Electronic Lab Notebooks (ELNs)

Kristin A. Briney, PhDData Services Librarian, UWM

3 December 2013

Documentation

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jjpacres/3293117576/ (CC BY-NC-ND)

Good documentation is a critical part of managing research data well, now and into the future

Documentation - Content

• Scientific information• Context of the experiment, measurement description, protocols, etc

• Technical information• Instrument calibrations, how the files fit together, etc

• Data management information• Project information, data collector, data owner, etc

Documentation - Audience

• For you

Documentation - Audience

• For you• For future you• For your boss• For your colleagues• For your collaborators• For your peers• For other researchers• For the public

Documentation - Provenance

• Intellectual property• Accusations of misconduct

Documentation - Provenance

• Intellectual property• Accusations of misconduct

Why lab notebook best practices are important

Paper-Based System

http://www.flickr.com/photos/camknows/3821001012/ (CC BY-NC-SA)

Paper-Based System

• Flexible• Easy to use• Rich history and best practices

Paper-Based System

• Divide between handwritten notes and digital data• Not easily searchable• Not easy to use by others

Paper-Based System

• Notebooks not backed up• Damage to paper (spills, fading ink, etc)• Legibility issues

As data become larger and a more valued research output, it will become harder to rely solely on a paper-based notebook

ELNs

http://www.flickr.com/photos/24801682@N08/4117012787/ (CC BY)

ELNs - Pros

• Add data files to ELN• View data files in ELN

• Searching• Linking between pages

ELNs - Pros

• Sharing• Different access permissions by role• May be able to share across institutions

• Developing workflows• Read data from instruments directly• Built in testing

ELNs - Pros

• Audit trail (provenance)• Revision history• eSignatures

• Range of customizability• Plugins• Drawing tools• Mobile versions

ELNs - Cons

• Digital system• Bugs, upgrades, etc• Security and storage concerns• Limited access

ELNs - Cons

• Usability in 10 years• Proprietary files• Unsettled ELN market

• Adjusting your workflow• Flexibility• Lack of desired features• User interface matters

Here at Wisconsin

http://www.flickr.com/photos/teemu08/7398639848/ (CC BY-SA)

UW-Madison ELN Pilot

• Tested 2 notebooks, CERF and eCAT• 55 users, majority never used an ELN before

• CERF• Pilot organizers liked this software• Did not live up to expectations in the lab• Did basic record keeping but other functionality disappointing

• eCAT• CALS installation supporting >30 people• Users found easy to use and liked interface• Users liked level of customization, though general template worked• Majority felt they kept better records than before

UW-Madison ELN Pilot

• At end of pilot, 91% of respondents wanted to continue using an ELN• 60% of CERF users wanted to try a different ELN

• Required <12 hours to learn interface• Users employed training sessions and trial and error to learn

• Users liked linking and adding data files• Drawing tools and mobile versions did not live up to expectations

• http://academictech.doit.wisc.edu/ideas/electronic-lab-notebooks

Future of ELNs on Campus

• Campus looking into purchasing software• Currently in progress

• Great place to start• Realize ultimate product won’t work for all

Demonstrations

http://www.flickr.com/photos/seanstayte/378461236/ (CC BY-NC-SA)

Demonstrations

• eCAT• CALS-supported installation from UW ELN pilot• Pilot testers liked this ELN • New version is called ‘Research Space’• Has limited free version which I will demo• http://www.researchspace.com/

• LabArchives• Was not part of pilot but an option that DoIT also looked into• Has limited free version which I will demo• http://www.labarchives.com/

Demonstrations Caveat

• I am showing free versions of software• Free versions have limited features• Also data security and storage issues

• Great for testing• May need to test with fake data• Don’t plan to use free versions in long term

Where To Go From Here?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bulle_de/4672972586/ (CC BY)

1. What Are Your Needs?

• Will you be doing lots of searching, sharing, or reuse?• Do you like the flexibility of a paper notebook?• Do you need a system for collaboration?• Do you need to protect your research notes for privacy reasons?• Will you be making a lot of drawings in your notes?

1. What Are Your Needs?

• Will you be doing lots of searching, sharing, or reuse?• Do you like the flexibility of a paper notebook?• Do you need a system for collaboration?• Do you need to protect your research notes for privacy reasons?• Will you be making a lot of drawings in your notes?

Do you even need an ELN?

2. How Much Does Discipline Matter?• Many flavors of ELNs• Different features by discipline

Rubacha, M.; Rattan, A. K.; Hosselet, S. C., A Review of Electronic Laboratory Notebooks Available in the Market Today. Journal of the Association for Laboratory Automation 2011, 16 (1), 9.

3. What Resources Do You Have?

• Funding• Open source ELNs

• May require tech ability• Commercial ELNs

• Upward of $1000 /person /year• Many ELNs getting into academic market

3. What Resources Do You Have?

• Hardware• Server• Cloud storage*

• Point person

Minimum Requirements

http://www.flickr.com/photos/techbirmingham/167395997/ (CC-BY)

What to Look for in Software

• Note taking and searching ability• Adding external files• Adding links between pages• Access permissions• Ability to export

Provenance

• Way to create provenance• Audit trail• Lock pages once finished• Date stamps• Electronic signatures

• With provenance, ELNs acceptable for patents• Because of provenance, I don’t recommend• Blogs• Wikis• Note taking software

Exporting Files

• No guarantee that current ELNs will be here in 5 years

• Ideally, write files to an open file format• PDF common• XML• HTML• Word (.doc/.docx)

• At worst, need to be able to print out all pages• Useful to have a batch method to do this

Test Software

• One ELN software package will not work for everyone• Test before purchase• Ideally a week-to-month long test in the lab• Use as a notebook and look at features in depth• Keep both paper and electronic records during test

Takes time and effort to test but very important

Future of ELNs

http://www.flickr.com/photos/simpologist/16734948/ (CC BY-NC)

Future of ELNs

• ELNs will become the norm in research in the future• Graduates going into industry may be using ELNs now• May be 5-10 years before market coalesces• Enterprise ahead of academic market• Good product available now

• UW-Madison wants to help with this transition

If You Want an ELN

• Identify needs• Test the software out before converting• If you adopt now, have an exit strategy

Final Word

• Lots of benefits and some risks in adopting an ELN• Keeping a paper notebook has risks but they’re different• Will be a workflow change to adopt an ELN

• If risks too big, wait a few years

Resources

• DoIT Academic Technologies• http://academictech.doit.wisc.edu/ideas/electronic-lab-notebooks

• Research Data Services• http://researchdata.wisc.edu/

• WARF• http://www.warf.org/

Thanks

• Ebling Library• Trisha Adamus

• This presentation available under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license