Documentation and Data Management#

FIXME Instructions

The Group’s approach to documentation and data management might have been detailed in a data management plan submitted with the grant application to the funder. If so, then link them here.

If a data management plan doesn’t exist then think about the following, agree an approach as a group and include it in the handbook.

Organising files well will help you and your collaborators save time as you can find things more easily, work on the latest version and not lose any of your work!

Data documentation#

Some files benefit from annotation or additional documentation in order to give an explanation of what the information contained in the files is or how the information was generated.

If a spreadsheet has multiple tabs it can be very useful to create a “README” tab that briefly explains what each of the tabs are and how the data was generated.

A README file is also very useful for folders that contain multiple files. READMEs are commonly associated with datasets but work well in any situation to give files, or their contents, extra context. Cornell University have an excellent guide to writing a README.

File naming#

Files should be named in a consistent and meaningful way that helps you or your collaborators to find the files. There are many different ways to name a file and each Group should find one that works for them. Common ways often include:

  • the date the file was last modified

  • the version number of the file

  • the initials of the person who modified the file

  • a short description of the file

There are some useful guides with different examples of file naming conventions, such as the one from The Turing Way or Jisc.

Of course, your group may use versioning software (see Tools section) which means you don’t have to include things like version number or date of modification in the file name.

Folder structure#

As well as naming your files in a meaningful way, your folders should also be named well. Ideally the structure of the folders would also be well designed to allow collaborators to easily navigate their way to find a file.

Storing and backing up data#

Best practice for data storage and back up should follow the 3-2-1 rule. You should keep at least three copies of your data, and store two backup copies on different storage media, with one of them located offsite. Different types of storage media include:

  • your computer’s hard drive

  • an external hard drive

  • cloud storage

  • tape storage There are pros and cons for using different types of storage, including whether it is suitable for personal or confidential data, how long the hardware lasts before it needs replacing, when the technology might become obsolete and personal preference.