Before you submit work to MARS
Please ask yourself the following questions:
- Are you sure you should submit the work?
- Do you have submit access to MARS?
- Do you have appropriate rights to the work?
- Is the work in the best possible file format?
Are you sure you should submit the work?
If you are considering submitting a preprint to MARS, be aware that some publishers do not accept work that has appeared on the public Web. This is changing, but do check your preferred publication venues’ policies before you place a publishable but unpublished work in MARS.
Do you have submit access to MARS?
MARS needs to know which collections you are permitted to submit work to. If your department has established a MARS presence already, check with them; you should have a MARS coordinator who can get you set up.
If your department does not yet have a MARS presence, consider starting one! If that is not practical, contact the MARS Librarian to be added to the MARS Pathfinders community.
Do you have appropriate rights to the work?
The MARS license asks you to attest that you have sufficient rights over the work to grant MARS permission to preserve and display it. Are you sure you have those rights?
If the work is by a third party, check when work passes into the public domain. If the work is not public-domain, you must get written permission from the work’s owner before placing the work in MARS. Feel free to contact the MARS Librarian for assistance with rights clearance, and to obtain a print copy of the standard MARS license.
If the work is yours, but has been previously published—you may not have all the rights you think you do! Book and journal publishing agreements may transfer your copyright to the publisher. Before you submit a published work to MARS, please check any publishing agreements you signed for copyright transfer. If you are still not sure after reading the agreement, contact the MARS Librarian for a second opinion.
Even if you transferred copyright, the publisher may still allow you to submit work to MARS. They may, however, limit which version of your work you may submit, or insist that the submitted work contain citation information for the published version. Check your publishing agreement for appropriate language. Also look for your publisher on the SHERPA/ROMEO list. If neither of these clarifies your rights, contact the MARS Librarian for help contacting and negotiating with the publisher.
Is the work in the best possible file format?
MARS exists to preserve your files for the long-term. Unfortunately, some file formats don’t stand the test of time as well as others.
In general, MARS prefers files in formats that are:
- Text-based rather than binary
- Open rather than proprietary
- Documented rather than secret
- Lossless rather than lossy
Obviously, few formats can meet all these specifications! When choosing between formats, however, keep the above metrics in mind.
MARS can accept the same file in multiple formats. This is a useful strategy when the file format that is best for preservation is not the easiest to use: for example, TIFF is an excellent archival format for images, but JPEG is far easier for people to view.
Some files and file formats will require special handling or conversion. While the Libraries cannot always perform conversion services, we can consult with you, research options, and suggest possibilities. Likewise, if you aren't sure which formats are best for your work, we can help. Just ask!