Affiliated with Euromicro

General
Submission of your manuscript is welcome provided that it, or any translation of it, has not been copyrighted or published and is not being submitted for publication elsewhere. Upon acceptance of an article, the author(s) will be asked to transfer copyright of the article to the Publisher. This transfer will ensure the widest possible dissemination of information.

Type of contributions
The journal welcomes the following types of contributions:

• Original research articles
• Review articles, providing a comprehensive review on a scientific topic
• Fast Communications: Short, self-contained articles on ongoing research, or reporting interesting, possibly tentative, ideas, or comments on previously published research

Submission

Electronic Submissions only:

• All manuscripts and any supplementary material should be submitted via the journal's online submission and peer-review systems at http://ees.elsevier.com/jsa. Please follow the instructions given on this site.
• It is essential that authors provide fax and telephone numbers and an e-mail address when submitting a manuscript.

Sending accepted papers to Elsevier in electronic formatLaTeX
If the LaTeX file is suitable, proofs will be produced without retyping the text. The article should preferably be written using Elsevier's document class 'elsart', or alternatively the standard document class 'article'.
The Elsevier LaTeX package (including detailed instructions for LaTeX preparation) can be obtained from Elsevier's web site: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/latex, or http://www.elsevier.co.jp/locate/latex. It consists of the files: elsart.cls (use this file if you are using LaTeX2e, the current version of LaTeX), elsart.sty and elsart13.sty (use these two files if you are using LaTeX3.09, the previous version of LaTeX), guidelines for users of elsart, a template file for quick start, and the instruction booklet "Preparing articles with LaTeX".

Figures may be inserted in the usual way using an \include graphics command, at the position in the article where they are cited.Your LaTeX file will be most useful as input for the printed article if you obey the following rules of thumb:

1. Be consistent. If you use a macro for a phrase, use it throughout.
2. Use standard LaTeX mark-up. Do not hardcode your own layout for e.g. section headings, but use the usual LaTeX macro for this purpose.
3. Keep it simple. Do not define macros that accomplish complicated layout. They will also make the input process complicated.

Non-LaTeX
Only the final accepted manuscript can be submitted on disk, along with a paper-printed version identical to the file. Please label the disk with your name, and mention which word processor you have used (the Publisher accepts most word-processing formats, but Word, WordPerfect or LaTeX is preferred). The word-processed text should be in single column format. Keep the layout of the text as simple as possible; in particular, do not use the word-processor's options to justify the text or to hyphenate the words. The list of references, tables and figure legends should be compiled separately from the main text. Do not reserve space for the figures and tables in the text; instead, indicate their approximate locations, either directly in the electronic text or on the manuscript. The final text should be submitted both in manuscript form and on diskette. Use standard HD diskettes for this purpose. It is recommended to store the main text, list of references, tables and figure legends in separate text files with clearly identifiable file names.

Although these guidelines are not mandatory, they should be adhered to where possible.

Preparation of Manuscript

General

Each paper should be introduced by three to five keywords as well as by a self contained abstract of no more than 100 words not counting the formulas. Please also supply photos (passport size) and short biographies of each author.Please make sure that the paper is submitted in its final form. Corrections in the proof stage other than printers errors should be avoided: costs arising from such corrections will be charged to the authors.

Provide the following data:

- Title. Concise and informative. Titles are often used in information-retrieval systems. Avoid abbreviations and formulae where possible.

- Author names and affiliations. Where the family name may be ambiguous (e.g. a double name), please indicate this clearly. Present the authors' affiliation addresses (where the actual work was done) below the names. Indicate all affiliations with a lower-case superscript letter immediately after the author's name and in front of the appropriate address. Provide the full postal address of each affiliation, including the country name, and, if available, the e-mail address of each author

. - Corresponding author. Clearly indicate who is willing to handle correspondence at all stages of refereeing and publication, also post-publication. Ensure that telephone and fax numbers (with country and area code) are provided in addition to the e-mail address and the complete postal address.

- Present/permanent address. If an author has moved since the work described in the article was done, or was visiting at the time, a 'Present address' (or 'Permanent address') may be indicated as a footnote to that author's name. The address at which the author actually did the work must be retained as the main, affiliation address. Superscript Arabic numerals are used for such footnotes.

- Abstract. A concise and factual abstract is required (maximum length 200 words). The abstract should state briefly the purpose of the research, the principal results and major conclusions. An abstract is often presented separate from the article, so it must be able to stand alone. References should therefore be avoided, but if essential, they must be cited in full, without reference to the reference list.

- Keywords. Immediately after the abstract, provide a maximum of 5 keywords, using English spelling and avoiding general and plural terms and multiple concepts (avoid, for example, 'and', 'of'). Be sparing with abbreviations: only abbreviations firmly established in the field may be eligible. These keywords will be used for indexing purposes.

- Abbreviations. Define abbreviations that are not standard in this field at their first occurrence in the article: in the abstract but also in the main text after it. Ensure consistency of abbreviations throughout the article.

- Subdivision of the article. After the abstract, divide your article into clearly defined and numbered sections. Subsections should be numbered 1.1 (then 1.1.1, 1.1.2, ?), 1.2, etc. (the abstract is not included in section numbering). Use this numbering also for internal cross-referencing: do not just refer to 'the text.' Any subsection may be given a brief heading. Each heading should appear on its own separate line.

- Footnotes should be avoided if possible and be brief. They should be numbered consecutively.

References should be listed alphabetically, as in the following examples: books [1], articles in journals [2], papers in a contributed volume [3,4], unpublished papers [5].

[1] E. Borger, Computability, Complexity, Logic (North-Holland, Amsterdam, 1989).
[2] D.E. Knuth, Theory and Practice, Theoret. Comput. Sci. 90 (1991) 1-15.
[3] A.K. Lenstra and H.W. Lenstra, Jr., Algorithms in number theory, in: J. van Leeuwen, ed., Handbook of Computer Science, Vol. A (Elsevier, Amsterdam, 1990) 673-715.
[4] M. Li, Lower bounds by Kolmogorov complexity, in: Proc. ICALP '85, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, Vol. 194 (Springer, Berlin, 1985) 383-393.
[5] A. Rajasekar, Semantics for logic programs, Ph.D. Thesis, Department of Computer Science, University of Maryland, 1989.

Each paper should be introduced by three to five keywords as well as by a self-contained abstract of no more than 100 words not counting the formulas.

Language Editing: International Science Editing and Asia Science Editing can provide English language and copyediting services to authors who want to publish in scientific, technical and medical journals and need assistance before they submit their article or before it is accepted for publication. Authors can contact these services directly: International Science Editing http://www.internationalscienceediting.com and Asia Science Editing http://www.asiascienceediting.com) or, for more information about language editing services, please contact authorsupport@elsevier.com who will be happy to deal with any questions.

Please note Elsevier neither endorses nor takes responsibility for any products, goods or services offered by outside vendors through our services or in any advertising. For more information please refer to our terms & conditions http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/termsconditions.cws_home/termsconditions Preparation of Illustration

Artwork

Provide all illustrations as high-quality printouts, suitable for reproduction (which may include reduction) without retouching. Please note that photocopies are not acceptable.

- Line drawings should be supplied as high-quality printouts on white paper produced with black ink. The lettering and symbols, as well as other details, should have proportionate dimensions, so as not to become illegible or unclear after possible reduction. Consider the page format of the journal when designing the illustrations.

- Photographs should be supplied as original photographs for reproduction, printed on glossy paper, very sharp and with good contrast. Do not mount photographs unless they form part of a composite figure.

- Colour illustrations should be supplied as original photographs or high-quality computer prints, close to the size expected in publication. Polaroid colour prints are not suitable. Further information concerning colour illustrations and costs is available from the Publisher.

Electronic artwork

Submitting your illustrations, pictures, tables and other artwork in an electronic format helps us to produce your work to the best possible standards, ensuring accuracy, clarity and a high level of detail. Please refer to http://elsevier.com/artworkinstructions for detailed instructions. This site shows how to prepare your artwork for electronic submission and includes: common problems, suggestions on how to ensure the best results, and guidelines for popular applications. See the links under Creating your Artwork for details about using specific artwork software.

Figures should be provided in a form suitable for photographic reproduction and reduction. Lettering should be uniform of size corresponding to the anticipated reduction. Handwritten lettering on figures is not acceptable. Figures should be identified by Arabic numerals and the captions should be typed, double-spaced, on a separate sheet rather than lettered on the figures themselves. Photographs and coloured pictures must be of impeccable quality. Please note that for colour photographs the publisher will charge the printing costs to the author.

Formats

Regardless of the application used, when your electronic artwork is finalised, please "save as" or convert the images to one of the following formats (Note the resolution requirements for line drawings, halftones, and line/halftone combinations given below.):

• EPS: Vector Drawings. Embed the font or save the text as "graphics".
• TIFF: Colour or greyscale photographs (halftones): always use a minimum of 300 dpi.
• TIFF: Bitmapped line drawings: use a minimum of 1000 dpi.
• TIFF: Combinations bitmapped line/half-tone (colour or greyscales): a minimum of 500 dpi is required.
• DOC, XLS or PPT: If your electronic artwork is created in any of these Microsoft Office applications, please supply "as is".

Please do not:

• Supply embedded graphics in your wordprocessor (spreadsheet, presentation) document;
• Supply files that are optimised for screen use (like GIF, BMP, PICT, WPG); the resolution is too low;
• Supply files that are too low in resolution;
• Submit graphics that are disportionatley large for content.

Line drawings: Supply high-quality printouts on white paper produced with black ink. The lettering and symbols, as well as other details, should have proportionate dimensions, so as not to become illegible or unclear after possible reduction; in general, the figures should be designed for a reduction factor of two to three. The degree of redudtion will be determined by the Publisher. Illustrations will not be enlarged. Consider the page format of the journal when designing the illustrations.Photocopies are not suitable for reproduction. Do not use any type of shading on computer-generated illustrations.

Preparation of supplementary data

Preparation of supplementary data Elsevier now accepts electronic supplementary material to support and enhance your scientific research. Supplementary files offer the author additional possibilities to publish supporting applications, movies, animation sequences, high-resolution images, background datasets, sound clips and more. Supplementary files supplied will be published online alongside the electronic version of your article in Elsevier web products, including ScienceDirect: http://www.sciencedirect.com.

In order to ensure that your submitted material is directly usable, please ensure that data is provided in one of our recommended file formats. Authors should submit the material in electronic format together with the article and supply a concise and descriptive caption for each file. For more detailed instructions please see Guide to publishing with Elsevier at http://elsevier.com/authors.

Files can be stored on 3½ inch diskette, ZIP-disk or CD (either MS-DOS or Macintosh). This journal offers electronic submission services and graphic files can be uploaded via the journal's online submission system at http://ees.elsevier.com/jsa. A detailed guide on electronic artwork is available on our website: http://elsevier.com/artworkinstructions

You are urged to visit this site; some excerpts from the detailed information are given here.

Proofs

One set of page proofs in PDF format will be sent by e-mail to the corresponding author, to be checked for typesetting/editing. No changes in, or additions to, the accepted (and subsequently edited) manuscript will be allowed at this stage. Proofreading is solely your responsibility. A form with queries from the copyeditor may accompany your proofs. Please answer all queries and make any corrections or additions required.
Elsevier will do everything possible to get your article corrected and published as quickly and accurately as possible. In order to do this we need your help. When you receive the (PDF) proof of your article for correction, it is important to ensure that all of your corrections are sent back to us in one communication. Subsequent corrections will not be possible, so please ensure your first sending is complete. Note that this does not mean you have any less time to make your corrections, just that only one set of corrections will be accepted.

Author benefits
The corresponding author, at no cost, will be provided with a PDF file of the article via e-mail. The PDF file is a watermarked version of the published article and includes a cover sheet with the journal cover image and a disclaimer outlining the terms and conditions of use.

Author enquiries

For enquiries relating to the submission of articles (including electronic submission where available) please visit this journal's homepage at http://www.elsevier.com/locate/sysarc. From here you can also track accepted articles ( http://www.elsevier.com/trackarticle) and set up e-mail alerts to inform you of when an article's status has changed, as well as detailed artwork guidelines, copyright information, frequently asked questions and more.

Contact details for questions arising after acceptance of an article, especially those relating to proofs, are provided after registration of an article for publication.

For any further information please contact the Author Support Department at authorsupport@elsevier.com.