The Imaging Plaza: A Curated Online Catalog of FAIR Imaging Software

The Imaging Plaza: A Curated Online Catalog of FAIR Imaging Software

Category

Explore

Institutions

EPFL

Data type

Imaging codes

Field

Biomedical Imaging

Researchers

Michael Unser, Laurène Donati, Oksana Riba Grognuz

Description

The Imaging Plaza is a newly developed online catalog designed to improve the visibility and accessibility of imaging software created by the scientific community in the ETH domain. Its purpose is to help researchers, particularly non-experts, easily discover and utilize this specialized software by offering guidance and support. Unlike other platforms that host code, The Imaging Plaza serves as a directory, guiding users through a curated selection of imaging tools and providing insights on their usability through a new "FAIR level" framework. This framework evaluates how accessible and reusable each piece of software is, ensuring that users can navigate the options with confidence. Ultimately, the platform aims to accelerate the sharing of imaging tools within the ETH domain. So far, a beta version of the platform has been successfully launched, featuring basic functionalities such as search, log-in, and software upload. An imaging-specific ontology has been created, and a graph-based backend allows for efficient categorization and software discovery. We have identified 25 mature imaging software programs from EPFL that have been curated and added to the platform. The uploading of additional software from the ETH domain is underway. To streamline this uploading process, an automatic system has been implemented to fetch relevant metadata from software repositories. Additionally, a set of criteria to assess the "FAIRness" of software has been defined and incorporated into the platform. In the next phase, we plan to continue expanding the catalog, improving user experience, and refining the FAIR level framework to ensure maximum utility for the ETH Domain scientific community and beyond. The Imaging Plaza is a joint endeavor between the EPFL Center for Imaging and the Swiss Data Science Center (SDSC).
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