Contribute to Open Manuscript Initiative
Open Manuscript Initiative is an open project. We welcome native-language translators and reviewers, researchers, authors, editors, peer reviewers, librarians, publishers, metadata and accessibility specialists, user-experience designers, developers, security specialists, testers and institutional partners.
You do not need to write code or already have repository access. A careful language correction, a reproducible bug report, a publishing-workflow example or feedback from a real test can all be valuable contributions.
:::info iOS/iPadOS release specialist wanted
We are currently looking for an iOS/iPadOS release specialist with appropriate professional qualifications and demonstrable experience with macOS and Xcode, Apple code signing and provisioning, TestFlight, App Store Connect, secure certificate handling and preferably Tauri or a comparable cross-platform stack.
The immediate goal is to turn the validated simulator build into a reproducible, signed release process. Signing certificates, private keys, passwords and provisioning secrets must never be posted in an Issue, Discussion or pull request.
:::
Native-language translation and review
The website and Open Manuscript Studio currently support 24 interface languages. Machine-assisted translations are only a first draft until a competent native-language reviewer has checked terminology, meaning and natural usage.
We especially welcome people who can:
- review the website, documentation or Studio interface in their native language;
- correct unnatural, ambiguous or misleading translations;
- build and maintain language-specific terminology lists;
- check scholarly-publishing, editorial and technical terminology;
- verify that links, code examples, identifiers and protected terms remain unchanged;
- review updates when the English source changes.
To join, start a GitHub Discussion and tell us:
- your native language and regional variant;
- your professional or subject-area experience;
- whether you would prefer to review the website, documentation, Studio interface or a particular integration;
- the amount and type of contribution you would like to make.
The English specification suite remains normative. Translations are informative unless a document explicitly says otherwise.
Other expertise we are looking for
| Area | Examples of useful contributions |
|---|---|
| Scholarly publishing | Author, editor, reviewer and production workflows; journal and book publishing requirements |
| OJS and OMP | Plugin testing, PKP workflow review, compatibility checks and deployment experience |
| Libraries and metadata | ORCID, ROR, DOI, Crossref, DataCite, JATS, CSL, repositories and preservation |
| Accessibility and UX | Keyboard and assistive-technology testing, mobile usability, inclusive interface review |
| Software engineering | TypeScript, React, Tauri, Node.js, PHP, testing, performance, security and release engineering |
| Institutional pilots | Real-world evaluation by universities, libraries, scholarly societies, journals and publishers |
Try the project and send feedback
You can try Open Manuscript Studio and tell us what worked, what was confusing and what prevented you from completing a real task.
A useful report includes:
- the platform, browser or application version;
- interface and manuscript language;
- the task you attempted;
- the result you expected and what actually happened;
- reproducible steps and a screenshot when appropriate.
Do not attach confidential, unpublished or personally identifiable manuscript content to a public report. Use a short synthetic example whenever possible.
Where to contribute
- Introductions and proposals: OMI Discussions
- Website and specifications: OMI Issues
- Studio: Open Manuscript Studio Issues
- OJS integration: OMI OJS Plugin Issues
- OMP integration: OMI OMP Plugin Issues
- Prepared changes: fork the relevant repository and open a focused pull request
Read the contribution guidelines and Code of Conduct before starting substantial work. Discuss major changes first so that effort is not duplicated.
Repository access and licensing
Occasional contributors do not need direct repository permissions: a fork and pull request is the normal route. Ongoing contributors may receive the minimum access needed for their role after coordination with the maintainers. Direct write access is not required for translation review.
Unless a repository states otherwise, accepted contributions are published under its open-source licence. Contributions to the OMI core repository are licensed under the MIT License.