Integrated Publishing Toolkit (IPT)

A GBIF tool to enable the publishing of biodiversity datasets

  • v2.3

    (Latest version)
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About the IPT

See also

The Integrated Publishing Toolkit (IPT) is a free open source software tool written in Java that is used to publish and share biodiversity datasets through the GBIF network. Designed for interoperability, it enables the publishing of content in databases, Microsoft Excel spreadsheets, or text files using open standards namely the Darwin Core and the Ecological Metadata Language.You can also use a 'one-click' service to convert your metadata into a draft data paper manuscript for submission to a peer-reviewed journal.

DataCite logo 2015

Since v2.2, the IPT has been capable of automatically connecting with either DataCite or EZID to assign DOIs to datasets. This new feature makes biodiversity data easier to access on the Web and facilitates tracking its re-use. You may read more about this and other new features introduced in version 2.2 here.

The core development of the IPT happens at the GBIF Secretariat, but the coding, documentation, and internationalization are a community effort and everyone is welcome to join in. New versions incorporate the feedback from the people who actually use the IPT. In this way, users can help get the features they want by becoming involved. The IPT really is a community-driven tool.

You can see the work that has gone into each iterative version since v2.0.3 (released in November 2011) under the Releases tab. You can check out the Stats page to find out how many institutions around the world are using the IPT today.

For a more in-depth description of the IPT, including why it was developed, you can read this article published in PLOS ONE on August 6, 2014.

PLOS ONE

Resources

Feedback

Features

  • GBIF logo 2015 DataCite logo 2015 EZID logo 2015
    Integration with GBIF, DataCite, EZID

    Can automatically register datasets with GBIF making them globally discoverable through the GBIF website. Can also automatically connect with either DataCite or EZID to assign DOIs to datasets.

  • Record count of eBird Dataset on Aug 9 2013 from VertNet IPT
    Support for large datasets

    Can process ~500,000 records/minute during publication. Disk space the only limiting factor. For example, a published dataset with 50 million records in DwC-A format is 3.6 GB.

  • Published releases section on IPT Manage Resource Page
    Standards-compliant publishing

    Publishes a dataset in Darwin Core Archive (DwC-A) format, a compressed set of files based on the Darwin Core terms, and the GBIF metadata profile built using the Ecological Metadata Language.

  • Resource type selection on IPT Create New Resource Form
    Publication of four types of biodiversity data:

    I. Primary occurrence data (specimens, observations)

    II. Species checklists and taxonomies

    III. Sample-based data (data about sampling events)

    IV. General metadata about data sources

  • Language selection in IPT
    Internationalization

    User interface available in six different languages: English, French, Spanish, Traditional Chinese, Brazilian Portuguese, and Japanese.

  • Visibility and Resource Managers sections of IPT Manage Resource Page
    Data Security

    Controls access to datasets using three levels of dataset visibility: private, public and registered. Controls which users can modify datasets, with four types of user roles.

How to contribute?

Featured users

Translation

Has the IPT user interface or documentation been translated into your native language yet? If not, we welcome new translations into any language. Instructions can be found here.

Code

Is the IPT missing a key feature, or is the GBIF Secretariat too slow getting around to implementing an existing feature request or bug fix? Feel free to contribute a code patch yourself. To start, check out the latest version of the source code here.

Documentation

Is there a mistake in the IPT documentation? Perhaps some topic in the IPT wiki is missing? If so, please contact the GBIF Helpdesk with your ideas, and we will grant you author privileges to the IPT wiki.

"Darwin Core Archives are required for data harvest to our new portal. We see IPT as a great tool to facilitate the creation of these files and to provide hosting of them for our participating institutions." - Laura Russell, VertNet

"Thanks to the IPT we now have a complete data mobilization workflow, from in-house data management systems to GBIF. The software tool has been instrumental in the growth of the Canadensys network." - Peter Desmet, INBO & Canadensys

"The IPT has facilitated primary data publication for us. At SiB Colombia we use it as a central part of our data publication model" - Danny Vélez, SiB Colombia