“The original idea of the web was that it should be a collaborative space where you can communicate through sharing information”

Tim Berners Lee

As internet usage continues to rocket, with everyday online activity such as shopping and entertainment forming a fundamental part of basic day-to-day human routine, you’d be forgiven for forgetting that the web was created with sharing in mind. But you need only look to social media to be reminded that collaboration and sharing online is very much alive and well. Social networks such as Facebook create places where we can freely interact with others online.

The academic community is arguably more predisposed than any to benefit from this sort of forum. Sharing within academia is commonplace, and discussion is actively encouraged; scholarly content like journal articles has always been distributed and discussed, defended or disputed within groups of academics. Taking the conversation online simply opens up the possibilities for widespread debate.

That’s why CJO has introduced a new Facebook app, allowing our readers to easily share information with friends, colleagues and peers across the globe. The app can benefit CJO users in two ways:

Using the app on Facebook

Firstly, it allows you to discuss an article directly from your Facebook account. If you read a Cambridge Journals PDF article while logged into CJO, this activity will be posted to your Facebook activity log. Friends can choose to see what you’re reading and like, share or comment on the article. You then have the option to share this directly to a colleague’s wall, or simply comment underneath the post, inviting open discussion.

Using the app on CJO

In addition to your own Facebook activity, the social reader app allows you to see what your friends have been reading. Once logged in to CJO with Facebook, you will see a facepile appear in the left hand menu of every page. As well as giving you a snapshot of who’s reading content on CJO, this enables you to view your friends’ social reading lists. Do you have a colleague abroad who is studying within the same field as you? Or a friend on your course who you often share content with? Viewing their reading list allows you to jump straight to content that is relevant specifically to you.

You can begin sharing and discussing Cambridge Journals articles via Facebook now, simply by registering or logging into CJO using your Facebook account. Once you’ve logged in, you don’t need to set anything up – Facebook will automatically link your accounts. Any articles you read whilst logged in will appear under the ‘Activity log’ on your Facebook profile page, which you can then publish on your timeline as you wish.