Describe a Source
This guide shows you how to record a source as a Description. At the end you have one record in the registry. The record has a permanent identity. Other people and other tools can cite it.
Prerequisites
- You have a NUU account.
- You know which source you want to describe.
- You have signed in.
Create the record
Open the app and start a new Description. The app mints a permanent identity at once. The record starts private.
Give the Description a title. The title is required. Use the title of the source as people know it.
If you already have a Description with this title, add a disambiguator. The registry does not let you hold two of your own records with the same title and the same disambiguator. Read Tell Apart Two Sources with the Same Title.
Say how the work is reached
Choose how the source is stored and reached. Common cases:
- The work lives at a link, and you do not fetch the body.
- The work lives at a link, and the content is reachable there.
- The link has rotted or sits behind a paywall.
- The work lives only in a private vault.
- The body has been ingested and stored.
- You paste the content into the record.
If the work has a location, record that location. If you paste the content, write it in the instance body.
You can also set a format. Typical formats include paper, book, article, video, podcast, lecture, and tweet. Format is optional.
If the edition matters, set a version marker. Read About Versions.
If the source has a DOI, record it. You can write the bare identifier or the full locator.
Set the date of publication if you know it. You can record a year, a year and month, or a full date. Leave the date empty if the source is undated.
Record who made it
Add authors, organisations, and platforms. Each entry is a name. You can attach a link to a name. These lists are optional. Add the people and groups that a reader needs in order to recognise the source.
Write the summaries
Write a short summary. Write a longer summary. Both fields accept Markdown. Notes are optional. Use notes for remarks that do not belong in the summary.
If you later keep this Description as a file, the file form requires both summaries. Write them now so the file can be pushed. Read About the Markdown Form.
File it for yourself
You can add tags. Tags are how you organise your own Descriptions. Only you see tags. Non-owners never see them.
Save
Save the Description. The registry stores the record under your account. You can open it again from your list. You can edit it later. Only you can edit it.
The Description stays private until you change visibility. Read Share a Description if other people must read it.