deakin University Library (CC BY)
| Version name and variations | Explanation | Notes |
|
Pre-print Same as: submitted version, submitted manuscript, author's original |
The article manuscript that has been submitted to the journal for review process. Not been reviewed yet. | |
|
Post-print Same as: final draft, accepted version, author's accepted manuscript, AAM, post-review |
The article manuscript that has been fully reviewed and accepted for publication. The text itself is the same as in the final, published article but it does not have any typesetting or formatting made by the publisher. However, if the publisher's template has been used the manuscript may look similar to the final published article but there are no DOI or other identification available. The accepted manuscript may contain the comments of the reviewers. | |
|
Article proof Also: uncorrected proof, corrected proof, journal pre-proof |
An article proofs are versions which shows how the article will look like in a print or online form. The publisher has made some editing to the article but it is not yet in the final form and may be changed. Proofs are versions between the accepted version and the final published version. | The right to self-archive an article proof depends on the publisher. |
|
Published version Same as: final version, final article, version of record, VoR, camera ready |
The version which has been copy-edited and typeset by the publisher and available from the publisher's original source. | |
| Early view, ahead-of-print, online first, in press | Usually the same version as the final published version but may be lacking the volume, issue or page number information. The article is published online when the early view is available. |
Table source: The University of Sheffield Library https://www.sheffield.ac.uk/library/open-access/key-terms#article-versions
One of the arguments for open access publishing is that publicly funded research should be freely available to the public. Otherwise the public has to pay for the research twice - first through funding and then again through journal subscription fees.
Plan S is an initiative for Open Access publishing that was launched in September 2018. The plan is supported by cOAlition S, an international consortium of research funding and performing organisations. Plan S requires that, from 2021, scientific publications that result from research funded by public grants must be published in compliant Open Access journals or platforms. The Research Council of Finland and Horizon Europe are among the funders implementing Plan S.
The easiest way to check whether a journal or a publishing platform is compliant with Plan S is to use the Journal Checker Tool. It's a web-based tool which provides clear advice to researchers on how they can comply with their funder’s Plan S-aligned Open Access policy.