Research Instrument Module for WordPress
DMR-FIRST provides a plugin for WordPress which can register digital object identifiers (DOIs) for research instruments and integrates those into the federated database at https://dmr-first.org.
- DMR-FIRST Research Instrument and JSON-LD
DMR-FIRST Research Instrument and JSON-LD adds JSON-LD metadata to the created html page, and is required for DMR-FIRST to be able to read instrument web pages. Structured data like JSON-LD is used to included machine-readable metadata in the head of a web page. Such data is usually intended for search engines and also social media apps when sharing links.
DMR-FIRST Research Instrument JSON-LD data is intended for the DMR-FIRST web application. This web application automatically builds a searchable public database of NSF funded research instruments.
The plugin also provides a post type for research instruments and contains all fields used by the DMR-FIRST application, as well as a mapping from those fields to the Research Instrument Schema. It also implements WordPress hooks that register a DOI for research instruments upon saving. It is also possible to create a mapping for another post type to the Research Instrument Schema.
Please contact DMR-FIRST at admin@dmr-first.org if you intend to use this WordPress module. You will need an API key in order to register DOIs, and the DMR-FIRST application does not automatically search for websites, it needs to be set up with a domain url. Only then does it discover all research instrument pages containing JSON-LD metadata.
Installation
- Open your web browser and navigate to your WordPress admin dashboard. Usually, this is done by entering your website's URL followed by "/wp-admin" (e.g., "http://yoursite.edu/wp-admin").
- In the WordPress admin dashboard, find the "Plugins" section on the left-hand menu. Hover over it, and a submenu will appear. Click on "Add New."
- Upload the Plugin:
- On the "Add Plugins" page, you'll see a button at the top that says "Upload Plugin." Click on it.
- Click the "Choose File" button. This will open a file dialog on your computer. Locate and select the zip file you downloaded from the Download Page
- Install the Plugin:
- After selecting the file, click the "Install Now" button. WordPress will now upload and install the plugin from the zip file.
- Once the plugin is installed, you'll see a message confirming the installation was successful. You'll also see an "Activate" button next to the plugin name. Click the "Activate" button to activate the plugin.
Configuration
The Research Instrument post type loads known instrument types and registers draft DOIs via dmr-first.org.
For this to work it has to be configured by populating the Domain and API key fields in the DMR-FIRST configuration panel. After the plugin has been enabled, the configuration interface is accessible at http://yoursite.edu/wp-admin/admin.php?page=dmr_first or via your WordPress admin area.
Please use https://dmr-first.org as the Domain (or a dev server that runs the DMR-FIRST web application).
Please contact DMR-FIRST at admin@dmr-first.org for an API key. You can start testing the plugin without it, but you won't be able to generate DOIs.
Updates
- Open your web browser and log in to your WordPress admin dashboard using your website's URL followed by "/wp-admin."
- In the WordPress admin dashboard, locate the "Plugins" section on the left-hand menu and click on it.
- Manual Plugin Update:
- Click the "Add New" button at the top of the "Plugins" page.
- Click the "Upload Plugin" button.
- Click the "Choose File" button and select the zip file of the updated plugin that you've downloaded.
- Click the "Install Now" button to upload and install the updated plugin.
- Once the update is successful, you'll receive a confirmation message. Activate the updated plugin if required.
Known Issues
- The WordPress admin area will not check for updates
Validation
The generated JSON-LD can be tested on the DMR-FIRST Validation page.
This checks if all required fields are present and lists recommended fields that are missing. If the validation page shows errors, the DMR-FIRST crawler will not be able to read the data from that page and add an instrument to the DMR-FIRST database.
Please let us know if you are using any plugins for managing your custom post types or fields. Contact DMR-FIRST at admin@dmr-first.org