We would like to inform you that a new login method has been introduced in the Open Journal Systems (OJS) platform.
In addition to local user accounts, journal authors, reviewers, and editors can now log in using electronic identities included in the global eduGAIN
system (which also includes AAI@EduHr) or ORCID.
The existing login method using OJS usernames and passwords will remain available on Hrčak until Friday, December 12, 2025.
After this date, users will only be able to log in via eduGAIN or ORCID.
If you experience difficulties with your eduGAIN account, please contact the IT support service at your home institution.
For assistance with ORCID, please contact ORCID Support at https://support.orcid.org/.
With these changes, we aim to rely primarily on electronic identities within the eduGAIN system. eduGAIN is a global service that connects electronic identities across research and
education communities, including AAI@EduHr. Unlike locally registered accounts, these electronic identities are verified by the institutions that issue them.
This provides journal editors with greater assurance that users are who they claim to be.
In addition, editors, reviewers, and authors will no longer need to go through a separate registration process, as they can use the electronic identities issued by their home institutions.
The new authentication method also supports Single Sign-On (SSO). This means that if you are already logged into another system using your AAI@EduHr electronic identity,
you will not need to enter your username and password again—the system will automatically recognize that you have already been authenticated.
Users who do not have an electronic identity included in eduGAIN can still log in using an existing ORCID account or register for a new one.
Login instructions are available at: https://wiki.srce.hr/x/z4BwEQ.
Did you know that Hrčak – Portal of Croatian Scientific and Professional Journals is celebrating 20 years since its launch into production this year?
Hrčak was first presented to the public at a dedicated workshop held on 7 February 2006, which marked its official launch. However, development of the system had begun earlier, in 2004, and intensive work was carried out until its public presentation. The then Ministry of Science, Education and Sports supported the initiative to establish a portal that would publish full-text scientific and professional journals in open access.
The portal was conceived by a group of information specialists and librarians gathered within the Croatian Information and Documentation Society (HID). The first version of the system was developed at SRCE between 2004 and 2006.
Members of the first project team from SRCE were Miroslav Milinović, MSc (project lead), Draženko Celjak, Nino Katić and Nebojša Topolšćak, while members from HID were Tibor Toth, MSc, Mirjana Mihalić, Jadranka Stojanovski, PhD, and Iva Melinščak Zlodi.
Hrčak was initially created with the aim of developing a system that would significantly facilitate the publication of digital journal editions offering open access to their content, while enabling users to freely access, browse and search journal materials.
Over time, Hrčak evolved into a comprehensive support platform for launching, editing and publishing journals. For the editorial workflow prior to publication on the Portal, editorial teams are provided with the Open Journal Systems (OJS) tool. To ensure machine-readability, the option to produce articles in JATS XML format was developed within the Hrčak administrative interface, as well as through the standalone JATS XML Converter Service. In 2022, Open Monograph Press (OMP) was introduced within Hrčak as a tool for preparing and publishing conference proceedings.
Today, Hrčak offers journal editors a free and user-friendly tool for publishing their journals in electronic form, or for enhancing existing electronic journals with advanced discovery and search capabilities, thereby increasing their visibility and impact. Hrčak has become an indispensable resource for students, researchers, scholars, and anyone seeking to expand their knowledge.
All journals on the Hrčak portal bearing the “Diamond Journal” label have been included in the Diamond Discovery Hub (DDH) database.
Journals were able to obtain the “Diamond Journal” label during the first certification cycle, held from March to June 2026, by meeting the criteria for inclusion in the DDH database.
Diamond Discovery Hub is one of the services of the European Diamond Capacity Hub (EDCH) and one of the key outcomes of the European CRAFT-OA project, in which Srce participated.
DDH aims to become a comprehensive registry of open access journals that charge neither authors nor readers, increasing their visibility and making them easier to discover.
As part of the CRAFT-OA project, Srce contributed to the development and establishment of DDH, while Hrčak was recognized and included in the database as a trusted source of data.
The inclusion of journals from Hrčak in DDH took place in several stages, with the final stage successfully completed in October 2026. As a result, all journals on Hrčak bearing the “Diamond Journal” label are now part of an international database that promotes the diamond open access model.
DDH makes it easier for authors to find journals that follow the diamond open access model, enables funders to verify compliance with the criteria for this model, and allows aggregators to retrieve and reuse journal data.
Journals that did not meet all DDH criteria during the first certification cycle can align their editorial practices with the requirements before the next cycle in order to obtain the “Diamond Journal” label on Hrčak. The second certification cycle is planned for the first half of 2027.
Editorial teams will be informed in a timely manner about all further certification-related activities via the hrcak-l@srce.hr mailing list.
