Tutorials
The following tutorials have been developed for Cotsen Institute of Archaeology affiliates and contain topics and examples tailored towards cultural heritage research, archaeology and conservation. Frequently these tutorials accompany workshops held by the DAL – check out the workshop recordings here to see more.
- ArcGIS Pro for Cultural Heritage
- ArcGIS for Archaeologists (ArcGIS Desktop – will be retired in 2026, recommend using ArcGIS Pro instead)
Guides and resources
Data management
Archaeology Data Service/Digital Antiquity Guides to Good Practice
Comprehensive guides describing best practices for the collection, management, and preservation of archaeological data. Ever wonder what type of metadata you should collect when doing photogrammetry? How much documentation is enough on an excavation? What file format is most accessible to my colleagues, present and future? These guides answer these questions and more! They are updated periodically so check back regularly.
Data Management Plans (DMP)
Whether writing your first DMP or just your most recent, it helps to have the right tools and support. Check out our page on writing a DMP at UCLA or reach out to get help!
Top 10 Things for FAIR Data in Archaeology
FAIR data is Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable- all qualities of significant importance within archaeology. This resource introduces concepts and activities to guide the reader through the process of producing and managing FAIR archaeological data.
Data Management Skill-building Hub
Online resources to learn about and develop data management skills.
Data cleaning and analysis
OpenRefine – tool that allows you to quickly explore and clean datasets. Each step is automatically documented so you know what has been changed and you can re-run processes. These data cleaning lessons give an overview of how to use OpenRefine with archaeological data.
Data preservation and reuse
Repositories and publishing services
Digital Antiquity (tDAR and ADS) – Repositories specializing in the long-term preservation of archaeological datasets. ADS serves archaeologists from or working in the UK, tDAR accepts data more broadly.
Open Context – Publishing service for archaeological data that also deposits datasets in the repository at CDL.
Storage and backups
UCLA Box Accounts – Virtually unlimited free cloud storage. Extensive options for setting permissions with collaborators and sharing files.
Collaboration tools
Open Science Framework (OSF) – Platform designed to facilitate collaborative research.
Permissions and publishing
Guidelines for fair use – resources to help understand fair use and how to determine if something you would like to include in your publication falls under fair use.
Want more? Check out tutorials from the IDRE Sandbox or find software/technical tutorials on LinkedIn Learning (formerly called Lynda.com) which is free for any LA resident with a Los Angeles Public Library card.