In this webinar, hosted by the EIFL Licensing Programme, guest presenter John Hammersley, co-founder and CEO of Overleaf, demonstrates how - in an era of increasing global research collaboration - researchers can use the online platform Overleaf to work together to write, edit and publish documents.

The platform, which is being used by two million authors from 180 countries, enables researchers to work together directly in their browsers, in real time.

Overleaf’s main advantage is that it allows you to manage long documents, and to include tables and mathematical formulae. Another strength over other tools is that it allows for professional typesetting.

Key features are:

• The same version of the document is accessible by all, eliminating the need to create multiple versions.
• There is no need to email large files: Overleaf users can share a link or invite others to collaborate on a document by email.
• Typesetting is done automatically in the background.
• Overleaf compiles the document in PDF format, and makes it visible in a panel on the right hand side of the screen, enabling researchers to see how changes affect the document as it progresses.
• Changes can be tracked - review tools provide real-time commenting, track changes and version control.
• No local software installation on multiple machines is needed.

Overleaf collaborates with a number of journals and publishers, and has created nearly 400 templates for submitting papers to these journals. This makes it easier for authors to transpose their articles into the typesetting format required by a particular journal or publisher. In addition, Overleaf includes direct links to over 500 journals and preprint repositories, making the submission process much quicker and easier.

Overleaf has both free and subscription versions for individual users. The free version enables collaboration with one other person. A monthly subscription enables collaboration with up to 10 others, and unlocks additional features such as real-time track changes, full document history and integration with Dropbox and Github. Overleaf also offers institutional subscriptions.

SUPPORTING MATERIAL

• Download the slides from the webinar (PDF).
• Find out more about Overleaf and pricing for individual and institutional users.