Building a dataset search for institutions: Project update

Abstract

Most out-of-the-box institutional repository systems do not provide the workflows and metadata features required for research data. Consequently, many libraries now support two institutional repository systems-one for publications, and one for research data-even when there are nearly a thousand data repositories in the United States, many of which provide services and policies that ensure their trustworthiness and suitability for research data. Libraries are either increasing spending by purchasing data repository solutions from vendors, or replicating work by building, customizing, and managing individual instances of data repository software. This article gives an update on a potential solution to this issue: An in-progress prototype for an open source Dataset Search tool that promotes discovery and reuse of institutional research datasets through automatic metadata harvesting and search engine optimization. Once finished, the Dataset Search tool has the potential to support three key impacts: Increasing discovery, reuse, and citation of research data; reinforcing the idea that research data are a legitimate scholarly product; and promoting community-owned systems that require less resource expenditure.