MossWinn Internet Database (MIDB) - Publisher's Guide

( 2016/10/22 )

 

The present page contains information and recommendations concerning the publication of records in the MossWinn Internet Database (MIDB).

 

For information on the MossWinn program click here.

For information on the MossWinn Internet Database click here.

 
 
 

What is the MIDB?

The MossWinn Internet Database (MIDB) is a Mossbauer spectroscopy database system & service that can be subscribed to by licensees of the MossWinn program as part of the MossWinn Services. The service can be accessed by the help of the MossWinn program via the internet.

 

Who can publish records in the MIDB?

MIDB records can be published by subscribers of the MossWinn Services.

 

Who can access the published records?

MossWinn licensees have free query and browse access to the MIDB records via the DTB menu box, whereas full access / extended functionality is offered to subscribers of the MossWinn Services.

 

What options are offered by the MIDB?

By the help of the MossWinn program subscribers can publish, edit and withdraw own MIDB records, as well as search and browse the records published by others. Fit models included in the records can be applied to fit own spectra in the FIT menu of MossWinn.

 

How do I subscribe to the MossWinn Services?

In the main menu of MossWinn press on the Help menu box and select the option Request MossWinn Services subscription for the attached key.... This will bring up a subscription request E-mail in the default E-mail client, which is to be sent to the service provider. The corresponding subscription will be activated for the hardware key that is attached to the computer when the above menu option is selected.

 

What happens to my published records when my subscription to the MIDB expires?

Your published records will remain part of the database (and will remain accessible to all MossWinn licensees) unless you decide to withdraw them. Withdrawal of your own records from the MIDB is possible even if you are not subscribed to the MIDB, i.e. you do not lose control over your published records just because you are not subscribed to the database. (Subscription is required, however, to perform operations such as the publication and editing of records.)

 

Can I access my published records after my subscription to the MIDB expires?

Yes, even if you are not subscribed to the MIDB service, those existing database records that you have published will remain accessible to you via the database browser. The (DBFind and apply best match →) Considering own records menu option remains functional as well.

 

What can be included in an MIDB record?

Each MIDB record is associated with a certain Mossbauer measurement. The records represent measurements by including information such as the composition of the measured sample, the temperature of the sample and the magnitude and orientation of the external magnetic field (if any) applied during the measurement, the isomer shift reference point associated with the velocity axis of the measurement, keywords, publication year and internet link to the publication associated with the measurement, name and E-mail of the researcher publishing the record and the name of the first author of the corresponding article. The records furthermore can contain a downsampled version of the associated measurement as well as the fit model that was fitted to it by the publisher.

 

What are the benefits of publication in the MIDB?

The MIDB can be regarded as a new medium of information exchange for the Mossbauer community: it provides an effective way to inform the community about one's own work, thereby gaining the attention of other researchers. Additionally, MIDB also doubles as a model library: the fit models included in the published records can be reutilized in subsequent spectrum fits, thereby promoting a highly efficient spectrum fitting process in the case of spectra that can be described by a similar fit model.

 

What kinds of measurements have already been published in the MIDB?

A summary of the database content is available here.

 

Can I publish my measurement in the MIDB if a similar measurement has already been published there by others?

Yes. Your view/opinion concerning your data will be a useful addition to the database even if others have already expressed their own view in the MIDB concerning similar spectra.

 

Is there an editor of the database?

Some editorial tasks and maintenance of the database are performed by the service provider, Zoltán Klencsár (z.klencsar@mosswinn.hu), author of the MossWinn program and the database software. Except for the editorial functions listed in the Terms and Conditions, subscribers themselves can be considered as being the editors of their own set of database records.

 

Is there a review process concerning the published records?

No, records are published immediately, without any preliminary review. The scientific content of a database record is considered to be validated by the included link(s) to the associated publication(s). If a record is published without such a link, it remains to the user to judge the scientific content of the record.

 

What if I accidentally publish an erroneous record?

Certain sections of the record can be edited, or the record can also be withdrawn.

 

Can other subscribers modify the record that I have published?

No, they cannot.

 

Is it possible to extract the ASCII data of a measured spectrum from the corresponding MIDB record?

No, this is not possible. The spectrum included in the record is made available only as an image. Furthermore, MIDB records contain only a downsampled version of the original spectrum data.

 

Can I publish in the MIDB a measured spectrum whose image has already been published in a scientific journal?

Even if one has published a spectrum image as part of a scientific publication, the corresponding numerical data is usually considered as being not copyrightable. Consequently, one retains rights concerning the original spectrum data, and therefore one can submit it to a database. At the same time, publication in the MIDB does not involve copyright transfer, and what is actually published in the database is not the original spectrum data, but only a downsampled version of it. It is therefore unlikely that copyright issues could arise concerning publication of spectrum data in the MIDB. If you decide not to publish the measured data, you could still publish a corresponding record including only the fit model that you have fitted to the spectrum (click here to read how).

 

Can I publish in the MIDB a measurement that has not been published elsewhere?

Yes. However, if you intend to publish the measurement in question later on in a scientific journal, it is recommended to defer publication in the MIDB until the corresponding article becomes published.

 

How do I publish a record in the MIDB?

    1. Start up MossWinn.
    2. Load the required spectrum.
    3. Enter the FIT menu.
    4. Set the fit model and fit the spectrum.
    5. Calculate standard deviation of the fit parameters. (Optional: if this step is skipped, StD values will not be included in the corresponding record.)
    6. Press on the DB menu box and select the option Publish record in the internet database.
    7. Fill out the fields on the appearing Database record input form, and press on the Next button.
    8. Set the attributes of spectrum resampling on the appearing form, and press on the Preview button.
    9. Check the appearing record preview for completeness and correctness, and press on the Publish record button.
    10. MossWinn will display a message when the record is successfully published. If the publication is temporarily not possible (e.g. because the internet is not accessible) then MossWinn may decide to publish the record only later on, e.g. when it is next time started.
 

What if a fit in MossWinn results in fit parameter values different from those published earlier concerning the spectrum that is to be included in the record?

It is possible that such differences occur because earlier the spectrum was analyzed by using nuclear constants different from those default in MossWinn. If this is the case, you could temporarily overwrite the nuclear constants used by MossWinn in order to obtain the same results as earlier. See the section on Nuclear constants as used in MossWinn 4.0 in the manual (pdf) of MossWinn in this regard. (Do not forget to reset the nuclear constants after the publication has taken place.) Otherwise, it may happen that different fitting programs do not give exactly the same fit parameter values and standard deviations thereof. In such a case - in order to avoid confusion - it is recommended that in the FIT menu of MossWinn one manually sets the parameter values published earlier, even if MossWinn would suggest a different result. It may then happen that the corresponding StD values cannot be calculated in MossWinn, or if they are calculated they will be different from what was published earlier. It is recommended to skip the calculation of StD values in such a case. In other words, in general it is recommended that records are published with a content that reflects the authors' view/opinion concerning their data as it was published/expressed earlier in the associated paper.

 

How to include into the record an article reference in the usual form?

Reference to the article reporting about the measurement included in the record should be given on the Database record input form as a doi or html link to the publication's website. If additionally you want to give the reference also in the usual form (e.g. as Hyperfine Interactions 190 (2009) 101.), then enter the corresponding text into the field Additional information (optional) available on the same form. (The default content of the field - http:// - should be overwritten.)

 

How should I indicate that the record I intend to publish is about a CEMS measurement?

Add the word CEMS to the list of keywords on the Database record input form.

 

How should I indicate that the record I intend to publish is about an emission Mossbauer spectroscopy (EMS) measurement?

Put a check on the EMS checkbox on the Database record input form.

 

How should I indicate that the sample I have measured was enriched in 57Fe?

Instead of Fe use 57Fe when setting the stoichiometry of the measured sample on the Database record input form. Make sure there is an empty space before 57Fe in the stoichiometry string in order to prevent MossWinn to (mis)interpret the mass number as the stoichiometric quantity of the preceding element, for example as in Eu(Ba1.3Pr0.7)(Cu0.99 57Fe0.01)3O7. (Concerning the syntax of the stoichiometry string see also the MossWinn help).

 

How should I indicate in the stoichiometry string that my sample was a mixture of different phases?

List all the phases in the stoichiometry string by having them separated by the sign of addition ( + ). It is recommended to indicate the molecular fractions of the different phases such that the sum of the fractions gives unity, for example as in the case of (Fe3O4)0.8 + ("α-"FeOOH)0.2. (Concerning the syntax of the stoichiometry string see also the MossWinn help).

 

What if the stoichiometry of my sample is either not possible or not practical to express with a simple chemical formula?

Use a symbolic name between double quotes to substitute the detailed formula, for example "Heme A".

 

I have measured my sample at room temperature. What should I write for the temperature when publishing the record?

Write an approximate value (e.g. 293, 295, 300, whichever is more appropriate) as the temperature on the Database record input form, and then add the keyword RT to the list of keywords.