Dataverse 4.0: Adding Data

In 4.0, you can add a dataverse or a dataset directly into the Harvard Dataverse by clicking on the Add Data button.

Create a Dataverse (within the Harvard Dataverse)

Creating a dataverse is easy but first you must be a registered user.

1. Once you are logged in click on the “Add Data” button and in the dropdown menu select “New Dataverse”.

2. Once on the “New Dataverse” page fill in the following fields:

   • Name: Enter the name of your dataverse.
   • Identifier: This is an abbreviation, usually lower-case, that becomes part of the URL for the new dataverse. Special characters (~,`, !, @, #, $, %, ^, &, and *) and spaces are not allowed. Note: if you change the Dataverse URL field, the URL for your Dataverse changes (http//.../’url’), which affects links to this page.
   • Email: This is the email address that will be used as the contact for this particular dataverse. You can have more than one contact email address for your dataverse.
   • Affiliation: Add any Affiliation that can be associated to this particular dataverse (e.g., project name, institute name, department name, journal name, etc). This is automatically filled out if you have added an affiliation for your user account.
   • Description: Provide a description of this dataverse. This will display on the home page of your dataverse and in the search result list.
   • Category: Select a category that best describes the type of dataverse this will be. For example, if this is a dataverse for an individual researcher’s datasets, select Researcher. If this is a dataverse for an institution, select Organization & Institution.
   • Choose the sets of Metadata Elements for datasets in this dataverse: by default the metadata elements will be from the host dataverse that this new dataverse is created in. Dataverse offers metadata standards for multiple domains. To learn more about the metadata standards in Dataverse please check out the appendix (insert link here)
   • Select facets for this dataverse: by default the facets that will appear on your dataverse landing page will be from the host dataverse that this new dataverse was created in. The facets are simply metadata fields that can be used to help others easily find dataverses and datasets within this dataverse. You can select as many facets as you would like.

3. Selected metadata elements are also used to pick which metadata fields you would like to use for creating templates for your datasets. Metadata fields can be hidden, or selected as required or optional. Once you have selected all the fields you would like to use, you can create your template(s) after you finish creating your dataverse.

4. Click “Create Dataverse” button and you’re done!

*Required fields are denoted by a red asterisk.

Adding a New Dataset

1. Navigate to the dataverse in which you want to add a dataset.
2. Click on the “Add Data” button and select “New Dataset” in the dropdown menu.
3. To quickly get started, enter at minimum all the required fields with an asterisk to get a Data Citation with a DOI (e.g., the Dataset Title, Author, Description, Contact Email and Subject).
4. Scroll down to the “Files” section and click on “Select Files to Add” to add all the relevant files to your Dataset. You can also upload your files directly from your Dropbox. Tip: You can drag and drop or select multiple files at a time from your desktop, directly into the upload widget. Your files will appear below the “Select Files to Add” button where you can add a description and tags (via the “Edit Tag” button) for each file. Additionally, an MD5 checksum will be added for each file. If you upload a tabular file a Universal Numerical Fingerprint (UNF) will be added to this file.
5. Click the “Add Dataset” button when you are done. Your unpublished dataset is now created.

Note: You can add additional metadata once you have completed the initial dataset creation by going to Edit Dataset > Metadata.