Episode
Episode 275: Richard J. Acton on Research Software Sharing, Publication, & Distribution Checklists (RSSPDC)
- Podcast
- Sustain
- Published
- Jun 27, 2025
- Duration seconds
- 1863
- Processing state
not_requested- Canonical source
- https://podcast.sustainoss.org/275
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Summary
Guest Richard J. Acton Panelist Richard Littauer Show Notes In this episode of Sustain, host Richard Littauer speaks with Richard J. Acton, a research data outputs manager at the Human Developmental Biology Initiative based near Cambridge. He discusses his involvement with open source software through bioinformatics and his development of a comprehensive checklist for researchers producing code. This checklist aims to guide researchers in making their software outputs more citable, reproducible, and user-friendly. The conversation delves into various themes covered by the checklist, such as source control, licensing, documentation, testing, and governance. He also shares his insights on the importance of open science and transparent research practices, the challenges of balancing open source work with academic demands, and the potential role of funders and publishers in supporting these efforts. Press download more to hear more! [00:00:43] Richard Acton explains his job at the Human Developmental Biology Initiative and how the checklist started. [00:01:23] He transitioned into open source via bioinformatics and Linux and advocates for open science and reproducibility in software. [00:02:26] We learn why the checklist was created and the design and structure of the checklist. [00:05:46] Richard Acton talks about lack and time and incentives prevent open sourcing and the how the checklist makes code more citable and boost academic recognition. [00:09:17] There’s a discussion on the trade-off between citing a paper vs. citing the code. [00:12:05] The tier system is mentioned and Richard Acton explains how the checklist encourages progression from bronze to platinum and goes over the key areas in the checklist categories. [00:14:21] Governance and community is discussed wi…