1 Topic by Linda Moore

  • Linda Moore
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Topic: Retracting/finding out about access requests

I requested better access to 4 datasets from Butterfly Conservation, or so I thought. I ticked 4, and it stated 4. Now I've got a record of having sent requests out for 13 different datasets, all with a message meant for BC. But there's no column for which organisations are involved. So presumably several other organisations are under the impression that I've asked them for full access, accompanied by an inexplicable message. I can't contact them or cancel the request, despite those messages being effectively spam.

I would apologise for the spam, except it wasn't intentional, and I don't know who to apologise to. The same situation has happened to GCER, with people sheepishly contacting us and saying that, actually they never meant to ask us for access.

The Gateway is becoming a real nuisance; and despite the effort it takes to put information on board, it isn't actually that useful as far as I can tell. You need quite a good internet connection to get the interactive map to work, for example; I've never managed to get it to work in the office, only at home on the fibre-optic connection. This, plus the daft access permission system, is really trying my patience with the Gateway at the moment.

2 Reply by Linda Moore

  • Linda Moore
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Re: Retracting/finding out about access requests

I've just had a granted request for one of the datasets which I didn't actually ask for. But it doesn't say from whom, so I can't get in touch and explain. Why am I bothering with this thing when there's so much else to do? It's resulting in me wasting other peoples' time!

3 Reply by matt.debont

  • matt.debont
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  • Registered: 04-11-2013
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Re: Retracting/finding out about access requests

You can see the title of the dataset and search for that in the gateway from the access request page (https://data.nbn.org.uk/AccessRequest), I realise this isn't the best solution, I will log an issue to add a link to the dataset page from there so at least you can easily find out who owns the dataset.

With regards to the other issue, if you could tell me exactly what you did I can look into it and see what causes the problem, you may have requested access to hidden datasets for example which would cause an issue like this, but if I know roughly what you did I can try and see if there are other issues.

Matt Debont
Application Developer
Joint Nature Conservation Committee, Monkstone House, City Road, Peterborough PE1 1JY, UK

4 Reply by Linda Moore

  • Linda Moore
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Re: Retracting/finding out about access requests

Hi Matt,
Thanks for your reply. I have been searching the datasets to try and find out which providers I must have contacted. As you say, this seems to be the only way at present; you can't tell anything from the emails unless the provider emails directly.

I had indeed requested access to hidden datasets, but as none were subsequently referred to or listed as such, it didn't occur to me that the "extra" requests were these.  I can't find any reference to them being officially hidden, although I may have missed something.

5 Reply by matt.debont

  • matt.debont
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Re: Retracting/finding out about access requests

I will look into this issue as hidden datasets wont show up either in these results until granted/denied (ideally they should be closed to prevent feedback), so if you could let me know what you did roughly then I can see what may have occurred here.

Matt Debont
Application Developer
Joint Nature Conservation Committee, Monkstone House, City Road, Peterborough PE1 1JY, UK

6 Reply by Linda Moore

  • Linda Moore
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Re: Retracting/finding out about access requests

I requested access to Butterfly Conservation datasets in Gloucestershire, all dates, the butterfly ones not the moth ones. I ticked the "include hidden datasets" option.