Electronic Lab Notebooks (ELN)
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If you have been using the OSF as an electronic lab notebook (ELN), there are several alternative solutions. We recommend that you contact your institutional librarian (if you have one). It is possible that your institution has access to ELNs, especially those that require a subscription. Any public OSF projects that you used as an ELN will be maintained and remain accessible, and COS recommends that you do not make additional copies of this content. If you do decide to move your content to an alternative location, consult with any additional contributors to ensure that unintentional duplicate copies are not being shared.
When selecting an ELN, you will want to consider the following:
- What kind of research you do/what kind of data will be included?
- Security concerns (e.g., Do you work with sensitive data? How often does the ELN back up your data?)
- Your institution’s ELN policies, if they have any
- Any regulatory compliance you may need to pay attention to (e.g., from funders, within your field, the study’s IRB, legally)
- Your own/your lab’s collaboration preferences (e.g., Do you all work in the same location or will you need remote access to the ELN? How does the ELN track changes to the materials? How do you like to organize your project materials?)
- Technology requirements (e.g., Do you need integrations with, for instance, GitHub or another service? Does it need to be able to read PDFs in-app?)
- Your budget (check with your university, if you have one, to see if they have funds available to support your ELN of choice)
Harvard University has a useful Electronic Lab Notebook Comparison Matrix, which you can use to explore over 30 ELNs to find one that suits your needs.
This Article Is Licensed Under CCO For Maximum Reuse.