Distribution Tab: Product
Distribution provides documentation on how or where users can obtain products. Distribution methods may include online options (e.g., website, database) or offline options (e.g., delivery via mail, library).
An online distribution link is required for any products sent to data.gov.
| Quick Reference: Required for SA Products | Required? |
|---|---|
| Contacts and Role | Required |
| Transfer Options: Online Option | Required |
Click Add Distribution Section and then Edit Distributors to begin adding distributors.
Distributor
This section involves adding distributor information and a URL for data products that are hosted anywhere. For example, if The Nature Conservancy is hosting a data source, the distributor is "The Nature Conservancy."
Contacts and Role (Required)
If anything is filled out in the distribution section, a contact must be added. The appropriate role is "distributor."
The contact should ideally be someone who will remain available to respond to potential inquiries about the product. If there is not an appropriate contact specific to the product, you can use a generic SA Data Steward contact for a long-term backup contact.
Transfer Options (Required)
Transfer Options provide details regarding obtaining the product. Online and offline options are available.
Online Option (Required if Available)
Name
The Name of the online resource should be something that indicates it is a product page where the data can be downloaded. Examples: "product webpage" or "Product Webpage with Downloadable Files." If there are multiple files for a single product record, the Name should be different for each file so the user can differentiate between them. For example, "Download Aguiguan Veg 2016 data" or "Download FDM Veg 2011 data."
Unique Names for multiple files are particularly important for items being sent to data.gov. Without a name specified at all, the link will display as "webpage," which isn't particularly informative to users. Identical names for different files also won't be particularly informative.
URI
The most important thing to enter is the URL where the product can be accessed or downloaded.
An online link is required for any products sent to data.gov. Preferably the link should be a direct download to the data and not an intermediary page.
Function
In the Function field, you should indicate the type of URL. If the link is a direct download of the data, select “download.” If the link goes to an informational page, select “information.”
How to obtain download link from ScienceBase Items
For products hosted on ScienceBase, obtaining the direct download URL is a little tricky. The text displayed on the ScienceBase page under Attached Files is not actually a link (so you can't right-click and copy link address from there). Here are directions for how to obtain the direct download link for ScienceBase items.
(1) First scroll to the Attached Files on the ScienceBase item and click the Attach Files control.
(2) From the list of attached files, find the relevant file, right click the name, and select "copy link address." Then paste that link into the Online Option in mdEditor.
Offline Option
If your product is only available offline, describe how users can obtain the product here.
Example Distributor
