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4.11 Basic Inclusions

So you’ve got a sense of what columns to build, what to name them, and how to enter some of the basic information you come across.

The final thing to be aware of are some common columns that are worth adding to each of your spreadsheets to save you some headaches down the road.

When creating a spreadsheet or database to track historical information the following columns are almost always worth including:

  • Entry Numbers: This column is used to maintain the order of the information as it appeared in the original records. The next few pages will describe exactly what an entry number is and how to create one.
  • Source/Citation: This column records the source or sources that this row of information in your spreadsheet came from. While your entire dataset may all draw from the same source, including this as a column helps ensure that if your documentation ever gets separated from the excel file, you will always be able to double check your work. This is one of the rare columns that can contain multiple types of information (book, author, publisher) in a single column. I would, however, recommend separating out the page and url to make them easier to see/use.
  • URL of Source: If your sources come with a url (google books, internet archive etc.) it is worth include this as separate from the source/citation field. This lets a user quickly access the link.
  • Page Number of Source: It is worth separating out the page numbers for each source to make it easier to locate information. This is important because the page number may change row to row (eg. this information comes from page 56) even if the overarching source remains the same. Adding in specific page numbers early on takes a tiny bit of time compared to the huge amount of work it takes to locate the original records later on without them.
  • Notes: This column can contain any notes you have for yourself or other users of the spreadsheet. This can include additional information that doesn’t fit well anywhere else including errors or comments you wish to make. If you find yourself using this column frequently to record the same kind of issue, that is a sign that you should put that information in a column of its own. This column exists to store all the material that doesn’t have a place elsewhere in your database or spreadsheet. It is fine for this column to be largely blank.