abstract
- Researchers rely more and more on online tools to conduct their research. In theory, the growing need for comprehensive information about online research outputs could be easily satisfied. Yet, the majority of scientometric sources are not completely open, which generates intransparent data and limits impact assessments. To illustrate, some proprietary databases that generate scientometric indicators do not disclose the raw data for users beyond traditional subscription-based models. At the same time, researchers' needs concerning scientometric indicators are not addressed adequately by these existing products. In contrast, the project ROSI (Reference Implementation for Open Scientific Indicators) focuses only on open data sources. A reference implementation to visualise related metrics from open data sources, such as open access repositories, will be developed. Throughout the project, the needs of researchers concerning scientometric indicators are gathered in an iterative process, and researchers will be invited to evaluate the project outcomes. The reference implementation will be documented in a user handbook and will be reusable in other contexts, such as research information systems, repositories and publishing software.