Revision of How to use the Weevil Site from Tue, 2008-11-25 10:30

Introduction

Scratchpads are an easy to use, social networking application that enable communities of researchers to manage, share and publish taxonomic data online. Sites are hosted at the Natural History Museum London, and offered free to any scientist that completes an online registration form. The weevil scratchpad is dedicated in the first place to weevil systematics and taxonomy, but is by its nature responsive to the way in which we, the users, chose to develop it.

How to use the weevil site

Instructions on how to use scratchpads can be found at http://scratchpads.eu/help These are currently being updated and may be incomplete, so any questions you have which are not answered there please e-mail c.lyal@nhm.ac.uk. While anyone can look at the content and use the links, to add to the content and make use of the blogs, fora etc you have to be registered as a contributor.

Search

The search functionality is either unconstrained [in which case you simply enter a term (for example an author's name to search the Bibliography) and click on the Search button] or constrained to a taxon term in the Alonso-Zarazaga & Lyal tree. In the latter case click on 'Taxonomy' above the search box, wait until a small citcle has appeared at the right of the box, then enter your name. If it is in the tree it will appear below the search box (or a selection if you have only types part of the name). Select the name you want (even if there is only one) and then click on the search button.

Taxon pages

Information on taxa can be found using the classifications on the left of your screen. The Weevil Community Website currently holds two classifications: one emended from Alonso-Zarazaga & Lyal (1999) which extends to genus level, and one from Oberprieler et al (2007) which goes only as far as subfamily. There is further discussion of why these two classifications have been chosen following the ‘Notes on Classifications' link at the top left of the screen.

Although there are only a very few species currently included, more can be added as we require them. Only users with appropriate permission will be able to add species or change the tree (for example by moving genera between supra-generic groups); currently only the Administrator had access to that functionality.

By clicking on a taxon name you can open the tree 'beneath' that name, and by clicking on the cross (+) next to the name you can open a page where information, images etc can be added. Each page contains a set of ‘panels', as follows:

Taxon Information. Includes added text on Descriptions, Ecology/biology and Economic notes. Any registered contributor can add to these, and if we find we want additional content types to this panel I can add them.

Web Images. These are images resulting from a simple web search, and can be opened to a full view and their source found through a right-click of the mouse. Like most web searches, this will return any image with the same name, so as usual it does show misidentifications, pictures of miscellaneoius classical gods, boats etc.

GBIF Map. This is generated on the fly from data moderated through GBIF, and reflects only what GBIF can access under the name. As we include species on the site the information may become more complete.

Bibliography. Currently with little content, but this can be added to by registered contributors. This extracts publications relevant to the taxon from the full bibliography being created for the site.

Google Scholar. References generated on the fly from a search of Google Scholar for the taxon. As with the images, it will return any use of the name, or where the name forms part of another term.

Images. Images uploaded to the site by registered contributors. Currently with no content.

Biodiversity Heritage Library. References generated on the fly from a search of the BHL for the taxon name.

Files. Uploaded files containing relevant material. Currently little content.

NCBI. Links to Genbank for sequence data for the taxon. The panel also includes some external links to name servers.

Current Resources

On the left-hand column this provides links to key web sites of interest to weevil taxonomists. Registered contributors are invited to add to these. There is also a link to the forum discussions. We have created a number of potential subjects, but more can be added.


Scratchpads developed and conceived by (alphabetical): Ed Baker, Katherine Bouton Alice Heaton Dimitris Koureas, Laurence Livermore, Dave Roberts, Simon Rycroft, Ben Scott, Vince Smith