And we’re live! The evening of August 17, Press IT staff flipped the so-called switch, and The Chicago Manual of Style Online, 16th Edition, was successfully launched to much fanfare from editors, writers, and style mavens alike. As the very first edition to be published simultaneously in print and online, this revision begins a fresh chapter in the hundred-year history of the venerable Manual.
Much has changed since the last edition came out in 2003, and the sixteenth edition of The Chicago Manual of Style has been reorganized to reflect the way publishing professionals work in the digital age. Replete with the clear, well-considered advice on style and usage that devotees of The Chicago Manual of Style have come to expect, the sixteenth edition also provides a wealth of new information and guidelines for electronic workflow and processes.
After the launch, The Chicago Manual of Style Online subscribers automatically received the sixteenth-edition content update, while retaining their access to the fifteenth-edition content. Garrett Kiely, director of the Press, explains why. “We took this unusual step of keeping the previous edition available in our online product because of the way editors and authors work. Many will be involved in projects that require they stick with the fifteenth edition through completion, and by our continuing to host the fifteenth-edition content they will be able to do just that. This also provides libraries with an archival record of the digital version of the fifteenth edition.”
Check out a list of significant rule changes and what’s new in the sixteenth edition. Or, follow these links to sign up for a 30-day free trial of The Chicago Manual of Style Online and for more information about the print edition.