Friday, 26 October 2018

data - How do I get a DOI for a dataset?


A DOI is a commonly used digital object identifier to refer to an electronic document. How do I secure a DOI for a research dataset, to help share and identify it?



Answer



There are a number of ways in which a DOI could be linked to a dataset:



  • Figshare will provide a DOI for any deposited work, which includes data.

  • Zenodo also provides DOIs for any kind of research output, including datasets

  • Dryad provides DOIs for data submissions linked to papers (for a fee, which includes storage, curation, archival, & checks for best-practice [HT @DaisieHuang for pointing out my lazy description of fee previously])



You might also look to see if a domain-specific repository provides a DOI for data. The journal Scientific Data maintains a good list of repositories you can look at.


Choosing a DOI provider will depend on particular circumstances. Both Figshare and Zenodo are both free to use services for example whereas Dryad charges for the service they offer to cover ongoing storage and archival costs.


Some points of comparison between Figshare, Dryad, and Zenodo, etc


Dryad accepts data relating to publications; if it isn't associated with a paper then they won't accept it. Figshare and Zenodo will accept any research output, whether linked to publication or not. In that sense Figshare and Zenodo are more broadly applicable to any research outputs.


Data may be more discoverable in Dryad or domain-specific repositories (DSRs) than in general purpose ones likes Figshare & Zenodo. Data is likely to be formatted in standard ways and more easily searched by online or other tools if they are archived in Dryad or DSRs. This is likely to encourage reuse.


Figshare is a for-profit commercial entity, Zenodo is run by CERN and was supported by the EU OpenAIRE project at one point, whilst Dryad is an not-for-profit entity supported by research grants and membership fees for organisations.


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