Metadata Editing / Re-Publishing

Follow this workflow if you have already created and published mdJSON to ScienceBase and need to update the metadata and re-publish to ScienceBase.

Step 1: Gather information needed for your metadata entries.

Have the necessary information to update your metadata records readily accessible before you begin.

Step 2: Open mdEditor.

The direct link to mdEditor is https://go.mdeditor.org. Choose the browser you plan to use for mdEditor and bookmark this link.

mdEditor can also be accessed from its homepage at https://www.mdeditor.org/. This site provides some background information and Frequently Asked Questions about mdEditor.

Step 3: Import mdEditor file(s).

Import the mdEditor file(s) that you wish to edit. Remember, once you have edited and published metadata from mdEditor, you must always use mdEditor to update the metadata (rather than make changes directly on ScienceBase). The Science Catalog will only update based on what is in mdJSON (and not sbJSON).

Step 4: Check the Settings.

Ensure the correct LCC-specific settings are in place for Importing, Metadata Repositories, and Publishing.

Step 5: Update Contacts.

If you have new contacts to add to your metadata record, create those contacts.

Step 6: Update Projects.

Update/edit metadata as needed.

Step 7: Update Products.

Update/edit metadata as needed.

Step 8: For applicable Products, create, import, or update Data Dictionaries.

Step 9: Check Associations between Projects and/or Products.

If you only updated metadata in existing record that were already associated, you do not need to do anything with the associations.

If you created a new product for your project, then associate those records in mdEditor.

Step 10: Publish your records to ScienceBase.

Check that your record published where expected and that the mdJSON and xml files are attached to the SB Item. Your records should publish to their existing locations. If you added a new product to a project, then it should appear as a new child item to the project.

Step 11: Export your records and contacts for backup, transfer, or sharing.

You may want to export working backups before publishing depending on your situation, but archival exports should be done after publishing since publishing can alter records, like adding or changing a ScienceBase ID.

Step 12: Review the resulting entries in the LCC Science Catalog.

The Science Catalog updates overnight so you should review newly-published records the day after you publish to ScienceBase. This will be one of your best quality control checks.

Step 13: Consult with the different QA/QC Resources.

See the QA/QC Resources page for the different tools available to check your metadata.