Articlo
Format a manuscript

Ubiquity Press

Prepare your manuscript for Journal of Computer Applications in Archaeology.

Review the checklist, choose your article type, and turn your draft into a cleaner submission package.

Checked 2026-08-06
Check readiness freePrepare this manuscript

Article types

Research Article
Review
Letter

Readiness requirements

Review the key details below, or download the complete checklist with every stored source-backed requirement.

Abstract length

  • Provide an author-written abstract of no more than 300 words.
  • A list of up to six key words must be placed below the abstract (required).
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  • The Abstract and Keywords should also be added to the metadata when making the initial online submission.

Keywords

  • Include or confirm the keywords required by the journal. Articlo checks this item and flags anything that still needs author input.

Reference style

  • Articlo formats your supplied references in Harvard style and checks that citations match the reference list; source validity is not verified.
  • Provide a unique, persistent identifier (e.g. a DOI) which references the deposited material.
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  • This should include the repository location and the DOI linking to it.
  • A short paragraph should be placed before the references.
  • It must be clear from the text and/or citation where the quote is sourced.
  • Use the acronym for all subsequent references.
  • Figure titles, legends and alt text should be placed within the text document, either after the paragraph of their first citation, or as a list after the references.
  • References In-text citations Every use of information from other sources must be cited in the text so that it is clear that external material has been used.
  • Multiple citations should be separated by semi-colon and follow alphabetical order.
  • If three or fewer authors are cited from the same citation then all should be listed.
  • If four or more authors are part of the citation then ‘et al.’ should follow the first author name.
  • If citations are used from the same author and the same year, then a lowercase letter, starting from ‘a’, should be placed after the year.
  • Please do not include URLs in parenthetical citations, but rather cite the author or page title and include all details, including the URL, in the reference list.
  • Reference list All citations must be listed at the end of the text file, in alphabetical order of authors’ surnames.
  • NOTE: DOIs should be included for all reference entries, where possible.
  • Where applicable, studies must have been approved by an appropriate ethics committee and the authors should include a statement within the article text detailing this approval, including the name of the ethics committee and reference number of the approval.
  • The journal allows authors to deposit draft versions of their paper into a suitable preprint server, on condition that the author agrees to the below: Should the submission be published, the authors are expected to update the information associated with the preprint version to show that a final version has been published in the journal, including the DOI linking directly to the publication.
  • If in-text citations cannot be used, a source can be cited as part of a note.

Figure and table rules

  • Keep every figure and table numbered, captioned, and cited in the manuscript. Keep figures embedded; Articlo also extracts numbered source files for the package.
  • Place each figure after its first clear citation.
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  • NOTE: All figures must be uploaded separately as supplementary files during the submission process, if possible in colour and at a resolution of at least 300dpi.
  • Tables should not include: Multiple parts (e.g. ‘Table 1a’ and ‘Table 1b’).
  • These should either be merged into one table, or separated into ‘Table 1’ and ‘Table 2’.
  • These articles should be no longer than 5,000 words in length, and should be supported by relevant figures and tabulated data, or embedded materials such as audio or video.
  • Please use figures for numbers 10 or higher.
  • If the sentence includes a series of numbers then figures must be used in each instance.
  • If the number appears as part of a dataset, in conjunction with a symbol or as part of a table then the figure must be used.
  • Figures & Tables Figures Figures, including graphs and diagrams, must be professionally and clearly presented.
  • Each figure must have an accompanying descriptive main title.
  • This should clearly and concisely summarise the content and/or use of the figure image.
  • Each figure must have accompanying alt text, which is different from the title or caption.
  • Tables: must be created using a word processor's table function, not tabbed text.
  • Each table must have an accompanying descriptive title.
  • This should clearly and concisely summarise the content and/or use of the table.
  • The table title and legend should be placed underneath the table.
  • Tables should not include: Colour to denote meaning (it will not display the same on all devices).
  • Tables should not include: Vertical or diagonal lines.
  • These should make a substantial contribution to knowledge and understanding in the subject matter and should be supported by relevant figures and tabulated data, or embedded materials such as audio or video.
  • Tables should be included in the manuscript.
  • In order to enhance understanding and accessibility for all readers (including screen readers), tables should be kept as simple as possible without compromising the value of presenting the table.
  • Tables should not include: Rotated text.
  • Tables should not include: Images.
  • Units of measurement Symbols following a figure to denote a unit of measurement must be taken from the latest SI brochure.
  • Figures/images have a resolution of at least 150dpi (300dpi or above preferred).

Funding statement

  • Add or confirm the author-written Funding statement; Articlo flags it if author input is still needed.
  • Funding Information (if applicable) Should the research have received a funding grant then the grant provider and grant number should be detailed.
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  • In addition, authors are required to specify funding sources and detail requirements for ethical research in the submitted manuscript (see Author Guidelines ).
  • If you do not know about your institution’s policy on open access funding, please contact your departmental/faculty administrators and institution library, as funds may be available to you.

Competing interests

  • Add or confirm the author-written Competing interests statement; Articlo flags it if author input is still needed.
  • Competing interests If any of the authors have any competing interests then these must be declared.
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  • A competing interest must also be declared within the submission and any resulting publication.
  • If there are no competing interests to declare then the following statement should be present: The author(s) has/have no competing interests to declare.

Data availability statement

  • Include or confirm the data availability statement required by the journal. Articlo checks this item and flags anything that still needs author input.

Ethics statement

  • Add or confirm the author-written Ethics statement; Articlo flags it if author input is still needed.
  • Ethics and consent (if applicable) Research involving human subjects, human material, or human data, must have been performed in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki.
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  • For research involving human subjects, informed consent to participate in the study must be obtained from participants (or their legal guardian) and added to this statement.
  • If a study involving human subjects/tissue/data was exempt from requiring ethical approval, a confirmation statement from the relevant body should be included within the submission.
  • If an allegation is made to the journal, it must also be passed on to the publisher, who will follow guidelines from the Committee on Publication Ethics ( COPE ) on how to address the nature of the problem.

Blinded manuscript

  • The identity of the research subject(s) should be anonymised whenever possible.
  • The author acknowledges that they are responsible for anonymising their files, should they wish to pursue an anonymous peer review process.

Cover letter

  • Provide the claims and editor-specific context for the cover letter; Articlo creates an editable companion without inventing content.
  • Permissions The author is responsible for obtaining all permissions required prior to submission of the manuscript.
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  • Permission and owner details should be mentioned for all third-party content included in the submission or used in the research.
  • Statements confirming that permission was granted should be included in the Materials and Methods section.
  • The source of the image should be included, along with any relevant copyright information and a statement of authorisation (if needed).
  • Waiver requests must be received as part of the submission information (e.g. in the cover letter).
  • Authors must retain copyright to such postings.
  • If a method or tool is introduced in the study, including software, questionnaires, and scales, the license this is available under and any requirement for permission for use should be stated.
  • Should any author(s) require that the published article deviate from the above (e.g. copyright needs to reside with your employer or an alternative license is required - e.g. authors who are Crown employees), you must add this request to your cover letter to the editor.
  • If quoting from material that is under copyright then permission will need to be obtained from the copyright holder.

Supplementary files

  • Letter: Include every cited supplementary file and use matching labels in the manuscript.
  • Review: Include every cited supplementary file and use matching labels in the manuscript.
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  • Embed or attach the author-supplied supplementary material so Articlo can extract and label it for the package.

Title page and author information

  • Author names should include a forename and a surname.
  • The affiliation should ideally include ‘Department, Institution, City, Country’.
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  • ORCID numbers should be added to the author data upon submission and will be published alongside the submitted paper, should it be accepted.
  • The names of all authors, affiliations, contact details, biography (optional) and the corresponding author details must be completed online as part of the submission process.
  • As the ORCID remains the same throughout the lifetime of the account, changes of name, affiliation, or research area do not affect the discoverability of an author's past work and aid correspondence with colleagues.

Statistical reporting

  • Open Code If research includes the use of software code, statistical analysis or algorithms then we also recommend that authors upload the code into Code Ocean, where it will be hosted on an open, cloud-based computational reproducibility platform, providing researchers and developers with an easy way to share, validate and discover code published in academic journals.

Preprints and prior publication

  • Research Article: Publication Types Research Article Research articles must describe the outcomes and application of unpublished original research.
  • The full name, Joe Bloggs is required (this will enhance the 'findability' of your publication).
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  • Should the submission be accepted for publication, the APC discount will be applied.
  • This should be linked to from a Data Accessibility Statement within the submitted paper, which will be made public upon publication.
  • If data is not being made available with the journal publication then ideally a statement from the author should be provided within the submission to explain why.
  • This must include a link to the location of the preprint.
  • Place of publication: Publisher.
  • Place of Publication: Publisher, pp. page.
  • The journal allows authors to deposit draft versions of their paper into a suitable preprint server, on condition that the author agrees to the below: The author acknowledges that having a preprint publicly available means that the journal cannot guarantee the anonymity of the author during the review process, even if they anonymise the submitted files (see review policy ).

Artificial intelligence disclosure

  • Add or confirm the author-written Artificial intelligence statement; Articlo flags it if author input is still needed.
  • Authors should refer to the journal's guidelines on acceptable use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools.
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  • Artificial Intelligence should not be named as an author.

Article type and manuscript length

  • Research Article: Abstract Research articles must have the main text prefaced by an abstract of no more than 300 words summarising the main arguments and conclusions of the article.
  • All figures must be cited within the main text, in consecutive order using Arabic numerals (e.g. Figure 1, Figure 2, etc.).
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  • All tables must be cited within the main text, numbered with Arabic numerals in consecutive order (e.g. Table 1, Table 2, etc.).
  • This must have the heading ‘Abstract’ and be easily identified from the start of the main text.
  • Main text The body of the submission should be structured in a logical and easy to follow manner.
  • Acknowledgements (optional) Any acknowledgements must be headed and in a separate paragraph, placed after the main text but before the reference list.
  • References All references cited within the submission must be listed at the end of the main text file.
  • Headings within the main text: First level headings in the text should follow the same rule as the main title.
  • Quotations that are longer than three lines in length must be in an indented paragraph separate from the main text.
  • If the author is already mentioned in the main text then the year should follow the name within parenthesis.
  • If the author name is not mentioned in the main text then the surname and year should be inserted, in parenthesis, after the relevant text.
  • All reading materials should be included in ‘References’ – works which have not been cited within the main text, but which the author wishes to share with the reader, must be cited as additional information in endnotes explaining the relevance of the work.

Other submission requirements

  • Research Article: Research articles should be no more than 8,500 words in length.
  • Review: Review articles should be no longer than 5,000 words in length.
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  • Position papers should be no longer than 8,500 words in length.
  • Articles should normally be under 8,500 words.
  • Numbers that are less than zero must have ‘0’ precede the decimal point.
  • Each file should not be more than 20MB.
  • Submission Guidelines Submit Online To submit online, and to check the status of your submission, you need to have an account.
  • Papers should critically engage with the relevant body of extant literature.
  • Authors should provide a detailed summary of the protocol followed and establish replicability within the body of the paper.
  • Authors interested in submitting a position/ paper should discuss the content with the editor before submitting a manuscript.
  • Author Guidelines Submissions should be made electronically through this website.
  • All submissions must comply with these guidelines.
  • If required, the Ubiquity Press Dataverse is available for authors to deposit their data.
  • If data used in the research project has not been made available, a statement confirming this should be added, along with reasoning why.
  • The authors take full responsibility for the content.” This should appear at the end of the manuscript.
  • Use lowercase for all articles, coordinate conjunctions and prepositions.
  • Font The font used should be commonly available and in an easily readable size.
  • Underlined text should be avoided whenever possible.
  • Bold or italicised text to emphasise a point are permitted, although should be restricted to minimal occurrences to maximise their efficiency.
  • If the list indicates a specific sequence then a numbered list must be used.
  • Lists should be used sparingly to maximise their impact.
  • The standard, non-italicised font must be used for all quotes.
  • Common examples from Latin origin do not follow this rule and should be lower case and can include full stops.
  • All notes should be used only where crucial clarifying information needs to be conveyed.
  • Links, like images, also require alt text to improve clarity, especially when the link text alone isn’t descriptive enough.
  • Please provide us with one for each link to assist with improving overall accessibility.
  • It should be short and clear - e.g. “View the article [article title]” if you’re linking to another article.
  • If they are present, they should denote emphasis, change of thought or interruption to the main sentence and can replace comas, parentheses, colons or semicolons.
  • If a sentence starts with a number it must be spelt, or the sentence should be re-written so that it no longer starts with the number.
  • Formulae Formulae must be proofed carefully by the author.
  • We permit this only in cases where a scan/image of a text is required for the content of the article.
  • This will function as a textual substitute for the image, in cases where this is needed, and should be a short description of the image.
  • If specific pages are being cited then the page number should follow the year, after a colon.
  • Any waiver request must be made at the time of submission via the Comments to the Editor (below).
  • All deviations from the above must be agreed in writing as early as possible in the submission process and must be in place before the article is sent for typesetting.
  • Should you wish your institution to sign up to this agreement, UK-based institutions can do so via JISC.
  • Non-UK based institutions, or those that wish to know more about the agreement should contact info@ubiquitypress.com for more information.
  • In the case of minor revisions required, we expect you to resubmit but don’t expect you to answer the reviewers’ comment in a separate document.
  • In the case of major revisions required, we expect you to resubmit as well as answer the reviewers’ comment in a separate document.
  • All correspondence and associated files/data linked to the submission must remain confidential, unless otherwise authorised by the journal.
  • Review: All reviews should be provided in a courteous and respectful format.
  • Data obtained from other sources must be appropriately credited.
  • If an error is discovered in a published article then the publisher will assess whether a Correction paper or Retraction is required.
  • Submit to the Journal.
  • Forenames cannot include only initials.
  • Hyperlinks Our accessibility policy determines that links, when used within the article, should ideally be descriptive and understandable from the link text alone or from its context.
  • Em dashes should be used sparingly.
  • No space should surround the dash.
  • Do not use a comma for a decimal place.
  • Submission Preparation Checklist All submissions must meet the following requirements.
  • We ask that the data described in your paper, if applicable, is available in at least one repository that satisfies the criteria below.

Manuscript structure

  • Up to three level headings may be present and must be clearly identifiable using numbered paragraphs (1.1, 1.2, etc.).
  • Headings should be under 75 characters.
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  • A clear introduction section should be given that allows non-specialists in the subject an understanding of the publication and a background of the issue(s) involved.
  • Use of footnotes/endnotes Use endnotes rather than footnotes (we refer to these as ‘Notes’ in the online publication).
  • Case Study Case studies should expand on the application of established technologies/methods to shed light on archaeological enquiries, e.g. when a well-known approach is used in a new geographic area or in a new discipline domain.
  • Position Paper Position papers should summarise and reflect upon current trends in the application of established or new technologies, methods or theories or with the aim of fostering the debate on the theoretical and practical implications.
  • If data, structured methods or code used in the research project have been made openly available, a statement should be added to inform the reader how/where to access these files.

Authorship and originality

  • All authors must fit within the journal's definition of an author, detailed in our authorship guidelines.
  • Individuals listed must fit within the definition of an author, as per our authorship guidelines.
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  • Authorship All listed authors must qualify as such, as defined in our authorship guidelines, which have been developed from the ICMJE definitions.
  • All authors must have given permission to be listed on the submitted paper.
  • All authors must confirm that they fit the definition of an author (see Authorship Guidelines ), during submission.

Language and text style

  • Declaration of AI use On submission, authors must declare any AI use, e.g. “Language was improved with the assistance of ChatGPT (OpenAI, 2025).
  • On submission, authors must declare what kinds of uses of AI they have done, e.g. “Language was improved with the assistance of ChatGPT (OpenAI, 2025).
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  • Spelling Submissions must be made in UK and USA English.
  • When referring to proper nouns and normal institutional titles, the official, original spelling must be used.
  • In order to enhance understanding and accessibility for all readers, any abbreviations should be defined when they are first mentioned.
  • A number of abbreviations are so common that they do not require the full text on the first instance.
  • Abbreviations should usually be in capital letters without full stops.
  • Acronyms & Abbreviations With abbreviations, the crucial goal is to ensure that the reader – particularly one who may not be fully familiar with the topic or context being addressed – is able to follow along.

Study reporting guidelines

  • Experiments using animals must follow national standards of care.
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What your package checks

Abstract: 300 words
Paper: 5,000 words
References: Harvard
Cover letter: requested
Declarations: Funding, Competing interests, Ethics, Artificial intelligence

Source transparency

This preparation guide uses published journal-specific author requirements. Journal instructions can change, so authors should complete a final review before submission.

Open official guideline source