Orcid and other Identifiers

Digital Object Identifiers are more commonly known as DOI's. These are a string of numbers, letters and symbols used to permanently identify an a digital object (article, document, datasets and so on). It is an internationally recognised system that attaches metadata to a digital object so it can be retrieved on the web. It is like a barcode for that object as it will only refer to that object and nothing else and is very important for interoperability.

A doi will look like this

Publishers will assign doi's to your publications as will ResearchGate when you submit to that. If your digital object does not have a doi the library can assign one to you. The library automatically checks all submissions to Arrow@TU Dublin for doi's and if the item does not already have one, will assign one.

An Orcid id is a unique and persistent number that is applied to a researcher and will look something like this 0000-0001-7431-1694. Think of it as a PPS number or a digital barcode for a researcher. The need for such an identifier arises because it is difficult to accumulate citations around a particular name if that author has used different versions of his/her name or has moved between institutions. Is an author who has used the name Joe Blogs, J. Blogs, Joe A Blogs, and J.A Blogs and so on, the same person? Is Joe Blogs who works at the University of Life, the same Joe Blogs who previously worked at the University of Dreams? Applying a unique identifier to Joe Blogs in the first place means that none of these name variants count as the computer software that accumulates citations will recognise that they are all the same person even when the researcher changes institution. Orcids are particularly important for authors with Irish language names.

This short video explains how orcid works.

This is a free service for the individual and it is a very simple matter to register for an Orcid ID by filling out a form and acquiring a password. This will give you your Orcid ID. Since the purpose of the Orcid ID is to accumulate your publications under your name it is important that you populate it with your publications list. You can also add in your educational and professional details as anyone can search Orcid ID by a name and it is a good way of making your publications listing readily available. You can manually add your publications listing but a quicker way is to upload your publications from Scopus and then manually add publications that are missing. Then it is important that you put your Orcid ID on everything you publish/produce such as articles, datasets, reports, media stories, citations, experiments, patents, and notebooks.

To find out the various ways you can populate your orcid record click here.

Publishers who require an Orcid ID for publication

The American Geophysical Union (AGU), eLife, EMBO, Hindawi, The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), PLOS (Public Library of Science) and the Royal Society will require authors to use an Orcid Identifier during the publication process. The use of an Orcid ID is rapidly becoming the norm for connecting databases and workflows, grant applications, publishing systems and institutional research information systems. More than 1.8 million researchers have registered for an Orcid ID. 

An ISBN is an International Standard Book Number. ISBNs were 10 digits in length up to the end of December 2006, but since 1 January 2007 they now always consist of 13 digits. ISBNs are calculated using a specific mathematical formula and include a check digit to validate the number. Normally, the isbn for a book will be on the back of the title page but is also on the back cover and is the last thing to be added before publication. For example ISBN-13 978-1-84816-759-9(pbk) uniquely identifies Montwill, A. & Breslin, A: Let there be light:the story of light from atoms to galaxies. 2nd edition, paperback version.

If you are producing a book or conference proceedings in TU Dublin, the Library can provide you with an ISBN.