The Public Library of Science (PLOS) announced that it is expanding a service offered to Lab Protocol authors through its partnership with protocols.io. The protocols.io team will format step-by-step protocols for their platform at no charge during any stage of the Lab Protocol writing or review process, even before submission.
This service will save time for PLOS ONE authors who may not be familiar with the rich functionality – features like timers, labels for critical steps, and the option to embed media objects like videos – of the protocols.io platform. The protocols.io team can also provide feedback to help authors improve the protocol’s presentation, clarity, and reproducibility.
Previously, the protocol entry service was offered to the Lab Protocol authors whose submissions had already been sent out for peer review. By expanding it to all current and future Lab Protocol authors, PLOS ONE is making it easier for authors to provide an optimised step-by-step protocol as part of their initial submission.
Authors also have complete control over how and when the protocol is made available at protocols.io. The newly formatted protocol will not be visible to anyone else until the author can inspect it and make changes. Authors can share it publicly or generate a private link accessible only to PLOS ONE editors and reviewers. If the Lab Protocol is not accepted at PLOS ONE, authors can still choose to share the step-by-step protocol on protocols.io for other researchers to use and build on.
Lab Protocol authors can access this free service by emailing plosone@plos.org to request a customer code, which will be provided in two to three business days. The author can enter the code when submitting their step-by-step protocol to the protocol entry service.
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