What is needed for an online journal

[Bill Rowan <rowan@transbay.net>]

Hello,

We have the arxiv preprint server, and other preprint servers.  Why is
this not sufficient?  Because the papers are not refereed and subject to
being made better through the work of editors (not that they always
improve things).

What about having an editorial board, which would look at papers on the
arxiv, say, have them reviewed and revised, and then put them back on the
arxiv in final form, and listed elsewhere as having been through that
process and "blessed" so to speak by the editorial board?

What we would all like to have is more prestige for having our papers
blessed, and hopefully, read by somebody.  In this proposal, the quality
of the editorial board's work and the usability of its published listings
would be the most important thing.  They could even give a negative
recommendation for someone's paper, although authors might hope for the
opportunity to withdraw their paper if they didn't appreciate the final
recommendation.

The pulbished listings could include more information than just an up- or
down- recommendation to read the paper, it could include comments by other
mathematicians.

Bill Rowan