Downloading one of your works (datasets)

There are two ways in which a work (dataset) can be downloaded from ReSeeD. The method which is offered to the user for any particular work (dataset) depends on the size of the dataset.

Downloading a small dataset

If the dataset is small enough, it can be downloaded directly from the ReSeeD web interface.

From a view of one of your works (datasets), click the black button: "DOWNLOAD ALL". A pop-up window asking "Do you want to allow downloads on..." may be displayed: If it is displayed, click "allow".

A zip file is downloaded to your PC. Inside this zip file is a folder containing the files from the work (dataset), and a metadata file called metadata.json containing ReSeeD metadata for the work (dataset).

Downloading a large dataset

If the dataset is too large to be downloaded directly, the user will be prompted to download a script that can be run on their computer. This script will download the dataset in chunks, allowing the user to retrieve large datasets without overwhelming their internet connection or browser.

From a view of one of your works (datasets), look for the black button: "DOWNLOAD ALL". Below this, you will see text which reads:

You will be downloading a shell script, which you can use to download the files. The size of the complete download will be xMB. We will send you a notification when the shell script is ready for download. See faq for use of the shell script

Click the black button: "DOWNLOAD ALL". A pop-up window asking "Do you want to allow downloads on..." may be displayed: If it is displayed, click "allow".

A message will appear at the top of the page:

The download will take a few minutes. We will notify you when your download is ready

After a few minutes, you will receive a message in your ReSeeD notifications. Access your notifications by clicking the bell icon in the top right corner of the ReSeeD interface.

Notifications icon

The notification message will look like this:

Your download file is ready Your download is ready. Click here to download. Reference: xxxxxxx

Click on the download link in the notification message.

This will download a single file to your computer. The name of the file will be something like xxxxxxx.sh, where xxxxxxx is a unique identifier for the work (dataset) to be downloaded. This file is a type of "executable" file known as a shell script. A shell script is a text file containing commands which can be executed in a terminal or at a command prompt. The way in which you execute or "run" the shell script depends upon which operating system you are using.

Running the shell script on a Windows computer

(in these instructions, replace xxxxxxx.sh with the actual name of the shell script you downloaded)

We recommend installing Git for Windows, which includes a user-friendly Bash shell that integrates smoothly into the Windows environment.

Steps:

Step 1: Download and install Git for Windows, if you haven't already.

Note: During installation, enable the option "Associate .sh files to be run with Bash" for convenience. You may leave all other settings at their default values.

Configuring Git for Windows

Step 2: Run the shell script

Double-click the downloaded shell script file named xxxxxxx.sh (where xxxxxxx is the dataset identifier used by ReSeeD — you can find this in the dataset URL).

The download will begin automatically. The script creates a folder named xxxxxxx in your current directory, where all the downloaded files will be saved.

For a more detailed guide on installation, including a video tutorial, refer to the Software Carpentry: https://carpentries.github.io/workshop-template/install_instructions/#git

Running the shell script on a Mac or Linux computer

(in these instructions, replace xxxxxxx.sh with the actual name of the shell script you downloaded)

  1. Open a terminal window.
  2. Navigate to the directory where the shell script was downloaded. You can use the cd command to change directories. For example, if the script is in your Downloads folder, you might type: 
    cd ~/Downloads
  3. Make the shell script executable by running the command: 
    chmod +x xxxxxxx.sh
  4. Run the shell script by typing: 
    ./xxxxxxx.sh
  5. The script will start downloading the files. It will create a directory named xxxxxxx in the current directory, within which the files will be saved.