Springer-Verlag and the editors have decided to realize this project using a new Online Editing System that enables the authors to write and edit their contributions directly through the Internet. The advantages of such a system are obvious:

• Convenience
  Communication between authors and editors is a matter of seconds. The authors enter their data directly into the online database simply by filling in a set of standardized Web forms. Password authentication guarantees that only a registered author can access and edit his or her specific chapter. No special computer knowledge is required since detailed online instructions guide the author through the entire editing process.

• Standardization
  The task of each author is to contribute comprehensive state-of-the-art data on one of the currently 241 recognized virus genera. All chapters are structured equally allowing direct comparison of specific facts among different virus taxa. Each chapter covers a wide range of different aspects in detail including history, virion morphology, electron microscopic images, genome properties, replication strategy, properties of individual transcripts and proteins, biological properties in vitro and in vivo, as well as specific information about individual virus species.

• Topicality
  The online editing procedure leads to very short publication times and thus to a high topicality of the work. The framework of the first edition is based on the latest taxonomic proposals, which have been approved by the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (Pringle CR, Arch Virol 143:1449-1459; Pringle CR, Arch Virol 144:421-429). For future editions of The Springer Index of Viruses, registered authors will simply be asked to update their chapter online instead of completely rewriting it.