NRL Policies

Metadata Policy

For information describing items in the repository.

1. Anyone may access the metadata free of charge.
2. The metadata may be re-used in any medium without prior permission for not-for- profit purposes provided the OAI Identifier or a link to the original metadata record is given.

Data Policy

For full-text and other full data items.

1. Access to some items is controlled.
2. Single copies of full items can be:
   1. reproduced, displayed or performed, and given to third parties in any format or medium.
   2. for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-profit purposes without prior permission or charge.
   provided:
   3. the authors, title and full bibliographic details are given.
   4. a hyperlink and/or URL are given for the original metadata page.
   5. the content is not changed in any way.
3. Full items must not be harvested by robots except transiently for full-text indexing or citation analysis.
4. Full items must not be sold commercially in any format or medium without formal permission of the copyright holders.
5. This repository is not the publisher, it is merely the online archive.

Content Policy

For types of document and data set held

1. This is an institutional or departmental repository for Northumbria University research
2. The repository holds all types of research materials. Items may include:
   1. journal articles
   2. books, chapters and sections
   3. reports
   4. conference papers
   5. datasets
   6. exhibitions
   7. images and non-text materials
   8. theses
3. Deposited items may include:
   1. submitted versions (as sent to journals for peer-review) – pre-prints
   2. accepted versions (author's final peer-reviewed drafts) – pre-prints
   3. published versions (publisher-created files) – post-prints
4. Items may be individually tagged with:
   1. their peer-review status.
   2. their publication status.

Submission Policy

Concerning depositors, quality and copyright

1. Items may only be deposited by accredited members, academic staff, and registered students of the organisation, or their delegated agents.
2. Authors may only submit their own work for archiving.
3. The administrator only vets items for the eligibility of authors/depositors, relevance to the scope of the repository, valid layout and format, and the exclusion of spam.
4. The validity and authenticity of the content of submissions is the sole responsibility of the depositor.
5. Items can be deposited at any time, but will not be made publicly visible until any publishers' or funders' embargo period has expired.
6. Any copyright violations are entirely the responsibility of the authors/depositors.(For mediated depositing the NRL administrators will assist with basic copyright checking)
7. If the repository receives proof of copyright violation, the relevant item will be removed immediately.

Preservation Policy

1. Items will be retained indefinitely unless University policy requires otherwise.
2. The repository will try to ensure continued readability and accessibility.
   1. Items will be migrated to new file formats where necessary.
   2. Where possible, software emulations will be provided to access un-migrated formats.
3. The repository regularly backs up its files according to current best practice.
4. Items may not normally be removed from the repository.
5. Acceptable reasons for withdrawal include:
   1. Proven copyright violation or plagiarism
   2. Legal requirements and proven violations
   3. National Security
   4. Falsified research
6. Withdrawn items are not deleted per se, but are removed from public view.
7. Withdrawn items' identifiers/URLs are retained indefinitely.
8. URLs will continue to point to 'tombstone' citations, to avoid broken links and to retain item histories.
9. Changes to deposited items are not permitted.
10. Errata and corrigenda lists may be included with the original record if required.
11. If necessary, an updated version may be deposited.
    1. The earlier version may be withdrawn from public view.
    2. There will be links between earlier and later versions, with the most recent version clearly identified.
12. In the event of the repository being closed down, the database will be transferred to another appropriate archive.

Contacts

Further information may be obtained from:

as.researchlink@northumbria.ac.uk