Skip to content

Southern Fried Science

Over 15 years of ocean science and conservation online

  • Home
  • About SFS
  • Authors
  • Support SFS

Documentation is the beating heart of open-science hardware: Help make ours better!

Posted on October 6, 2017 By Andrew Thaler
Oceanography for Everyone
Four generations of OpenCTD.

The OpenCTD and Oceanography for Everyone has been a five year journey from inception to first field-ready model and we’re just getting started. Building a community-driven project like this requires not just expertise (that we didn’t have when we started), passion, resources, it requires documentation. Extensive, detailed, thorough documentation. Documentation is what sets an open-science hardware project apart from just another lab hack. It allows other users to replicate and validate your design. It’s the key ingredient that makes a project like the OpenCTD actually Open.

As we’ve expanded the OpenCTD, we’ve maintained comprehensive instructions for construction and operation. We’ve included notes from critical field deployments, raw data for comparisons, hardware tests, and support software.

In a lot of ways, documentation is the peer-review of open-science hardware projects.

We need your help! We are in the midst of preparing our first hardware manuscript for the OpenCTD. This paper will be a benchmark for the project and provide a citable resource for CTD users. As part of the manuscript, we will archive a static version of the OpenCTD documentation in a permanent repository for reference. Here’s what we need from you:

  • If you’ve built an OpenCTD, let us know! How did the build go? Were there places where the instructions were unclear?
  • If you have the time, give the instructions a read-through and let us know if they’re clear.
  • If you’ve been waiting to build an OpenCTD, now is a great time to do it!

Hey Team Ocean! Southern Fried Science and Oceanography for Everyone is supported by contributions from our readers. Head over to Patreon to help keep our servers running an fund new and novel ocean outreach projects. Even a dollar or two a month will go a long way towards keeping our website online and producing the high-quality marine science and conservation content you love.

Share this:

  • Click to share on Bluesky (Opens in new window) Bluesky
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit
  • Click to share on Threads (Opens in new window) Threads
  • Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window) WhatsApp
  • Click to share on Mastodon (Opens in new window) Mastodon

Related

Tags: OpenCTD

Post navigation

❮ Previous Post: The most shocking, insightful ocean conservation solutions, as presented by a poorly-built Twitter bot.
Next Post: Lessons from Puerto Rico, mutant starfish, pictures of ships, and more! Monday Morning Salvage: October 9, 2017. ❯

You may also like

https://www.patreon.com/andrew_thaler/about
Blogging
Small drops make mighty oceans: 10 years as a scientist on Patreon
May 1, 2024
Education
Great conservation technology programs thrive on weird little projects
February 13, 2024
Science
Two weeks left to Support the OpenCTD and help us build an oceanographic tool for everyone!
August 5, 2013
Uncategorized
Watch Blue Pints Episode 6: Science Online Oceans and Hacking the Ocean
April 30, 2013

Recent Popular Posts

David Attenborough's Ocean is on Hulu and Disney+. Let's watch together and discuss it!David Attenborough's Ocean is on Hulu and Disney+. Let's watch together and discuss it!June 16, 2025David Shiffman
Marine Biology Career AdviceMarine Biology Career AdviceMay 30, 2025David Shiffman
The story of the pride flag made from NASA imagery: Bluesky's most-liked imageThe story of the pride flag made from NASA imagery: Bluesky's most-liked imageSeptember 27, 2024David Shiffman
Shark of Darkness: Wrath of Submarine is a fake documentaryShark of Darkness: Wrath of Submarine is a fake documentaryAugust 10, 2014Michelle Jewell
How many nuclear weapons are at the bottom of the sea. An (almost certainly incomplete) census of broken arrows over water.How many nuclear weapons are at the bottom of the sea. An (almost certainly incomplete) census of broken arrows over water.July 26, 2018Andrew Thaler
Here's what I teach my students about finding jobs in marine biology and conservationHere's what I teach my students about finding jobs in marine biology and conservationApril 10, 2024David Shiffman
What is a Sand Shark?What is a Sand Shark?November 12, 2017Chuck Bangley
Our favorite sea monsters – Ningen (#4)Our favorite sea monsters – Ningen (#4)September 7, 2010Andrew Thaler
Megalodon: the New Evidence is a fake documentaryMegalodon: the New Evidence is a fake documentaryAugust 7, 2014David Shiffman
What can the funniest shark memes on the internetz teach us about ocean science and conservation?What can the funniest shark memes on the internetz teach us about ocean science and conservation?November 8, 2013David Shiffman
Subscribe to our RSS Feed for updates whenever new articles are published.

We recommend Feedly for RSS management. It's like Google Reader, except it still exists.

Southern Fried Science

  • Home
  • About SFS
  • Authors
  • Support SFS


If you enjoy Southern Fried Science, consider contributing to our Patreon campaign.

Copyright © 2025 Southern Fried Science.

Theme: Oceanly Premium by ScriptsTown