Showing posts with label PHP. Show all posts
Showing posts with label PHP. Show all posts

Monday, 28 October 2013

One step ahead in Bioinformatics using Package Repositories

About a year ago I published a post about in-house tools in research and how using this type of software may end up undermining the quality of a manuscript and the reproducibility of its results.  While I can certainly relate to someone reluctant to release nasty code (i.e. not commented, not well-tested, not documented), I still think we must provide (as supporting information) all “in-house” tools that have been used to reach a result we intend to publish. This applies especially to manuscripts dealing with software packages, tools, etc. I am willing to cut some slack to journals such as Analytical Chemistry or Molecular Cell Proteomics, whose editorial staffs are –and rightly so- more concerned about quality issues involving raw data and experimental reproducibility, but in instances like Bioinformatics, BMC Bioinformatics, several members of the Nature family and others at the forefront of bioinformatics, methinks we should hold them to a higher standard. Some of these journals would greatly benefit from implementing a review system from the point of view of Software Production, moving bioinformatics and science in general one step forward in terms of reproducibility and software reusability. What do you think would happen if the following were checked during peer reviewing?