FAQ

TODO (read these over and rephrase questions and answers)

What is a data help desk? (TODO: Expand on this)

A data help desk provides researchers with opportunities to engage with informatics experts familiar with their scientific domain and learn about skills and techniques that help further research and make data and software open and FAIR. It serves as a reference desk staffed with experts to answer questions and provide demos of tools and resources. It can be a physical, virtual, or hybrid service.

Why is a data help desk needed?

A data help desk is needed because researchers often have data-related questions and may lack formal training in research data management. It provides an opportunity for them to engage with informatics experts familiar with their scientific domain and learn skills and techniques to further their research and make their data and software open and FAIR. Many researchers need help understanding how to meet publisher or funder expectations regarding open and FAIR data and software. Data management practices need better integration into ecological research activities, and scientific meetings are a suitable place to disseminate resources. Analysis of past Data Help Desks shows that a significant percentage of researchers surveyed had no prior training in research data management.

Why are instructions needed to set up a data help desk?

Instructions for setting up a data help desk are needed to guide those who wish to host similar events based on lessons learned from past data help desks. These instructions can outline the key steps in planning, execution, and follow-up, drawing on the experiences of organizers who have successfully run data help desks at various scientific association meetings.

What does the community want and need?

The community wants and needs help with various aspects of data management, including acquiring, cleaning, archiving, and citing data. There is also a need for understanding FAIR principles and reproducible workflows. Researchers seek guidance on where to put their data, where to find data, and how to understand and implement FAIR data practices. Many attendees at past help desks have asked about creating data management plans and finding suitable repositories for their research data. The community also benefits from better integration of data management practices and resources at scientific meetings.

What should a data help desk accomplish?

A data help desk should aim to inform science by helping researchers with their data-related questions. It should address common researcher questions such as where to deposit or archive data, where to find data, how to create data management plans, how to cite data and software, and what FAIR and open principles mean. Ultimately, it should improve and expand the current quality of assistance related to research data management.

What questions can volunteers expect?

Volunteers need clear guidelines and tips to help them prepare and contribute. They might want to understand the expected scope of questions, the level of commitment required, and the available resources they can use to answer questions. Information on the goals and objectives of the data help desk and how their contribution will be valuable is also important.

What questions do users want answered?

Users want answers to a wide range of data-related questions, including:

Where can I put my data? This includes questions about repositories for specific data types, such as model or other large datasets, and whether repositories accept data from any funding stream or have restrictions.
Where can I find data?.
What is X (where X is one of the organizations listed on the signage)?.
How to create a data management plan?.
How to cite datasets, code, and software?.
What makes data #FAIR? And what is FAIR anyway?.
How can I comply with my funder and publisher requirements for my data and software?.
What general data topics could you provide help with? Examples include General Data Management, Information Management, Metadata, Data Repositories, Programming, Data Publication, Data Visualization, and Data Analysis.
Specific questions about repositories, such as what metadata standard they use, the submission procedure, if personnel can help with archiving, when to engage with the repository, training opportunities, supported licenses, and deposit costs.
Questions about data cleaning, reshaping, merging, and quality control strategies.
Inquiries about reproducible workflows.
Guidance on data visualization and analysis tools.
How to find data experts.
Information on tools such as AI for data management.
Questions about data storage and analysis structure, naming conventions, and directory structures.
What data exactly needs to be archived, especially with large volumes.
What does Open Science mean in practice.

What resources to have available?

The data help desk setup can incorporate links to online resources and build upon existing documentation. It can point to relevant online documentation and resources to provide more in-depth information beyond what can be covered at the desk itself. For example, the virtual Data Help Desk often includes a gallery of contributed demos, tutorials, and one-pagers.

What materials are needed to set up a help desk?

The materials needed to set up a help desk vary depending on whether it is physical or virtual:

Physical Help Desk: Requires a table, signage (clear and attractive), and potentially monitors for demos. Handouts and flyers can also be useful.
Virtual Help Desk: A webpage is essential. A platform for asking questions (e.g., Twitter with a specific hashtag, survey form) and a gallery of resources (demos, tutorials, one-pagers) are crucial.
Hybrid Help Desk: Requires planning and coordination for both physical and virtual components.

What is the cost of a help desk?

Cost considerations include personnel (whether paid or volunteer), website hosting, and materials such as signage and handouts. For virtual events, costs might involve website development and maintenance, as well as potential software for managing questions and communication.

How long will the help desk be active?

The help desk can be active for a range of durations, from one day to one week (e.g., during a conference), or it can be ongoing as a year-round service. The duration often depends on the context, such as being part of a conference or a dedicated year-round support service.

How to find people to staff a help desk?

People can be found to staff a help desk by soliciting volunteers through various channels. This can include:

Reaching out to a core group of dedicated organizers.
Involving a small organizing committee with representatives from major organizing entities.
Sharing a volunteer form (e.g., Google Form) with relevant mailing lists.
Inviting past volunteers to participate again.
Recruiting through ESIP communication channels.
Finding advocates such as section chairs and scientific session presenters.
Utilizing the ESIP Slack workspace to connect with potential experts.

What info is needed to onboard staff of help desk?

Information needed to onboard help desk staff includes:

Basic information about ESIP and the goals of the Data Help Desk.
Guidance on basic data management concepts that participants might ask about.
Volunteer guidelines and tips to help them prepare and contribute, including how to answer questions and what to include in resources.
Information on a code of conduct for their participation.
An overview of common questions that are asked.
A list of resources available to help answer questions.
Details on the platforms used for virtual help desks, such as Twitter and Slack.
Reminders that it’s okay not to know the answer and instructions on how to record unanswered questions.

What info is needed for owner/project lead of help desk?

The owner/project lead likely needs:

An understanding of the overall vision and goals of each event.
A planning timeline that includes key milestones.
Contact information for the organizing committee members, volunteer coordinator, and other key roles.
Information on engaging with the meeting host and other sponsoring organizations.
Details on the communication plan and how to promote the event.
Information on designing forums for researchers to ask questions.
Guidance on recruiting and supporting volunteers.
Plans for designing and compiling the gallery of resources.
Strategies for Twitter engagement.
Considerations for metrics of success and how to collect them.
Information on how to give acknowledgement to involved organizations and individuals.

How is the success of a help data desk determined?

The success of a data help desk can be determined by several factors:

Number of people interacting with the help desk. This can include booth visits for physical events and participation on online platforms for virtual events.
Quality of questions and answers. This can be assessed through feedback and analysis of the interactions.
Recording questions and answers. Tracking the types of questions asked can inform future services and resource development.
Surveys and questionnaires conducted before, during, and after the help desk to gather feedback from both attendees and volunteers.
Metrics for virtual events, such as impressions, posts, reach, engagement (retweets and likes), and number of users on platforms like Twitter.
Volunteer satisfaction, which can be assessed through post-event surveys and by tracking the usage of their contributed resources.
Qualitative metrics on how engaged individuals were and whether they felt like they received the help they were looking for.

Will the help desk setup need to explain the purpose such as data management, FAIR, archiving, metadata (what level of detail?)

Yes, the help desk setup will need to explain the purpose of topics like data management and FAIR. This is especially important because many researchers lack formal training in these areas. Providing basic handouts on data management is recommended. Explanations should likely start with the fundamentals of what these concepts mean and why they are important for research. The level of detail can be adjusted based on the user’s questions and prior knowledge, with the goal of providing clear and concise information. For topics like metadata, the help desk can point to specific metadata standards used by repositories.