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BISAC as Requirement for Book to be Indexed in Scopus
A scientific work, whether in the form of an article, book or other form of research work, will be disseminated publicly through a series of publication processes. This needs to be done so that scientific work can be spread widely and can be utilized by other academic persons. At this publication stage, a scientific work must also have some kind of protection so that it is not misused by irresponsible parties. There are various forms of abuse such as plagiarism, unilateral acquisition, and so on.
One of the steps taken to increase the credibility of a scientific work while protecting the content contained in it is by indexing it. What is indexation? In short, indexation is the steps taken to register journals or other scientific works on certain indexing sites. Technically, in this indexation all journal or scientific work metadata will be stored in a database. So that all original data related to a scientific journal or book will be stored permanently in the database. This original data can be used as evidence and a tool to protect this scientific work from any acts of plagiarism in the future.
On the other hand, this indexation site also functions to organize various research works in one special place or database. So when a researcher wants to quote or look for research references, they just need to visit the indexing site. After that, the researcher can find and cite articles that he will use as reference material in writing scientific work. In general, some of the benefits of indexation are as follows.
1. Makes it easy to quote or citation
2. Avoid plagiarism
3. As a reference for other researchers
4. Improve the reputation of the journal or publishing institution
5. Strengthen the validity of scientific work
Then what indexing sites can we use? In general, currently there are lots of indexing sites that we can find. However, each indexing site has its own criteria or reputation. One of the highly reputable indexing sites that is widely used globally is Scopus. Scopus and various other indexing sites have various special requirements that need to be met so that a scientific work can be indexed.
In this case, Scopus in particular has requirements so that a book can be indexed. One of these requirements is that the book must have metadata that contains BISAC. The big question is what is BISAC? In this article we will specifically discuss the BISAC.
What is BISAC?
Book Industry Standards and Communications (BISAC) is a standard used in categorizing or applying classification to a book. BISAC was developed by an organization or institution known as the Book Industry Study Group (BISG). The BISAC standard is generally applied in the United States. However, over time, BISAC has also been used on a global scale by various other countries.
The categorization and grouping of books in BISAC is arranged based on certain predetermined themes or subjects. In short, BISAC is in the form of a code. To date, the BISAC system has thousands of codes representing various topics or themes. In other words, each theme or subject of discussion has its own code. This code is what we will apply in a book. So a book that has implemented or integrated with BISAC will have its own code, depending on the theme and subject matter of the book.
We can find a guide and example of implementing the BISAC code in the following article.
Selecting a BISAC Code
In general, BISAC is used to make it easier for various groups such as publishers, distributors and consumers to manage and identify a book. With this BISAC code, they will find a specific theme or subject of a book more quickly just by looking at and checking the code in the book. The location of the BISAC code varies, there is no standard that regulates the layout of this code. However, in general the BISAC code is located on the cover of the book close to the barcode. The BISAC code can be applied to both printed books and ebooks. Until now the subject headings on BISAC are only available in English.
What are the benefits of BISAC?
BISAC is not just an ordinary code contained in a book. As a standard applied in book categorization, BISAC has several benefits. The benefits by implementing BISAC are as follows.
1. As a Scopus indexing requirement
Ref: elsevier.com
Scopus is a highly reputable indexing site. Scopus is very popular among researchers and publishers for indexing scientific works in the form of books, articles, and so on. Scopus has special requirements that must be met in order for a book to be indexed in their database. One such requirement is that a book must contain BISAC metadata. When a book is integrated with BISAC, it means we have fulfilled one of the requirements to be indexed in Scopus.
2. Make easier for searching
With BISAC, it will make it easier for users to search for books in certain theme categories. And of course this search is more specific, because in BISAC each topic or theme has its own code. So this code will make it easier for users to quickly search for various book titles or themes according to their interests.
3. There are consistent code standards
In categorizing a book, BISAC has thousands of predefined codes. This code has of course been set according to standards and is structured. So this code will not change. With this standard code, it will make it easier for various groups such as managers, publishers or consumers to manage, group and identify books effectively and efficiently.
4. Make easier for distribution
BISAC is not only useful for categorizing books. However, BISAC also makes work easier in terms of distributing a book. With the code standards set by BISAC, the book delivery flow will be easier. From each code on the book, distributors can easily group the books and send them to various places according to their intended purpose.
Above are some of the uses of BISAC. Actually, there are many other functions of BISAC. However, in general, the above are the main points of the use of BISAC itself.
How to Integrate BISAC in OMP?
As previously explained, BISAC is not only applied to printed books, but BISAC can also be applied to digital books (ebooks). Currently, the digital book publication platform that is widely used by publishers is Open Monograph Press (OMP). OMP has been used by many groups for digital book publication. To increase the reputation and validity of the books they manage, many publishers want OMP and the books it contains to be indexed in Scopus. On the other hand, there are special requirements that must be met in order to be indexed in Scopus. One of these requirements is that the book must contain BISAC metadata.
The big question is how can OMP be integrated with BISAC? Meanwhile, based on OMP’s built-in features, there is no option to load BISAC metadata.
Some time ago we received a request from our client, namely Airlangga University (UNAIR). Here they asked our team to develop a plugin for OMP that is capable of loading BISAC metadata. So it is hoped that every book published on OMP will be integrated with the BISAC code. After going through various evaluations and research, our team was finally able to develop this BISAC Plugin for OMP. On the other hand, we also want to thank UNAIR for trusting us in this project. In the end, this project was very useful and added to the experience our team had in product development, especially the BISAC Plugin for OMP.
The following is a preview of the appearance of the BISAC Plugin that we have developed.
1. Display the Installed Plugin menu tab on the OMP dashboard
2. Display the BISAC column in the Catalog Entry section in the production stage
The BISAC plugin that we have developed is in accordance with standards. On the other hand, this plugin will not interfere with or eliminate other functions in OMP. So that all the features and functions of OMP will be more complete with this BISAC plugin.
Conclusion
BISAC is a standard set for categorizing various titles and topics in a book. In short, BISAC takes the form of a code. This code will represent each book title or theme for which a standard has been set. So that each theme and topic of discussion will have its own unique code. BISAC is also one of the requirements set by Scopus in order to be indexed in their database. So we need to apply BISAC in book publishing activities, including integrating BISAC metadata in OMP. So far our team has been able to develop the BISAC Plugin on OMP. So it is hoped that with this plugin, it will be able to meet client needs and in particular help to be easily indexed in Scopus.
