What’s a DOI again?
11/08/2016

A DOI is a Digital Object Identifier and is often used as a persistent, unique identifier for an article, dataset, or other digital object. There are other ways to provide a persistent link to a digital object, but the DOI is probably the most common.
Why use them?
Citations for any digital object, such as articles or datasets, should include a DOI (as highlighted in our quick referencing guide pdf), but why? It’s because a DOI is permanent and can always be used to link to the resource.
It’s better than providing a link pointing to a publisher site, for example, in case the site name changes or the content moves to a different one. A DOI will never change and will always provide access to the object.
How do I use a DOI as a link to the object?
All DOIs start with 10 and include letters, numbers, and punctuation; two examples are 10.5284/1000389 and 10.17862/cranfield.rd.3380086.v1. They are also often seen in the format of a hyperlink, for example: https://doi.org/10.5284/1000389. This has three parts:
- https://doi.org – this is the resolver service
- 10.5284 – this is the prefix, which identifies the assigning body (for example, Cranfield University’s prefix is 10.17862)
- 1000389 – this is the suffix, which identifies the resource (each assigning body decides how to generate these suffixes, whether running numbers, random strings, or meaningful text; CORD uses ‘cranfield.rd.randomnumber’)
It’s very useful to remember that if you’re presented with a DOI which doesn’t take the form of a link, you can usually access the resource by prefixing it with “https://doi.org/”.
How do I get a DOI for my items?
If you publish a journal article, the publisher will assign it a DOI; this has been standard practice for a long time. But some other platforms are also able to generate DOIs. For example, CORD, Cranfield Online Research Data can assign DOIs, so any supporting research output published on CORD is given one. But do remember that obtaining a DOI for an item is a permanent step – so do only publish genuine items!
Does that mean I can’t edit something once it has a DOI?
No, don’t worry! Repositories often version items, so you’ll see in our example ‘10.17862/cranfield.rd.3380086.v1’ that it ends in ‘v1’. If a new version of the digital object is uploaded, that original DOI will still work and display that first version, but the new version will also be accessible with its own DOI of 10.17862/cranfield.rd.3380086.v2 and would be directly accessible at https://doi.org/10.17862/cranfield.rd.3380086.v2.
Image uses Teapot Barcode by Eppu Jensen available at https://www.flickr.com/photos/eppujensen/10732568604 under CC-BY-SA licence
Categories & Tags:
Leave a comment on this post:
You might also like…
Working on your internship report
Instead of producing a traditional thesis, as covered in our earlier post, some students in the School of Management - and perhaps some in other Cranfield Schools too - will embark upon on an internship ...
Embracing a Marketing and Leadership MSc Apprenticeship.
A Q&A with Faizah Azeem. Why did you decide to undertake a postgraduate apprenticeship in Marketing and Leadership? Cranfield delivers a unique programme that sits well with professionals wanting to develop themselves into expert ...
What is ‘Digital Forensic Science’?
Despite being a fundamental tool for many organisations and criminal justice systems around the world, arguably digital forensic science as a discipline does not always get the recognition it deserves in media broadcasts. Therefore, public ...
Pandemic PhD to prospects PhD
Hello, my name is Danni and I’m a third-year PhD student in the School of Water, Energy, and Environment specifically within the Soil, Agrifood and Biosciences department. My PhD focuses on how biostimulants (seaweeds, ...
Connected and Autonomous Vehicle Engineering (Automotive) MSc alumnus Sohan Pookolayil Varghese on Cranfield, his career path, and why the automotive industry is such an exciting place to be
Sohan Pookolayil Varghese completed the Connected and Autonomous Vehicle Engineering (Automotive) MSc in 2022. Here, he talks about his lifelong love of cars, why he chose Cranfield, and his career at Jaguar Land Rover where ...
Design as a Tool for Change
Design as a Tool for Change: Exploring Circular Economy and Sustainability through a visit to the Design Museum Design has become increasingly important in creating sustainable solutions for a better future. At the forefront ...