Open Data Format: Codebook-based, multi-platform – new IASSIST Quarterly article

[Wenzig, Knut]

Dear colleagues,

We are pleased to share that our article has been published in the IASSIST Quarterly:

Introducing Open Data Format: A platform-independent, non-proprietary, metadata-enriched, multilingual data format for tabular data
by Tom Hartl, Xiaoyao Han, and Knut Wenzig
https://doi.org/10.29173/iq1166 

Abstract
This paper introduces the Open Data Format (ODF), a new, non-proprietary, metadata-enriched, and ZIP-compressed format for tabular data used alongside statistical software. ODF embeds structured, multilingual metadata directly within the data file using the well-established DDI-Codebook standard (DDI Alliance, 2014), enabling integrated access to both data and documentation within common statistical environments. Dedicated software packages for R, Stata, and Python allow users to seamlessly import, export, and explore both data and metadata, significantly improving the accessibility of documentation. The format combines a CSV file for the data and an XML file for the metadata, packaged together in a .odf.zip file.

As some content had to be shortened or rearranged to meet publication requirements, the following working paper may also be of interest:

Introducing Open Data Format: A Platform-Independent, Non-Proprietary, Metadata-Enriched, Multilingual Data Format and its Implementation in R and Stata
by Xiaoyao Han, Tom Hartl, and Knut Wenzig
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14215268 

Additional resources, including software packages, are available at:
https://opendataformat.github.io/ 

This work is funded by KonsortSWD / NFDI.

Best regards,
Knut