• Introduction
• Target Audience
• What this book is (and what it isn't)
• A note on the method
• 'Open Research Data' - what and why?
• What do we mean by 'Research Data'
• What does it mean to make research data 'open'?
• What are the benefits? Carrots and Sticks.
• Where to publish data?
• Repositories
• Supplementary Files
• Field Guides
• How to publish data?
• Formats
• Keeping it Simple
• Licensing
• Choosing a license: the options
• Metadata
• Data Preservation and DMPs
• Data Management Plans
• Discoverability
• Get the data out there!
• Advice for Institutions and Funders
• I'm a Funder - what can I do to promote open research data?
• I'm an Institution - what can I do to support my open scientists?
• User Experience Stories
• Creator Experience Stories

Target Audience

Welcome to the Open Research Data Handbook!

The aim of the Handbook is to provide an introduction to the processes, tools and other areas that you need to consider if you wish to make your research data openly available.

The main target audience is people who are actively engaged in research - for example doctoral students, scientists and other academics. Many of the chapters will be applicable across all academic disciplines, but our particular focus is on research data in the sciences.

We hope that this Handbook will also be useful to those with an interest in learning about high-quality open data research practices. This could include e.g. funders, institutions and the government.

Most importantly of all, this Handbook is aimed at YOU! If you want to learn more about how to make research data openly available, we hope that you will find this Handbook useful. If you think it could be better - get in touch!