This section describes the general procedure to create a new dataset. However, each participating institution is able to set up this process based on their institutional policies. Some functions outlined below may not be available to all users. Please refer to your institution’s policies and procedures or with your institution’s support contact(s) to determine which functions are available to you.

Creating a Dataset

1. Once you’re logged into Borealis, navigate to either your institutional collection or your personal collection to create a new dataset.
2. Click on the Add Data button on the right side of the collection’s main page and select New Dataset.
   
3. Enter information for all the required fields (those with a red asterisk) on the new dataset page.
   1. The new dataset page has three main sections: the Dataset Template, Citation Metadata, and File Uploads. Note that additional metadata fields can be completed once the dataset has been saved (see Editing or Adding Metadata).
      
4. Select the appropriate template from the drop-down list under Dataset Template or select “Custom Licence.”
   1. These templates pre-fill information related to the licensing of the dataset that will appear in the Terms of Use field.
   2. Keep in mind that this licence will apply to all files in the dataset. If you need to assign different licences to different files, either create a separate dataset for each type of licence, or select Custom licence so you can provide details on the licences associated with each file.
   3. Ensure you understand what each licence allows users to do before you select an option for your dataset.
   4. The default template is the CC0 Public Domain (CC0 1.0) licence.
      
5. Enter the name of your dataset in the Title field.
   1. This field is pre-populated based on the template selected. Replace the title with your own dataset title.
6. The Name and Affiliation fields in the Author section are pre-filled based on your account information.
   1. If the dataset should be attributed to an author other than yourself, replace your name and affiliation with the appropriate information.
7. Select an Identifier Scheme from the drop-down list for the author, if you’d like, then enter the proper information for that scheme in the Identifier field.
8. If you have authors you’d like to add to the dataset, click the plus (+) button to the right of the Author section.
   1. A second set of the four Author fields — Name, Affiliation, Identifier Scheme, and Identifier — will be added below the first author’s information.
   2. Add as many authors as you’d like by continuing to click the plus (+) button.
   3. Remove an author by clicking the minus (-) button beside that author’s entry.
9. The Contact section is also pre-filled based on your account information, but can be changed if you are not the dataset’s main contact.
   1. The person or persons included in the Contact section will receive any messages sent by users about the dataset.
   2. Contacts and authors do not have to be the same individuals.
   3. Like the Author section, you can add as many contacts for the dataset as you’d like by clicking the plus (+) button beside that section.
10. Enter information about your dataset in the Text field in the Description section.
    1. If needed, you can also add a date in the Date field related to the description you’ve entered.
    2. Click the plus (+) button beside the Description section if you need to add more than one description for your dataset.
       
11. Select one or more disciplines associated with your dataset from the Subject drop-down list by clicking on the checkboxes.
    1. If the appropriate discipline is not listed, select the Other option at the bottom of the list.
12. Enter a word or phrase associated with your dataset in the Term field in the Keyword section.
    1. If the term you enter is associated with a specific controlled vocabulary, you can enter the vocabulary’s name in the Vocabulary field and add a website for it to the Vocabulary URL field.
    2. If you’d like to include more than one term, click the plus (+) button beside the Keyword section to add fields. Only add one keyword in a single Term field.
       
13. If your dataset is associated with one or more publications, you can enter citations for those publications in the Related Publications section.
    1. You can also add an identifier for the publication, if needed, by selecting the identifier type from the ID Type drop-down list. Then enter the ID Number in the next field.
    2. If the publication you’ve included has a webpage, you can include it in the URL field.
    3. Click the plus (+) button to the right of the Related Publication section to add more than one publication, if required.
14. Enter any additional information about the dataset in the Notes field, if required.
15. Both the Depositor and Deposit Date fields are pre-filled with your account information and the current date, but can be edited.
16. The Files tab allows you to upload on or more files into your new dataset immediately, but this is not required. Files can be added to a dataset at any point after it’s been created. Refer to the Adding Files to a Dataset section for more information.
17. Click the Save Dataset button at the bottom of the page to create your new dataset. Your DOI is now reserved, but will not resolve until you publish your dataset.

Editing a Dataset

Once a dataset is created, you can edit several pieces of information about that dataset. These edits can be done to either an Unpublished (Draft) or Published dataset.

If you make these changes to a Published dataset, you will need to re-publish that dataset in order for the changes to take effect.

Note: The following screenshots are from a published dataset. Draft datasets may look slightly different, but the functionality is the same.

Editing or Adding Metadata

1. To edit or add metadata for a dataset, click on the Edit Dataset drop-down menu and select Metadata.
   
2. On the Edit Dataset Metadata page, add or change the information in any of the metadata fields listed.
   
3. Click the Save Changes button at the top or bottom of the screen when you’re done making changes.

The metadata fields displayed will be based on the dataset template you used when you created the collection.

Editing the Terms of Use

Text entered in the Terms of Use field will prompt a user to accept those terms before they can preview or download the files in that dataset. If a user does not accept the terms, they will not be able to preview or download the file(s).

To edit the terms of use for a dataset:

1. Click on the Edit Dataset drop-down menu and select Terms.
   
2. The Edit Dataset Terms page will display all the terms of use, terms of access, and guestbook information that was included in the dataset template when the dataset was created.
   
3. Make edits on this page, then click the Save Changes button to update your dataset’s terms.
   1. Edit the Terms of Use section.
   2. Edit the Restricted Files + Terms of Access section.
   3. Edit the Guestbook section.

Terms of Use Section

The first item listed in the Terms of Use section is the Waiver. The waiver option selected is based on the dataset template used when the dataset was created. If you used the default CC0 – Public Domain dataset template, the waiver option selected will be Yes, apply CC0 – “Public Domain Dedication”. If you used any of the other available dataset templates, No, do not apply CC0 – “Public Domain Dedication” will be selected.

If the No, do not apply CC0 – “Public Domain Dedication” option is selected, a Terms of Use field will be displayed below the Waiver field. If Yes, apply CC0 – “Public Domain Dedication” is selected, no Terms of Use field will be displayed.

The selected waiver can be changed when editing the dataset’s Terms, for either a draft or a published dataset. However, a waiver or Creative Commons licence cannot be revoked. Therefore, ensure the waiver and licence included within the Terms of Use section is correct before you publish your dataset.

If, at this point you opt to change the Waiver option from Yes to No, make sure you enter the appropriate licensing detail in the Terms of Use field. The licence you assign can be one of the Creative Commons licences that had its own template, even if you didn’t use that template.

You can enter information about other permissions, restrictions, requirements, conditions, and disclaimers in the other fields in the Terms of Use section on this page. Hold your cursor over the blue question marks beside the field names to read information about the purpose of that field.

Restricted Files + Terms of Access Section

The second section on the Edit Dataset Terms page is where you can document information about accessing restricted files within your dataset, if applicable. The fields in this section are typically used if a user must request access before they can view or download files, or if the use of the files is restricted to certain individuals (e.g., students and staff at a specific institution).

You can make a file restricted during or after it’s uploaded by editing the metadata associated with the file. You can restrict just one file in your data, some of the files, or all of the files. The information in this section will only apply to the files you’ve restricted within this dataset. If you have different terms of access for different restricted files in your dataset, make sure to state that explicitly in these fields.

Enabling Guestbooks

The third section on the Edit Dataset Terms page allows you to select a guestbook for your dataset. If you opt to include a guestbook, it will be applied to all files in your dataset. Whatever information you request as part of your guestbook will be required from every user every time they preview or download a file from your dataset (even if they’ve completed the guestbook previously).

If you want to enable one of the listed guestbooks for your dataset, click the radio button beside its name. Use the Preview Guestbook button to see which items are required from users when they want to view or download a file.

The Edit Dataset Terms page will only allow you to select or deselect a previously created guestbook. Guestbooks can only be created at the collection level. If you do not have access to add a guestbook at the collection level, contact your institutional support contact(s) for assistance.

If the only change you’ve made between versions of your dataset is to the guestbook, those changes will not appear in the details when comparing multiple versions.

Adding Thumbnails and Widgets

To edit thumbnails or widgets for a dataset, click on the Edit Dataset drop-down menu and select Thumbnails + Widgets. These are different from the themes and widgets you can include at the collection level.

Under the Thumbnail tab, you can select an image (JPG, TIF, or PNG) to be displayed as the main image or logo for your dataset. You can select from the images you’ve added to your dataset, or you can upload a new image. The image you select will be displayed at the top of your dataset page, as well as beside the name of your dataset in the list of datasets within the collection.

The Widgets tab contains two HTML scripts that can be added to your website in order to display the proper citation for your dataset, or to provide easy access to your dataset from a website. Copy and paste the scripts provided to the HTML code on your website in order to display the dataset citation.

Creating a Private URL for a Dataset

Unpublished datasets are only viewable by users who have certain roles assigned to them for that dataset. Other users cannot see draft datasets. However, there may be a situation where you need to share your unpublished dataset with someone without assigning a specific role to their user account (e.g., anonymous reviewers). Instead of publishing your dataset, dataset admins and curators can create a Private URL. That private URL can then be shared with others and will give them the ability to view your unpublished dataset without needing to log in. Once a dataset is published, the private URL will be deactivated.

There are two types of private URLs: the general Private URL, and the URL for Anonymized Access. The general Private URL allows users to see all details about your dataset. The URL for Anonymized access will have some metadata fields hidden from the viewer. When creating an Anonymized URL, make sure the collection your dataset is in does not have any identifying information in the name as the breadcrumbs will reveal the collection name information. Reach out to your institutional support if this is a concern for your dataset.

To create a private URL:

1. Open the dataset for which you want to create a Private URL.
2. Click the Edit Dataset button in the top right corner and select Private URL from the drop-down menu.
   
3. Depending on how you want to use this URL, click either the Create Private URL button or the Create URL for Anonymized Access button.
   
4. Once the private URL has been generated, it will be displayed in the window with a Success! message. You can copy this URL to share your dataset.
   
5. Click the Close link to close the window.
6. Send the private URL to whomever you need.
7. Once you no longer need to share a private URL, go back to the Unpublished Dataset Private URL window and click the Disable Private URL button.
8. Confirm that you want to disable the URL by clicking the Yes, Disable Private URL button.
   1. The private URL has now been deleted and can no longer be used to access your dataset.