La Selva Biological Station
  

INSTRUCTION GUIDE FOR COMPLETION OF METADATA FIELDS

This guide describes the different fields included in the metadata description of the datasets. When creating or modifying a metadata record, it should be kept in mind that it is not necessarily the person who creates the metadata record who will be most benefitted by this information (metadata), but rather users all over the Internet who search in the RDMCNFS database.

Unless otherwise noted, all fields are free-format text. There are no unreasonable restrictions on the length of the text (number of lines or characters). Upper and lower case should be used naturally; there are no particular requirements in this regard for storing or indexing the information.

Fields marked with a "+" are required; those marked with a "-" are optional, though in general it is desirable to include as much information as possible.

TITLE

The name of the dataset. It must be specific enough to distinguish between datasets on the same subject.

Examples:

SUBJECT AND KEYWORDS

The subject area(s) or topic(s) addressed by the dataset, including additional words that may be helpful in cross-referencing or cataloging the data.

Examples:

AUTHOR(S)

The person(s) primarily responsible for the intellectual content of the dataset, including their electronic mail and web page, postal addresses and institutional affiliation, if appropriate.

Examples:

OTHER AGENT(S)

The list of other people who have made significant intellectual contributions to the work. These might include primary investigators (PIs), research assistants (RAs) or technicians (Techs) who were also involved in the data collection or compilation, as well as editors and transcribers.

Examples:

FUNDING SOURCE(S)

The funding sources which supported the project that generated the dataset.

Examples:

ABSTRACT

A short, accurate description of the dataset and the project that created it.
Also include a description of the methods used to collect the data. (Do not include literature references pertaining to the methods. They should be included in the ADDITIONAL INFORMATION field.)

DATA DESCRIPTION

Description of the variables (data columns) that are included in the dataset, and the methods used for their collection.

For datasets that will not be available through the RDMCNFS system, this field should describe in general terms the variables therein. The description may be narrative or tabular, reflecting the conceptual content rather than the actual names of the variables. If appropriate, the names of the actual data files may be included.

Examples:

NOTE: For datasets that will be available through the RDMCNFS system, the document guidelines for describing datasets in detail describes how the variables, file format, etc. should be described.

LANGUAGE

The two-character code (from the ISO 639 standard) and full name for the language used in the dataset. (e.g., ES-Spanish, EN-English, PT-Portuguese). In the event that multiple languages are used (e.g., in different files) then each must be specified.

Examples:

COVERAGE

The spatial locations and temporal duration characteristics of the dataset. Include the names of the sampling locations: trails, plots, rivers. When available, use map coordinates, latitude and longitude. Specify the time interval of the study and the frequency of the studies.

Examples:

FORM AND SIZE

The data format and, if known, the size of the dataset or the files. The user should be able to determine which tools will be needed in order to access the data, as well as have an estimate of the storage space required if the dataset is to be copied. For commercial software formats, the version number used should be included. For all datasets (even if not online), it is desirable for the number of records in the collection should be included.

Examples:

TROPICAL FIELD STATION NAME

The name of the Tropical Field Station where the data was primarily collected. (Taken from a pull-down list of options.)

CONTACT(S)

The name of the person(s) or institution(s) to be contacted for matters regarding the data or metadata, including whatever information necessary (e.g., postal address, e-mail address, fax, etc.) Whenever possible, a position (e.g., "Data Manager") rather than an individual's name should be used. If these are the same as the Authors (see above), then it suffices to indicate so. For transient (i.e., non-resident) researchers

Example:

AVAILABILITY

The conditions for data availability:

Whether or not the data is available in a computer-readable form:

The tools needed to access the data, and the appropriate references:

Examples:

RELATION TO OTHER DATASETS

Relationship between this and other datasets, metadata records, works by other PIs, that may be of interest when viewing the data set.

Examples:

METADATA LOG

Log records to track the operations that have been applied to the metadata record (not the dataset). The metadata entry and modification system will automatically create log entries with the date, time, and name of the user who performed them operation. What is entered manually is the description of the operation.

Examples:

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Comments referring to the whole dataset, including explanations of any problems with data collection or the dataset, or reasons for missing data.

This should refer to the entire dataset or about data columns (variables) in the dataset. Do not include information about particular data points.

When applicable, include any relevant literature references (including author, title, journal and page numbers) pertaining to the methods used to collect the data.

For datasets derived from other collections of data, describe the original collections and the derivation process.

Any other information considered relevant, but not covered by the other metadata fields, should be included here.