Depositing Your Data in a Repository

Repositories are the backbone of data sharing. The best solution to sharing is to put data in an archival system that aims for long-term preservation, robust description and access methods, and will treat the data as essentially immutable.

There are many reasons to share your data with the world at large. Not least among these reasons is that several publishers and national funding agencies require you to do so. Sharing your data also, and more altruistically, allows your data to be used to answer other questions, both now and in the future. Most importantly, sharing data makes your papers more likely to be cited by other scientists: One study found a 69% increase in citations for articles whose associated data were available online.

Repositories at the University of Idaho

• University of Idaho Research Computing and Data Services (RCDS) Data Portal
  • UI RCDS hosts a data repository for University of Idaho-produced data. It can accommodate most types of data and is free to U of I personnel. The repository is FAIR-compliant and backed up routinely with the Idaho National Laboratory.
• INSIDE Idaho - Geospatial Data
  • INSIDE Idaho is the official geospatial data clearinghouse for the State of Idaho. INSIDE Idaho serves as a comprehensive geospatial data digital library, providing access to, and a context within which to use, geospatial data and information by, for, and about Idaho.

Other Repository Options

Commonly used repositories include:

• Figshare
• Zendodo
• Open Science Framework
• Data Dryad

The Re3data.org website is a list of other disciplinary repositories.

Note: Not all of the repositories listed can ensure long-term preservation of your data; contact each one for more details.